Tiles are great and when used on the wall or floor, they give such a nice appearance. Just like any other house materials and wares, tiles need to be replaced from time to time. This can be due to wear and tear or just as a way of changing the style and design of the home.
When removing tiles, you can either hire companies to come and do it on your behalf or alternatively, you can do it yourself. Tile removal companies have specialized equipment and staff who are experienced at working on this type of job. While some of them are formally trained, others are just gaining their knowledge through apprenticeship. These companies would assess the state and need there is for the removal of the tiles before embarking on the exercise.
If you decide to do it yourself, you may need to either buy or borrow some of the equipment to be used during the tile removal process. Whether you hire professional services or do it yourself, there is a procedure that you need to be aware of that is normally used for the removal of tiles. It is a step-wise approach that has been tested and is used by reputable companies.
Step 1: Breaking Up Of the Tiles
When installed on the floor, tiles are usually stuck with a very thick adhesive that makes it difficult to remove them. This is what necessitates breaking up of the tiles during the removal process. Broken tiles may never be useful again in flooring but can be used elsewhere such as in the filling up of potholes and pits. To break the tiles you need to have a sledge hammer and a tarp or towel. The procedure is simple; all you need is to just place the tarp over the section of the tile that needs to be removed. The towel prevents the shards from flying up. The tile is then struck with the sledge hammer through the towel making the tile break into pieces.
Step 2: Scraping Of the Broken Tile
After breaking up the tile into pieces it is common to have some pieces remaining on the floor together with the adhesive. Because this must be removed too, you need to have a hand scraper. This tool will be used to remove the remaining pieces and the floor adhesive that is usually tough and hardened. If you are doing this yourself, you may have to rent a power-scraper for a whole day which you can use to make your job simpler. If on the other hand you are using hired services, then this will be taken care of. The advantage the power-scraper has is that it gets underneath the tile pieces and breaks them up together with the adhesive leaving a well scraped and ready to work-on surface. You need to buy more than one blade just in case one breaks up. Use ear protection while working with the scraper.
Step 3: Floor Cleaning
Breaking and scraping of the tile pieces definitely results in a very dirty and cluttered floor. This means that for any sensible work to go on, you need to ensure that the floor is cleaned and scrubbed well. The two most essential equipments to use for the floor cleaning are a shop vacuum and broom. While the broom will sweep the large particles and pile them in one corner, the task of the vacuum cleaner is to absorb all those small particles that the broom cannot possibly clean. It also absorbs any dust particles leaving the floor clean and dust free.
Step 4: Check the Floor for Bumps
In the course of tile, floors usually develop small bumps even with the tiles on. You therefore need to check for any bumps after a successful tile removal exercise. You need to use a flashlight positioned parallel to the floor so that you can detect any bumps. When shone by the flashlight, these bumps cast shadows. You need to scrape the bumps away and then clean the entire floor.
Step 5: Smooth Gouges
To make this process successful, you need to use a floor leveling compound. This compound will fill any deep gouges and leave a smooth surface where the replacement flooring can be done.
Author Bio
Melissa is a flooring expert who has been working for floor and tile replacement companies all her time. She at one time made a presentation at Brisbanefloorgrinding.com.au which staff there always remembers her for. She does blogging in her free time.
