fitting vinyl over tiles?

[mro]

Hi, I am about prepare my kitchen for when the vinyl we are going to order is fitted.

I assumed that under the laminate flooring would be concrete and I would have to use levelling compound, which I was going to tackle myself.

The floor is on two levels, I had a peek under one side and it seems there is already a level of something 4mm ish grey on top of the conrete, I'm assumming this has already been done with compound ? then a blue sheet (membrane?) - I'm assuming if when I get all the boards up and the whole area has this layer then Im good for that side. Just allow the fitters to stick the vinyl down onto that, ditch the blue membrane. (I assume the concrete slab underneath will have a dpm and the blue membrane was for the laminates benefit, plus I really can't see how I would use the membrane anyway if the vinyl is going onto leveling compound on top of the concrete)

The other side I think may be more tricky - am I ok to pour leveling compound over the tiles ? The reason I say this is I dont want to disturb the concrete floor by nailing ply as I don't know what pipes are under there - and we have had damp issues with the walls, which is now sorted - but I dont want to open up a new problem by making holes in the floor.

If compound is ok over the tiles, how should I prep the tiles to make sure the compound doesn't fail ? does it need painting with a primer or keying in some way ? and also I heard a water based compound is the easiest to use and hardwearing, is there any reason why I couldnt use water based on top of tiles ?

Wow long post, thought I would get all my concerns out in one go, so I can go and get all materials.

What I'm trying to avoid is having to take all the tiles up - but if it has to be done then I'll do it. Im just a little worried about what's underneath and how much prepping that would involve.

Cheers

 

[lymmranger]

What do you mean by vinyl?
Do you mean vinyl cushion floor? or do you mean a vinyl tile (Karndean type floor)

Each needs different preperation

Vinyl cushion floor needs a smooth blemish free surface

LVT tiles need a correctly prepared sub floor and is best left to a professional

It sounds like you are getting pro`s in so why not ask their advice

Oh - you will get a better response if you had posted this in the correct section - floors stairs and lofts

 

[mro]

Hi, I meant just a roll of vinyl flooring like lino, Im going to get it fitted but trying to cut some costs of prepping if the floor needs levelling etc.

I'm not to bad with DIY, done plastering, rendering etc before so I'm thinking this might not be too much of a stretch for me - But I def want to leave the fitting to the pro.

Thanks for the tip, I'll try the other forum - I didn't spot that !

 

[lymmranger]

ok then as above you need to ensure that your floor is smooth and blemish free....

although screed is preferable you may get away with self levelling compound. It really depends how perfect a result yoiu are looking for and how much money you are prepared to spend!!
DIY feasibility really depends on how much needs doing and how different the levels are - this is difficult to advise over the net!
...maybe some pictures may help?

 

[mro]

thanks for the reply, I spoke to the place where I'm getting the flooring from, they suggested that as long as the laminate flooring was all in good condition and tight up and totally flat, then fitting the vinyl over that should be fine.

Plus I'm unsure if a layer of floor levelling compound might eventually fail on the tiles.

Ideally I would rather take the whole lot up rather than having tile->laminate->vinyl, but I don't know what that's going to unearth under the tiles, and we are on a limited budget.

So unless someone thinks i might be lining myself up for futre problems, I may go down that route.

Cheers

 

[mro]

Ok. All change again I had a peek last night, took a few boards up, and then had a go at taking a few tiles up to see how easy they would come up, and they came up with no fuss. and the concrete seems to be in good condition.

So I will be going down the route of using a floor levelling compound, The only thing I'm a little confused about is how important it is to chose the type, ie water based or latex/acrylic.

Everything I have read seems to say stay away from latex, and also that waterbased is the best and flows well, which is what I am after as I haven't done this job before.

Im just wondering about moisture though - it seems dry as a bone, and must have been down for a good 10-15 years as least as far as I know - so am I ok to use a water based compound ? or am i best plumping for latex if I can't test the floor professonaly for moisture?

Also my local merchants sells everbuild, Is this a budget brand, or is it ok to use ? I have heard of some places selling compounds that fail or not very good.

Cheers