How to Prepare a Vinyl Floor for Ceramic Tile

By
Lee Wallender
Lee Wallender
Lee Wallender
Lee has over two decades of hands-on experience remodeling, fixing, and improving homes, and has been providing home improvement advice for years.
Learn more about The Spruce's Editorial Process
Updated on 12/27/23
Reviewed by
Kelly Bacon
Kelly Bacon
Reviewed by Kelly Bacon
Kelly Bacon is a licensed general contractor with over 40 years of experience in construction, home building and remodeling, and commercial building. He is a member of The Spruce Home Improvement Review Board.
Learn more about The Spruce's Review Board
Two Ways to Install Tile over Flooring

The Spruce / Kelly Miller

In This Article
Project Overview
  • Working Time: 6 - 8 hrs
  • Total Time: 1 - 2 days
  • Skill Level: Intermediate
  • Estimated Cost: $100 to $500
  • Yield: 1 room

Installing tile over vinyl or linoleum flooring is possible as long as the base is solid. This saves you from the often labor-intensive job of removing the old flooring. It's also a good way to deal with vinyl that you suspect may contain asbestos. Find out how to install tile directly over vinyl or linoleum flooring, safety considerations, and this method's limitations.

Before You Begin

The floor covering, its subfloor, and the underlying joists must be solid. The subfloor and joists that comprise the floor structure must exhibit minimal flexing and deflection. This ensures that the floor will hold up under the substantial weight of ceramic tile and live and dead loads.

Tile Over Vinyl or Linoleum: Limitations

You may not be able to install tile over vinyl or linoleum if:

  • New flooring will be too high: An additional layer of flooring applied directly over the old floor will make it thicker and raise the overall height of the flooring. While transitions can help between rooms, extra floor thickness can cause problems along the baseboard trim or at door frames.
  • Vinyl is extensively peeling: Vinyl flooring is bonded to a backing, and these two can eventually pull apart. Some areas of peeling vinyl can be fixed, but extensive areas mean that you won't be able to install tile on top.
  • Vinyl is cushioned: Resilient flooring with a cushioned base will not work under ceramic tile.
  • Vinyl is not attached to the subfloor: Most luxury vinyl planks are not suitable for tiling over because this flooring typically is laid as a floating floor, with no adhesive.

Safety Considerations

Vinyl flooring manufactured before 1975 may have some amount of asbestos as part of its composition. This type of flooring should not be sanded, cut, or disturbed in any way.

What You'll Need

Equipment / Tools

  • Bucket and mop
  • Breathing protection
  • Hearing protection
  • Eye protection
  • Oscillating sander
  • Utility knife
  • Cordless drill

Materials

  • Sandpaper
  • TSP cleaner
  • Thinset adhesive
  • Screws
  • Leveling compound

Instructions

  1. Assess the Floor

    Soft, thin, or damaged subflooring or undersized joists can flex too much, leading to cracked tile and grout joints.

    If flooring thickness permits, one remedy is to install a layer of new plywood subfloor over the resilient flooring.

  2. Spot Repair Floor

    Check for protrusions such as nails, and either pull them up with a claw hammer or pound them back into place. If any parts of the vinyl or linoleum flooring have begun to bulge up, slice out the bulge with a utility knife.

  3. Level Out Areas

    If necessary, pour floor leveling compound on any slopes or dips in the floor. Pour slowly and let the leveling compound seek the lowest spots of the flooring.

    Tip

    For large areas, pour liquid leveling compound onto the subfloor. For smaller areas, use a thicker compound such as Henry's Pre-Mixed Patch and Level, which is applied to low spots with a trowel or putty knife.

  4. Sand Flooring

    Wearing breathing and eye protection, lightly sand the vinyl flooring with an oscillating sander. This creates some texture for the thin-set adhesive to bond to. If the room is small enough and you do not mind getting on your knees, you don't need to rent a floor sander—you can use any power hand sander, such as a random-orbit sander.

  5. Clean Floor

    Clean the vinyl floor thoroughly with TSP to remove dirt, soap, and oil residue. The floor needs to be as smooth as possible to accept the thin-set adhesive. Let the floor dry completely before continuing. Next, thoroughly clean the vinyl with plain water and let it dry. It must be free of dust, dirt, and any oily residue before applying the thinset mortar.

  6. Install the Tile

    Install the ceramic or porcelain tile directly to the clean, dry vinyl flooring, using thinset mortar and a notched trowel.

When to Call a Professional

If you suspect asbestos, send off a small sample to a testing lab for evaluation. If the test comes back positive for asbestos, do not sand the flooring.

Cover over the asbestos flooring with a thin layer of plywood underlayment before putting down cement board and ceramic tile. Or, hire an asbestos-removal company to safely remove all the flooring.