Porcelain tiles (Inside and out) over suspended wood floor & concrete

6 years ago

Hi there, I have a large open space area which we are extending out the back of our house by 3 metres. The existing area is floorboards, normal joists etc. the extended 3 metre section (which is still going to be inside the house) is going to be concrete. After the 3 metres go out there will be sliding doors then another 4 metres of patio.

I am after covering the entire area, (quite a large area) in Porcelain tiles, inside and out versions of the same tile, so the outside will be rougher, slip resistant. possibly 20mm or 10mm not sure, I know some tiles do both and say both the 10 and 20 are fine for outside. (advice on this welcome)

I need some advice though.. where the extended 3m concrete area begins inside i've been told I need an expansion joint, which is like a rubber thicker bit between the tiles? I'm concerned as this will be the full width of the extension so does this then mean as its a straight line that I can't have wood effect tiles ie. they are staggered?

Also what exactly do I need?

We are having underfloor wet system heating so we will need flexible grout I think, but I want to get this advice correct, so that I don't experience cracking or any problems. Equally I don't want a really obvious line across the middle of my floor. The floor is going to be the main feature in this large space inside and out so I need to get this right.

Where the sliding doors are is fine, as its a natural break in the floor.

Any advice for how to lay on top of mixed underfloor materials would be very very grateful, also advice for laying the exterior patio as this will also be a large area, approx 4m x 9m does this also need expansion joints or anything?

Many thanks in advance for any help/advice

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Comments (4)

Julie Norris
6 years ago
Hi, I dont have a massive amount of knowledge, but we are having porcelain tiles on a suspended floor and have to use something called ditra matting, on top of the ply below the tiles. We too have UFH. Julie
J C
6 years ago
Thanks, can anyone else help? Maybe a tiler or specialist who has laid porcelain tiles over both types of floor?
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We've just had the same dilemma, we also have underfloor heating. We've decided to go with grey wood effect porcelain tiles which can be used inside and out. Apart from concrete, porcelain seemed to be the only option we found. I've been told they are very difficult to damage, although obviously not impossible, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I have ceramic tiles in my utility room and they have been cracked twice but the porcelain tiles in my bathroom have been fine despite a few bottles being dropped on them.
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Porcelain will last, I've researched it quite a bit as I was planning on using this. Reason I didn't is that my garden ( new build) doesn't drain very well so I've had to get a number of drainage runs put in. As the porcelain tiles have to be laid using a solid concrete base, it's out the question as we will dig down and hit the drainage. If you don't have any issues I would say go for it, it will look the same in 10 years as it does when its first laid, hardly any upkeep to keep it looking great and don't think you will be disappointed. BUT it's a lot of work to get it down and you will have to account for the water run off as it' won't absorb any water.
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As a tile importer and retailer, it's very rare for a porcelain tile to crack if installed properly. I'd not recommend juggling your Le Creuset to test the theory though... More and more tilers are using a decoupling matting such as Durabase to take as much movement out of the tile as possible. We also supply flexible adhesive and grout, so with a properly flat floor, it's rare for us to get a call from a grumpy client. We supply a lot of large format "infinity" look tiles, where you have an identically sized anti-slip External version of the Interior tile. Most are 8-9mm, so need a concrete base that mirrors the internal floor. If there is a 20mm version, then a sand & cement base can be used. As for kitchens, always tile the entire floor before the kitchen goes in. This means that the kitchen installer has a blank canvas to work on. It also means that the floor is completely sealed, so the chances of liquid ingress under the tiles (under the units) is pretty much nil. Finally, it also means that if you have any white goods that fail under the work surface, they can just be slid out, rather than having to remove what could be long an heavy lump of marble or granite to get them out. The additional cost will be negligible compared to an insurance claim...
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This is just my opinion about porcelain, some people don’t have the same opinion. The non slip factor is fabulous and you can walk barefoot on it in the rain and it’s steady underfloot. It is only the difficulty of cleaning R13 porcelain that is annoying. A lower grade like R11 is easier to clean. I’ve bought a jet washer so we shall see how that goes.
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acew1234
6 years ago
You'll need the decoupling mat over the concrete with UFH to stop the tiles cracking.
J C
6 years ago
Thanks Angela, I'm aware of the mat and ply, I'm more after advice regarding expansion joints etc and how to make them not so obvious and where they are needed inside and out and what's required on the join between suspended and concrete? Sorry I should have been clearer. Thanks.

Porcelain tiles (Inside and out) over suspended wood floor & concrete

Comments (4)

Julie Norris

J C

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acew1234

J C

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