Laying Membrane On Concrete Floor

Plywood isn t suitable because it s too flexible and it isn t waterproof.

Laying membrane on concrete floor.

In most cases your builder will install your floor although it is possible to do it on a diy basis but it is not a one man task. When installing a ceramic tile floor on a concrete subfloor you don t have to worry about flexing as long as the concrete slab is at least 1 1 8 inch thick which most slabs are. You will need to apply thinset to the concrete and smooth the membrane sheets down with a trowel. A damp proof membrane is put down.

We suggest 1 part cement 2 1 2 parts sand and 4 parts aggregate. Purchase an anti fracture membrane to lay over your leveled concrete. You can purchase it in sheets or in liquid form. The concrete slab needs to be made from a medium strength mix.

Opt to cut sheets of ditra membrane to fit the area you are tiling. This will help prevent cracking of tiles. Don t add too much water as you want the mix to be fairly stiff. Lay down a sheet of crack isolation membrane before tiling if your concrete floor is severely damaged or aged.

Warning never lay tile over a damaged concrete floor without repairing it or your. Concrete may be rigid enough but it s also prone to moisture and it can expand contract and crack. Concrete expands and contracts and that type of movement can also crack the tiles and the grout. Correct imperfections in the floor so that it s smooth and level.

Installing a dpm floor membrane above concrete slabs. Ceramic and porcelain tile are so frequently installed at or above grade level on a cement board underlayment or directly on plywood that it almost seems novel to install tile directly on concrete. Start at the wall furthest away from the doorway and lay the concrete in strips across the room of no more than 600mm wide. Hardcore or a type 1 floor seal is compacted using a whacker plate.

Sand blinding will take place if necessary. Roll out the membrane on the floor and cut it to size allowing a quarter inch for expansion at the perimeter. Before installing an uncoupling membrane thoroughly clean your substrate to remove dust grease and other contaminants. Installing tile directly on concrete.

However you re not out of the woods. If you re going to install floor tile you need some kind of underlayment like cementboard tile backerboard or an uncoupling membrane. This isolates the slab below from any floor covering applied above.