LESLIE: James in Virginia needs help with a tiling project. What can we do for you?
JAMES: Yes, I moved into an older home in Virginia and the kitchen is tile but it’s not very pretty. And I was trying to see if I can put a new tile on top of that tile.
LESLIE: Are you talking about the floor or the countertop?
JAMES: The floor.
LESLIE: Is it in good condition? Are you noticing any cracks in the tiles themselves; not the grout? Like do you feel like the tile floor that’s existing is very sturdy and stable?
JAMES: It’s very sturdy and it’s not worn but it’s just the pattern is not very pretty to me.
LESLIE: If everything is in good condition and you’re not getting a lot of movement – and movement would be bad because if you’re getting in the subfloor then you’re going to get cracks in the tiles …
TOM: Yeah, original tile makes a lousy subfloor for new tile if it’s moving.
LESLIE: Yeah. I think if everything is sturdy and solid, I think it’s an OK situation to go on top of it. But you do want to keep in mind now you’re going to be facing a very thick flooring situation and now anything that’s under your countertops, like your dishwasher, you want to make sure that you’ve got enough clearance for that because you don’t, number one, want to tile this dishwasher into place. So you want to make sure that the legs on the dishwasher have enough movement to accommodate the new tile underneath it.
JAMES: Yes, I understand.
TOM: And that’s a distinct possibility with putting two layers of tile in a kitchen. It’s hard enough to keep but one layer in there and not it overwhelm a dishwasher. With two it might not work.
JAMES: Alright, thank you very much.
TOM: You’re welcome, James. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.
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