Tiling suspended wood floor

[Jim_cam]

Hi all -- thanks in advance for any help you can offer.

I've ripped out the bathroom at my new place; it was in a wretched state, with tiles coming off, water damage everywhere, and a disgusting thin lino floor laid down directly on top of floorboards.

I want to tile the floor once I've fixed the plumbing. My question is: should I pull out the existing floorboards and fix plywood directly onto the joists (then ditra mat or equivalent), or should I repair the floorboards where necessary, fix plywood on top of them, then add the ditra mat and tile?

-- And, if you advise keeping the floorboards, what thickness ply should I use?

Cheers!

 

[foxhole]

If replacing with ply then 22-25mm ply, it’s also important to choose good quality tile , some types are so weak that even tiny movement in floor can cause hairline cracking .

 

[Jim_cam]

Ok, cheers - so do you reckon it would be best to have the floorboards out altogether and replace with 22/25 ply? Or would keeping the boards minimise any movement?

 

[foxhole]

Keeping boards is just another layer that can fail .

 

[L95]

Why not replace the ply with something better such as Jackoboard, Wedi or Hardiebacker? Pays dividends in the long run as wood + moisture = no fun.