Vinyl flooring is an affordable, durable, and popular flooring option, especially for those who are seeking an easy-to-install flooring solution that can help you quickly transform the look and feel of your space. Sometimes you are faced with current flooring materials that are not your favorite. Tile can be slick, not to mention that it can crack easily and be hard to repair. You may be dealing with a cracked tile floor and want to find a fast solution to improve the flooring without prying each cracked tile out and replacing it individually. This might lead you to wonder if you can put vinyl flooring over tile. However, as with most things, there is no one, simple answer to this question. The answer depends on several variables.
Questions to ask yourself when trying to decide if you can put vinyl over tile:
How wide are the grout lines?
If the grout lines are very narrow, such as a quarter inch or smaller in width, then you may be able to lay vinyl flooring down without being able to see the grout lines post-installation. However, if the grout lines are greater than a quarter inch, then it’s likely that these will create visible depressions in any vinyl flooring that you may try to lay down over your wide-set tile flooring. These may create an unattractive, unprofessional look, especially if the grout lines conflict with the pattern of your vinyl flooring.
What sort of condition is the tile currently in?
If the tile you are seeking to lay vinyl flooring onto is completely cracked and demolished, then it might not be fit to sustain the pressure of an additional flooring option laid on top of it. In this situation, it might be best to scrape off the cracked tile and start from scratch. However, if the tile is in good condition with only a few cracks here or there, then you might be able to lay down vinyl flooring without any issues.
What kind of vinyl flooring are you hoping to lay down?
The type of vinyl flooring that you choose to lay down on top of tile can affect the outcome of your attempted flooring renovation. Plank-style vinyl might be less likely to show grout lines, cracks, or other imperfections in the surface of the base tile layer than other, less expensive types of vinyl flooring that tend to come in big rolls or in thin, stick-on sheets.
Have additional questions? Contact Carpet Center today for more professional tips!