Tiling Over a Wood Subfloor

After removing the carpet and pad in this bedroom I found old linoleum squares over a wood subfloor.

Under the back sides of each linoleum tile there was felt backing, which remained on the floor after the tiles were removed.  I had to tediously scrape away the felt to get a smoother surface.

In order to get the tile to stick to the adhesive left behind, I rolled a coat of 560 Tech Primer.

Floor tile should not be adhered directly to a wood subfloor.  In this case I wanted to use material that elevated the floor less than 1/4″ thick cement board.  Using a small v-notched trowel, I combed self-curing Ardex X5 thinset over the primer.  I then rolled out pre-cut Ditra by Schluter and used a wood float to press the Ditra into the thinset.  This is an office floor and heavy desks were going to be placed on top, as well as office chairs rolling around on it.  I wanted to use a product that moves separate from the tile without cracking the tile or grout joints.   

I set this floor tile close together using 1/8″ spacers.  This ceramic tile was made to look like travertine, and travertine is customarily set with tight grout joints.

I also used the 1/8″ spacing to be able to use sanded grout for added strength and durability.

Here we have the beauty of stone with the durability of ceramic tile.  In addition, the ceramic tile does not require the extensive maintenance of real stone.