Author Topic: Partial floor replacement?  (Read 4593 times)

AMandM

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Partial floor replacement?
« on: October 02, 2016, 01:06:29 PM »
A ceramic tile cracked and broke in the doorway of our kitchen.  I was going to just replace the broken tile.  But removing the broken piece revealed that the tile was not installed onto the subfloor; instead, there is grotty sheet vinyl underneath the tile.  The DoItRight side of me wants to tear out all the tile and vinyl and install new flooring properly, on the subfloor.

However, the tile and vinyl appear to cover the whole floor, including underneath the cabinets.  I have absolutely zero interest in removing the cabinets.  Can I cut the tile & vinyl at the edge of the base of the cabinets, install new flooring up to there, and caulk the edge?  Would this restrict the flooring materials I could use?  (I was leaning towards linoleum.)  Or should I just replace the one tile after all?

Exflyboy

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Re: Partial floor replacement?
« Reply #1 on: October 02, 2016, 03:30:19 PM »
Just replace one tile... The alternative is a Buttload of work!

Goldielocks

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Re: Partial floor replacement?
« Reply #2 on: October 02, 2016, 06:39:46 PM »
Yes...

Remove the toe kick, remove tile.  Cut to as far back under cabinets / at edge that you can.   

Install Lino.   Re install toe kick (now a bit lower as tile is taller).

Or replace one tile, or even just caulk / crack fill it for super lazy approach.

Exflyboy

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Re: Partial floor replacement?
« Reply #3 on: October 02, 2016, 06:44:19 PM »
And super lazy is still probably good for ten years.. or whenever you want to re-model your kitchen or sell the place...:)

KCM5

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Re: Partial floor replacement?
« Reply #4 on: October 02, 2016, 06:49:53 PM »
It's not super lazy to replace a tile that was cracked instead of tearing up the entire floor. If you weren't planning on replacing the floor, replacing the tile is a better use of your time and resources. Just because you would have done it correctly in the first place doesn't mean you need to redo the work done before.

Goldielocks

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Re: Partial floor replacement?
« Reply #5 on: October 02, 2016, 07:15:59 PM »
It's not super lazy to replace a tile that was cracked instead of tearing up the entire floor. If you weren't planning on replacing the floor, replacing the tile is a better use of your time and resources. Just because you would have done it correctly in the first place doesn't mean you need to redo the work done before.

LOL   I meant that just caulking a cracked tile to semi-hide the cracks and prevent water and dirt entering was the super lazy part.  (leave the tile in)

AMandM

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Re: Partial floor replacement?
« Reply #6 on: October 02, 2016, 09:54:09 PM »
Thanks, all.

I'll just replace the tile, assuming I can find a matching one.  I didn't have any plans to redo the floor until this happened, and except for the broken tile it's in good shape, so I'll spend my time and money on something more worthwhile.

KCM5

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Re: Partial floor replacement?
« Reply #7 on: October 03, 2016, 05:58:08 AM »
It's not super lazy to replace a tile that was cracked instead of tearing up the entire floor. If you weren't planning on replacing the floor, replacing the tile is a better use of your time and resources. Just because you would have done it correctly in the first place doesn't mean you need to redo the work done before.

LOL   I meant that just caulking a cracked tile to semi-hide the cracks and prevent water and dirt entering was the super lazy part.  (leave the tile in)

Oh, yeah. I read that wrong. Carry on.

paddedhat

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Re: Partial floor replacement?
« Reply #8 on: October 03, 2016, 06:32:56 AM »
Just replace one tile... The alternative is a Buttload of work!


I had a kitchen where the asshat who owned the house before me put new cabinets right over  sheet flooring... just cut the sheet flooring with a linoleum knife or toe kick saw and leave the cabinets...



LOL, you mean that you had somebody who knew the right way to do the job, and put the flooring down first, then the base cabinets. In thirty years of new home construction, I ALWAYS installed flooring first, in kitchens and baths, then base cabinets. It's a superior job, no matter how you look at, and you will have a rough time finding a kitchen installer of flooring contractor who would disagree.

KCM5

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Re: Partial floor replacement?
« Reply #9 on: October 03, 2016, 07:23:39 AM »
Just replace one tile... The alternative is a Buttload of work!


I had a kitchen where the asshat who owned the house before me put new cabinets right over  sheet flooring... just cut the sheet flooring with a linoleum knife or toe kick saw and leave the cabinets...


LOL, you mean that you had somebody who knew the right way to do the job, and put the flooring down first, then the base cabinets. In thirty years of new home construction, I ALWAYS installed flooring first, in kitchens and baths, then base cabinets. It's a superior job, no matter how you look at, and you will have a rough time finding a kitchen installer of flooring contractor who would disagree.


Wait - curious question: so you mean the people who installed my cabinets over the horrible carpet in the kitchen (who puts carpet in the kitchen!?) actually installed them correctly?

And here I've been cursing them because when removing the carpet I'm planning on removing the cabinets (and replacing them and redoing the entire kitchen, but that's more my decision than based on the damn carpet placement).

AMandM

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Re: Partial floor replacement?
« Reply #10 on: October 03, 2016, 07:36:40 AM »
LOL, you mean that you had somebody who knew the right way to do the job, and put the flooring down first, then the base cabinets. In thirty years of new home construction, I ALWAYS installed flooring first, in kitchens and baths, then base cabinets. It's a superior job, no matter how you look at, and you will have a rough time finding a kitchen installer of flooring contractor who would disagree.
I'm surprised!  Why is flooring first considered superior?  Doing it that way means that replacing the flooring requires removing the cabinets, but I'd think flooring needs replacing more often than cabinetry.

paddedhat

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Re: Partial floor replacement?
« Reply #11 on: October 03, 2016, 08:33:14 AM »
LOL, you mean that you had somebody who knew the right way to do the job, and put the flooring down first, then the base cabinets. In thirty years of new home construction, I ALWAYS installed flooring first, in kitchens and baths, then base cabinets. It's a superior job, no matter how you look at, and you will have a rough time finding a kitchen installer of flooring contractor who would disagree.
I'm surprised!  Why is flooring first considered superior?  Doing it that way means that replacing the flooring requires removing the cabinets, but I'd think flooring needs replacing more often than cabinetry.

First it allows a much more professional installation of both flooring and base cabinets. If the floor is tile, the tile doesn't need to be cut and grouted around the base cabinets. If it's sheet goods, the installation is a lot cleaner, with no need to cut the sheet to fit, and caulk, or cover the edges with a shoe molding.  I can't imagine why you would think that cabinets would need to be removed when flooring is replaced? Sheet goods can be cut cleanly at the base of cabinets to remove. Tile can be prepped, and a new layer of tile can go right over the top. I have even done 3/4" tongue and groove hardwoods in kitchens, and gotten a better price for doing the flooring first, since hardwood is an absolute bitch to install once the cabinets go down. Overall, it's a cleaner, neater and more professional way of doing the job. You don't have grout stains on tow kicks and sides of cabinets. You don't have grout joints cracking where the tile meets wood, and you don't have to look at caulk, or needless trim, on a sheet flooring install.

paddedhat

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Re: Partial floor replacement?
« Reply #12 on: October 03, 2016, 08:36:15 AM »
Just replace one tile... The alternative is a Buttload of work!


I had a kitchen where the asshat who owned the house before me put new cabinets right over  sheet flooring... just cut the sheet flooring with a linoleum knife or toe kick saw and leave the cabinets...


LOL, you mean that you had somebody who knew the right way to do the job, and put the flooring down first, then the base cabinets. In thirty years of new home construction, I ALWAYS installed flooring first, in kitchens and baths, then base cabinets. It's a superior job, no matter how you look at, and you will have a rough time finding a kitchen installer of flooring contractor who would disagree.


Wait - curious question: so you mean the people who installed my cabinets over the horrible carpet in the kitchen (who puts carpet in the kitchen!?) actually installed them correctly?

And here I've been cursing them because when removing the carpet I'm planning on removing the cabinets (and replacing them and redoing the entire kitchen, but that's more my decision than based on the damn carpet placement).

When you start with carpet on the floor of any wet room (kitchen, bath, laundry) there is no where to go but down. It doesn't matter  if it was installed under the base cabinets, or not, it's just wrong. Gross, nasty, unsanitary, and wrong. I'm not a germ freak, but I've done enough residential demolition and remodeling to know that, I wouldn't occupy a place with a carpeted bath or kitchen. Even if it meant razor knifing the carpet out, and installing a temporary peal and stick tile floor, I would do it ASAP. Don't be surprised if you find black mold and other disgust in and under the carpet, especially at the sink. Been there, done it, and it's nasty.
« Last Edit: October 03, 2016, 08:55:53 AM by paddedhat »

AMandM

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Re: Partial floor replacement?
« Reply #13 on: October 03, 2016, 07:02:13 PM »
OK, I do see how doing the floor before the cabinets makes for a neater, cleaner, better-looking end result. Thank you.
I can't imagine why you would think that cabinets would need to be removed when flooring is replaced?
I meant, if you want to install the new flooring "correctly," i.e., under the cabinets.  I guess what you're saying is that when starting from scratch, it's better to lay the flooring first, but when replacing flooring alone the practical route is to cut the original flooring and lay the replacement only on the exposed part of the floor.

Exflyboy

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Re: Partial floor replacement?
« Reply #14 on: October 03, 2016, 07:56:02 PM »
Yup, thats how its almost universally done.

meghan88

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Re: Partial floor replacement?
« Reply #15 on: October 08, 2016, 07:04:23 PM »
Re. the underneath-the-cabinets thing ... yes, that's the way it's done, but when you've made a bad flooring choice, the rip-and-replace can be painful to think about.

We have a condo with bamboo floors everywhere except bathrooms (the ecological choice! NOT), dry winters and humid summers means that the boards separate something fierce by November.  We run two humidifiers full-time and we still get a 3/4" gap that runs the length of the kitchen and into the bedroom, and in other rooms the flooring pulls itself out from underneath the baseboards.

Anyway we have another 5 years here until FIRE, then the floors will be 10 years old and we'll sell during the summer when the gaps are closed.

pbkmaine

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Re: Partial floor replacement?
« Reply #16 on: October 08, 2016, 07:14:36 PM »
I have a number of cracked tiles in my house. I just paint the cracks with Rustoleum to blend into the tile pattern and color.

Here's a tile from the master bath. The faint line at the upper left is a painted crack.


 

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