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VANITY-Home improvement help needed
me
| 4-21-2008
| grellis
Posted on 04/21/2008 8:13:51 AM PDT by grellis
I am having a very difficult time removing 12"x12" vinyl floor tiles in my kitchen.
TOPICS: Chit/Chat; Miscellaneous
KEYWORDS: flooring
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The tile is about ten years old and has lived well beyond its 3-year warranty. Some of the tiles came loose recently, right in front of our dishwasher. The high humidity in that immediate area probably led to the adhesive wearing out more quickly than the rest of the tiles. Its the rest of the tiles I am having a problem with, actually. The kitchen is high traffic and most of the tiles seem to be nearly ground in to the luaun underlayment. With the exception of the area by the dishwasher, most of the adhesive seems to be as gluey as ever, and so I am having a heck of a time getting the tiles up. I have been using a metal edge putty knife and hammer to prise the tiles from the floor, but it is taking
forever.
Any ideas on how I can speed up the process? If you don't have any ideas, do you know any good home improvement message boards? ANY bit of advice you can give me is greatly appreciated and I thank you all in advance.
I might not be able to respond quickly or to everyone because I'll be working on the floor between freeping. Thanks again for any help you can give!
1
posted on
04/21/2008 8:13:52 AM PDT
by
grellis
To: Springman; sergeantdave; cyclotic; netmilsmom; RatsDawg; PGalt; FreedomHammer; queenkathy; ...
Completely shameless and self-indulgent ping!
2
posted on
04/21/2008 8:14:51 AM PDT
by
grellis
(By order of the Ingham County Sheriff this tag has been seized for nonpayment of taxes)
To: grellis
They sell these at Home Depot or Lowes. It saves the back a little, but still requires some sweat.
They also rent machines to remove tile.
3
posted on
04/21/2008 8:16:45 AM PDT
by
lormand
(I love the smell of burnt democRATs in the morning)
To: grellis
Dry Ice....place it on the tile and it will freeze the glue releasing the grip.....
You can then scrape it up with a tile tool.....
It’s easier with two people, one handling the ice and the other scraping....
Just be very careful how you handle the dry ice....
4
posted on
04/21/2008 8:17:08 AM PDT
by
nevergore
("It could be that the purpose of my life is simply to serve as a warning to others.")
To: grellis
Have you tried a hair dryer and a scraper?
5
posted on
04/21/2008 8:17:23 AM PDT
by
Bigg Red
(Position Wanted: Expd Rep voter looking for a party that is actually conservative.)
To: grellis
To: grellis
Get a heat gun. I've had good luck with that and a broad bladed putty knife.
7
posted on
04/21/2008 8:17:43 AM PDT
by
KarlInOhio
(Rattenschadenfreude: joy at a Democrat's pain, especially Hillary's pain caused by Obama.)
To: grellis
I used a torch to soften the tiles and scraped them off fairly easily.......
8
posted on
04/21/2008 8:17:52 AM PDT
by
Red Badger
( We don't have science, but we do have consensus.......)
To: grellis
9
posted on
04/21/2008 8:21:21 AM PDT
by
CJ Wolf
To: grellis
Dynamite and duct tape. Works every time.
(I sent you a message with my real answer :))
10
posted on
04/21/2008 8:21:21 AM PDT
by
Hazwaste
(Vote! Vote for the conservative local, state, and national candidates of your choice, but VOTE!)
To: grellis
Is the floor concrete or wood underneath? If concrete, can cool and chip the tile. If wood, then, especially if you are going to place another cover, either lino or ceramic tiles, you do not need to remove them, just go right over with the lino, or if ceramic, screw in the cement board underlayment.
Those single tile lino pieces are a headache anyway. Stuff gets in the seams and causes them to come loose.
11
posted on
04/21/2008 8:21:35 AM PDT
by
going hot
(Happiness is a momma deuce)
To: grellis
I used a heat gun to remove mine. Hair dryer will not put out enough heat and you will only burn up the hair dryer before you are done.
Something like this, it doesn't need to be expensive.
http://www.amazon.com/Black-Decker-9756-Dual-Temperature/dp/B0000302U8
Get a long handled scrapper and gloves. Accidentally brushing your hand in front of this is going to be a bad burn. And have a fire extinguisher handy. You almost certainly will not need the extinguisher but it is cheap insurance.
12
posted on
04/21/2008 8:22:00 AM PDT
by
thackney
(life is fragile, handle with prayer)
To: Red Badger
13
posted on
04/21/2008 8:22:13 AM PDT
by
CJ Wolf
To: T Minus Four
"Try using a heat gun" Heat guns are for amateurs. Real pros use one of these...
14
posted on
04/21/2008 8:22:23 AM PDT
by
Joe 6-pack
(Que me amat, amet et canem meum)
To: grellis
If all else fails go to the tool rental store and rent a demo hammer with a 6” wide tile removal bit this removes both vinyl and ceramic tile in short order.
15
posted on
04/21/2008 8:23:10 AM PDT
by
scottteng
(Proud parent of a Life scout.)
To: grellis
16
posted on
04/21/2008 8:23:24 AM PDT
by
tomkat
To: grellis
No real easy way, I usually use a heat gun and a scraper. Tough on the knees and back. You will get sticky and your knees will also stick to the floor.
Have fun.
17
posted on
04/21/2008 8:23:46 AM PDT
by
The Mayor
("A man's heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps" (Prov. 16:9))
To: grellis
The scraper in 3 seems like a good option. I removed some real old dried up tile once by busting it up with a 12 pound sledge hammer and the scraping it off. When you get done, there is a product called “Ol Hear Adhesive Remover that I’ve heard works well to soften the residue.
18
posted on
04/21/2008 8:24:20 AM PDT
by
cyclotic
(Support Scouting-Raising boys to be men, and politically incorrect at the same time.)
To: grellis
Here is an extensive message board site we have used from time to time. It’s organized by topic.
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/
Also, HGTV must have something on its website about how to do this beyond what I would do—call in someone to do it for me. ;-)
To: CJ Wolf
Go down to 7/11 Home Depot and hire an illegal. It goes much faster, but you might have to buy him lunch.
20
posted on
04/21/2008 8:24:39 AM PDT
by
org.whodat
(What's the difference between a Democrat and a republican????)
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