Bill V, Mongo--Can I extend an existing tile floor by adding tile

11 years ago

I'm hoping to add a second sink/vanity to our only second floor bathroom serving 3 bedrooms. We'd have to remove the wall behind the existing vanity that's opposite the bath entry door, and push that wall back 3' into a storage area. Then we'd put 2 vanities (27" & 42") along the left wall. This part of the bathroom is 54" wide; the part of the wall that the vanities will be on is about 6'. The tub & toilet room (5' x 8') is separated from the vanity area by a wall and connecting door to the right.

Plan B would be to push the wall back only 2' and have the vanities in an L configuation, with the 27" one on the left, a 15" wide set of drawers on the left, the corner covered with the counter, and the other 36" vanity opposite the main door. We wouldn't get a towel closet or access to the remainder of the storage area, but maybe with less floor to tile this version might work out better?

The 2" x 2" tile was set in a mud base 6 years ago. Is it possible to successfully extend the mud base back 3 or 4' and lay new tile in that area? Or do we need to tear out all of the tile in that part of the bathroom and put a sill between it and the tub/toilet part of the bathroom?

If neither is possible (I know it wouldn't look great, since I can't match the tile), is there anything else we can do short of retiling both parts of the bathroom? I hate to think of the cost of tearing out almost new tile and redoing it all. Would the mud base have to be torn out also?

Any suggestions and help are greatly appreciated!

Anne

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Comments (6)

bill_vincent
11 years ago
If this were over plywood and cement board it wouldn't be much of a problem, so long as you could get the new floor to come flush to the old one. But being that this is a mudset, you would probably do well to caulk the joint between the new and old, being that you have no wire lath going between the two to reinforce it.
jimandanne_mi
Original Author
11 years ago
Bill, thank you for your response.

I'd always thought of caulk as not being much of a good fix for most things, because it never seems to hold up well or for long. Wouldn't this be the case here, or is tile different, or is there a special caulk used with tile that you're referring to that is more durable that that used between a tub and a tile wall?

After thinking about this some more, it's clear that I need to consider Plan B and do the L configuration if it's to work at all because of the tile situation.

So the next question is:
--How far back would he likely have put the mud base? When we remodeled our old place, the mud went to the wall at the back of the vanity.
--Is this what is normally done?

If the tiler slapped down 12 x 12 sheets of the 2" tile, there probably is about 5" under the existing cabinet. If the mud base goes to the back of this vanity, that would give me another 13", giving me ~18" total depth, and I have enough leftover sheets of tile to cover this.
--So if the mud base is there, shouldn't we be able to lay tile on it?
--If the mud base is too rough, can it be either ground down in the high places or filled in with the setting compound?
--How deep can the setting compound be and still do its job properly?

Thanks for whatever clarity you can provide!

Anne
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chinchette
11 years ago
My handy man flopped on my flip house. We didn't pass the credit card test. We are off on some by almost a 16th inch. The tile is 18x18 and I think it has at least 1/16th warp variance. We pulled the tile today and are going to start over. The first install, he was trying for 1/16th inch grout lines. Should we move up to 3/16ths? I am thinking an 8th may be risky.

He did not use self leveling compound. If he came up with less than 1/16th lippage, does that mean the slab is flat enough to do it with an 8th or 3/8ths line?

Reading prior threads, I think that the thin set may have shrunk.
chinchette
11 years ago
whoops, I was trying to start a new thread. Sorry.
longtimer
11 years ago
jimandanne--

Yes, yes, yes, and skim it first to fill any divots, let it set up overnight, and then come back the next day and set over it.
jimandanne_mi
Original Author
11 years ago
longtimer, many thanks! That's what we'll do.

Anne