Home Improvement » Flooring » Article


Replacing Cracked or Broken Tiles

By Jason Lee
Filed under: Flooring         Words in this Post: 283



Print This Post Print This Post AddThis Feed Button

If a floor tile cracks, you can fix it by replacing it with a matching tile. First, check to see whether you have any spares left over from when the tile was installed. If not, go to a few stores that specialize in tile or a home improvement center that may have the same tile or a close match.

If that doesn’t work, consider taking out several good tiles as well and getting a small box of decorative tiles to put in their place. You can find a variety of solid colors or patterned tile that will look good here.

You need a hammer and chisel to break out the old tile, possibly some gypsum board if the wall behind the tile has deteriorated or gotten wet, tile adhesive, and grout that matches the rest of the wall. Here’s what to do to replace tiles:

  1. Crack the tile into pieces that you can chip out easily. Be sure to wear safety glasses during this step.
  2. Chip away all bits of adhesive or mastic adhesive that held the tile to the wall.
  3. If necessary, replace or repair the wall by filling it with some new wallboard.
  4. Put adhesive on the back of the replacement tile.
  5. Press it to the wallboard.
  6. Put Popsicle sticks into the seams that will be filled with grout to keep the tile from slipping while the adhesive dries.
  7. Grout the seams.

In order to match existing grout you may have to experiment several times by mixing a small amount of dry grout, colorant, and water. Be sure to let the mix dry before you decide whether or not you’ve got the proportions right. Dry grout will not be the same color as wet grout.

View More Articles in Flooring. . .
Author: Jason Lee

Please Rate This Article
1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars (No Ratings Yet)
Loading ... Loading ...

Tags: , ,

 

You may also be interested in the following Articles:

Comments

Feel free to leave a comment...

Better still write an article, express your opinion & get free backlinks to your site.

In a hurry today, just write a few words in the comment, we'd appreciate! And oh, if you want a pic to show with your comment, go get a gravatar!

You must be logged in to post a comment.

 

Visit ChiTownPost.com - A Wealthy Resource of Articles on All Subjects