Ceramic Tile install in Trailer
I'd like to hear from anyone who has ACTUALLY installed ceramic floor tile in their travel trailer. At the Home Depot here in La Paz Mexico I found some great tile at very low prices. $88Pesos per ...
Forum Discussion
The tile forum with the best information is the John Bridge Tile Forum. Good folks there. And John owns an RV himself.
While you can tile over plywood, even in homes, its not a great idea. Having a tileable surface installed over the pywood such as Ditra (mentioned above) or cement board or a crack isolation membrane such as GreenSkin or CrackBuster Pro will provide an acceptable surface. Ditra will add about 1/8" to the tile assembly and is self classified as an 'uncoupling" membrane offering no crack isolation or protection. The thinnest of the membranes is Greenskin. Both GS and CBP are peel and stick. Ceement board adds nothing to the structural integrity of the floor no matter how they are installed. It simply gives you a tileable surface. Cement board should be set in a bed of thinset, then screwed to the floor with the proper fasteners.
The plywood below everything is the next hurdle. You should have a deflection no less than L360. Not sure how you can get the deflection for the floor in an RV. The quality of the plywood is another concern. At the very least you'd want a good BC grade. No sheathing, no particle board and nothing under 3/4". The thicker the better. Multiple layers set in a staggered pattern then glued with a full spread of glue then screwed together will give the stiffest flooring.
There are no flexible cement based thinsets. There is one thinset made for sound reduction that is flexible; Laticrete 125, but Laticrete will not warranty the product for this use.
There are no flexible cement based grouts. You can use a pre-mixed grout, but they tend to re-emulsify* and get dirty easily. You can fill the joints with grout matching 100% silicone, but again no manufacturer will swear by the installation. A single component grout might be your best option.
Tile selection is important as well. The toughest will be through body porcelain, followed by porcelain, then ceramic. While very pretty, natural stone is the worst choice.
As a member of the National Tile Contractors Association, I can tell you the party line will be; tile your RV at your own risk. While some RV's may have the proper deflection we can't say that all do. Thus the recommendation remains the same.
* Yes, I know there is no such thing as re-emulsify as when wetted it simply emulsifies, but then most people don't know that like you do.
While you can tile over plywood, even in homes, its not a great idea. Having a tileable surface installed over the pywood such as Ditra (mentioned above) or cement board or a crack isolation membrane such as GreenSkin or CrackBuster Pro will provide an acceptable surface. Ditra will add about 1/8" to the tile assembly and is self classified as an 'uncoupling" membrane offering no crack isolation or protection. The thinnest of the membranes is Greenskin. Both GS and CBP are peel and stick. Ceement board adds nothing to the structural integrity of the floor no matter how they are installed. It simply gives you a tileable surface. Cement board should be set in a bed of thinset, then screwed to the floor with the proper fasteners.
The plywood below everything is the next hurdle. You should have a deflection no less than L360. Not sure how you can get the deflection for the floor in an RV. The quality of the plywood is another concern. At the very least you'd want a good BC grade. No sheathing, no particle board and nothing under 3/4". The thicker the better. Multiple layers set in a staggered pattern then glued with a full spread of glue then screwed together will give the stiffest flooring.
There are no flexible cement based thinsets. There is one thinset made for sound reduction that is flexible; Laticrete 125, but Laticrete will not warranty the product for this use.
There are no flexible cement based grouts. You can use a pre-mixed grout, but they tend to re-emulsify* and get dirty easily. You can fill the joints with grout matching 100% silicone, but again no manufacturer will swear by the installation. A single component grout might be your best option.
Tile selection is important as well. The toughest will be through body porcelain, followed by porcelain, then ceramic. While very pretty, natural stone is the worst choice.
As a member of the National Tile Contractors Association, I can tell you the party line will be; tile your RV at your own risk. While some RV's may have the proper deflection we can't say that all do. Thus the recommendation remains the same.
* Yes, I know there is no such thing as re-emulsify as when wetted it simply emulsifies, but then most people don't know that like you do.
