I finally had enough of the scraping and chiseling and realized even that was making a dusty mess, so I said screw it, and got out the grinder. I learned the easy way to do it, which I waited til the very end to try, unfortunately, because I didn't want to make a god-awful mess. The old thinset removal was the worst part of the process. I added screws into the joists to reduce deflection. The subfloor was nailed in place (not sure size, but likely 3/4' plywood). I'm not sure what kind I used (modified vs unmodified), I just used what the tile place recommended, but they certainly didn't ask any questions that seem like should have been asked to determine that and they didn't impress me with a couple of other things (the counter guy claimed he's never sold the fiber tape for the seams, never heard of anyone using it (yet they sell it)). recommended it, I went ahead and laid the backer down using thinset. I decided since the directions, and almost all the directional videos, etc. I haven't been back to post, cause I've been too busy tiling! (and skiing) One last thing is that it seems best to start at the center of the room and lay from the center out seems to keep lines straighter. I also learned that you should only mix the amount of thinset you can use in a 15-20 minute period. Also I learned that thinset with the higher amounts of portland cement is higher quality. Another thing I learned is that pre-mixed thinset is not thinset at all and is really just mastik type of glue. The only real tip I can give you is to read and follow the manufactures instructions of what ever system you use.

And add heat coils.Īs far as spacers next time i tile I am going to use the spin doctor type of spacers. If I had to do it again I would do the ditra system. I am not sure if this was proper or not because every website I went through seem to have multiple answers that were all slightly different in regards to how thick the subfloor needed to be. My subfloor was two layers of 3/4' I moved the top layer and replaced it with 1/2' hardi board. These few tools would have down right made the removal process down right fun.

Along with a decent masonry chisel and 1lb steel mallet. Your removal job although already done would have been a million times faster if you would have bought a decent multitool and used the scraper and a couple of wilde pry bars. One thing I would like to mention is that I just went through this in my bathroom.

Install hardibacker board on subfloor