Remove Floor Tile
Removing ceramic, porcelain or natural stone tile from the floor can be noisy, messy and backbreaking work. Removing floor tile from concrete slab is a job you can do yourself with quite a bit of effort and the right tools. You're in luck if the tile is mounted on concrete board. Removing the board with the tile is an easier undertaking, and replacing the board doesn't cost a lot.
Contents
Steps
Removing Tile From Concrete Slab
- Wear protective clothing and gear to remove floor tile. Experts recommend the following:
- Long pants and a thick, long-sleeve shirt to protect your body from flying debris.
- Leather gloves to protect your hands from sharp tile pieces, especially when removing porcelain tile.
- Wraparound eye protection to prevent tile pieces from flying into your eyes.
- Ear protection while operating power tools.
- Knee pads when kneeling on the floor.
- Breakup the tile using hand tools or rent a power tool. Here are your options:
- Strike the tile with a small sledgehammer.
- Rent a power scraper from a tool rental dealer or home improvement store. This has a wide blade mounted on two wheels that you can push along and pry up the tile.
- Rent an electric demolition chipping hammer, which looks like a handheld jackhammer. When placed against the edge of a tile, the steel chisel bit moves in a rapid-fire action and pulverizes it.
- Loosen remaining tile with a handheld scraper mounted on a long pole or hit the handle of a 3-inch putty knife with a hammer.
- Sweep up small shards of tile using a broom and spade or vacuum them up with a shop vacuum.
Removing Tile From Cement Board
- Select a place to begin where the tile floor merges with another type of flooring, such as carpet.
- Remove one 12-inch tile or an area that's as wide as your shovel and at least a few inches into the tile floor.
- Chip out the grout with a putty knife and hammer.
- Wedge the putty knife under the tile with the hammer and try to pry it up.
- Strike the cement board underneath the removed tile with a hammer to pulverize it and expose the wood subfloor.
- Pry up the cement board, leaving the tile attached, with a pry bar or flat spade. If the cement board was secured with roofing nails this task should be fairly easy. If it was installed with screws, the board will break into pieces and the screws may need to be removed afterward.
Tips
- Place a tarp or other piece of fabric over the tile to contain the broken pieces before using a sledgehammer.
Warnings
- Make sure the flooring doesn't contain asbestos before attempting to remove floor tile yourself.
- Removing floor tile creates an immense amount of dust. Seal off the room as much as possible and cover carpet, furniture and other belongings before beginning demolition.
Things You'll Need
- Protective clothing
- Leather gloves
- Eye and ear protection
- Kneepads
- Small sledgehammer
- Power scraper
- Electric demolition chipping hammer
- Handheld scraper
- Putty knife
- Hammer
- Broom
- Flat spade
- Shop vacuum
- Pry bar
- Tarp
