Laying floor tiles with your own hands on plywood. Is it possible to lay tiles on plywood and how to do it correctly. Laying ceramic tiles on plywood: technological features

During the repair, there is always a choice in favor of one or another option. Most repairs are carried out independently as funds become available. Since it can be difficult for an unprofessional repairman to calculate the consequences of a particular choice, there are some situations where it is necessary to combine different, previously incompatible types of coatings. For example, wood and tiles, ceramic tiles on plywood. It would seem that incompatible materials, but modern building materials allow you to "combine the incompatible."

How to lay tiles on plywood?

This option is most preferred for frame, wooden houses. Since this design is lightweight, in the presence of a wooden floor or good lag, the boards along the lags are covered quickly and with minimal cost, as well as the walls are aligned.

Concerning ceramic tiles, how finishing material, it is very popular for both wall and floor. Ideally, tiles are laid on a screed, but if there is no way to lay them, then plywood and tiles are a suitable option.

Professional tilers have been laying tiles on plywood for a long time. Such work is very painstaking and laborious. But not much different from laying tiles on other bases. The differences mainly come down to the preparation of the base.

Foundation features

The plywood base must be no less than 22 mm, or 28 mm (according to the European standard). If the base is laid out on logs, then the thickness plywood sheet- from 30 mm. This thickness ensures the rigidity of the base and prevents the tiles from vibrating and cracking.

Read useful material about what to do when the tile cracks:

Installation and strengthening of plywood flooring

To relieve the stress of a solid plywood sheet, it is cut into four squares and screwed to the logs or wooden floor in a checkerboard pattern. Plywood can be mounted on a plank or parquet floor,. When attaching plywood sheets to logs, their step should be from 30 to 40 cm.

Important. When strengthening plywood sheets, you do not need to save on self-tapping screws: the more often they are strengthened, the less the sheet will sag, which minimizes its vibration.

Such fastening will not allow cracking of the tile and will keep it flooring for a long time.

Read more: Floor waterproofing in wooden house Q: what material to choose?

When laying plywood, you need to check the horizontal position of its position with a building level.

If there are sheets of smaller thickness, they can cover the floor according to the above scheme. To give the required thickness, another layer of plywood is laid on top. Laying occurs so that the seams of the upper layer do not coincide with the seams of the lower layer. To give additional hardness, plywood sheets are glued together, and upper layer fastened with additional self-tapping screws.

Important. Since plywood changes with temperature fluctuations or changes in humidity, the sheets are fixed at some distance from each other and from the walls. The distance between the sheets is 0.5 cm, from the walls - 1 cm (the distance can be foamed or covered with a plinth).

Before laying tiles on plywood, the surface must be thoroughly cleaned and leveled. Usually used for this purpose grinding.

Remember that when attaching plywood, the self-tapping screws need to be sunk a little so that they do not interfere with grinding the surface.

After grinding, the surface must be thoroughly cleaned first with a vacuum cleaner, then with a damp cloth or sponge. Then the surface is primed (preferably at least 2 layers). This will provide waterproofing and is an additional protection for the wooden base.

For rooms with high humidity (kitchen, bathroom or bathroom), moisture-resistant plywood is used for tiles. Tiles on plywood in the bathroom are placed after an additional layer of waterproofing (for both walls and floors). For waterproofing, a ready-made liquid or powder waterproofing mixture is used.

Preparatory work after the primer or waterproofing has dried, you can start laying ceramic tiles on plywood.

How to stick a tile?

For laying tiles on plywood, since it does not have flexibility, which will cause further damage to the tiles due to the movement of the wood.

How then to glue the tiles to the plywood?

For these purposes, two-component or silicone adhesives, adhesives for moving substrates, parquet adhesive based on modified silane ( universal adhesives before buying, you need to check on what grounds it glues). They provide good grip and joint mobility. In addition, this adhesive is an additional waterproofing layer.

Gluing features

Tile adhesive on plywood is applied to small areas, 1-4 tiles in size, but not more than 1 m² (due to the fact that the glue dries very quickly) with a notched trowel, which will evenly distribute the glue on a wooden base.

The first tile on plywood is carefully laid out on glue, it is lightly pressed, and the horizontalness of its laying is checked with a building level. If there are small deviations, then tap on the tile rubber mallet(with a hammer) and check the level again.

To the first tile lay out the second and so on. Special crosses or pegs are inserted into the seams between them, which regulate the thickness of the seam.

Advice. The thickness of the seam depends on the size of the tile that is laid on the plywood. The larger the tiles, the wider the seam, but not more than 0.5 cm.

Then lay out the third and fourth tiles and align them with the first two and the floor. Thus, the entire space of the walls or floor is filled with whole tiles, after they dry, cut pieces are laid out.

Read more: Wooden floor in the country - we do it ourselves

The advantage of glue for wooden bases is that it dries very quickly. After a few hours, you can safely walk on the floor and carry out further work.

Important. During laying, protruding adhesive must be removed from the surface immediately so that it does not leave a dark spot.

The process of laying tiles on plywood

After the floor has dried, the seams must be processed (before starting work, all crosses or pegs must be removed from the seams).

They are treated with a grout designed for these purposes. It can be slightly lighter or darker than the overall color of the tile, or the traditional white.

It is applied with a rubber spatula with movements directed perpendicular to the seams (for a more complete filling of the seams). Grout is optional protective layer, which prevents moisture from entering the base. give them time to dry.

After that, the tile is thoroughly washed with a cloth. You need to wash carefully so as not to wash the fresh grout out of the seams and with a light cloth so as not to paint them. Then all the tiles laid on plywood are rubbed with a dry cloth or sponge. This completes the laying work.

More this process you can see in the video below. We recommend that you read it (it is short).

If you find it difficult to do this work yourself, then you can delegate them to a quality repair team. All you have to do is fill in the form at the bottom right of our website.

In modern construction technologies there are so many opportunities for a completely new use of conservative materials that even the question of whether it is possible to lay tiles on plywood receives not just a positive, but a detailed answer.

Today we can face anything, and behind such a loud statement is:

concrete surface.
Brick wall, external and internal.
Wood.

It is the latter option that interests us most today. Let's talk about how best to work on laying tiles on a plywood surface.
By the way, there is nothing to be surprised here, because in modern construction Ordinary plywood has long taken a strong place and is used not only in wall and ceiling cladding, but also as floor insulation.
We choose plywood due to the fact that this material is ideal for the task of sheathing a large and even surface. And since there are areas where a different coating is needed, quite reasonable questions arise:, as well as “Can I put tiles on plywood?”. The answer to the last question is unambiguously yes, but with one small nuance.

For device warm floors the option with plywood and ceramic tiles will not work, in any case we need a concrete screed device.

Choosing plywood

We must be well aware that the tile is a rather heavy material, so we need to choose a plywood sheet of a certain thickness and density.
It is one thing to choose a plywood sheet for walls and ceilings, and quite another - for the floor. Here, the instruction immediately recommends buying material with a thickness of at least 28 mm. The problem may not appear at the very moment of laying, but later, when the wood sheet begins to deform if the thickness is insufficient.

We will not talk much about the material itself, we will note only a few features and specifications, which allow us to lay ceramic tiles on wood:

The material is environmentally friendly, which, however, is not surprising, given that several types of wood are used in production.
In terms of moisture permeability, it is not inferior to red clay brick.

Training

When preparing, we take into account that facing material tiles will protrude, respectively, we need to bring the surface of the wood into a state of perfect smoothness.
It is in a flat surface that you can get another positive answer to the question of whether it is possible to lay ceramic tiles on plywood.
The floor surface, of course, must be immobilized, all wood firmly installed, otherwise there is no chance of correctly installing ceramics.

Advice! You can not be too lazy, and walk again on the prepared surface, and check everything. Plus, you can screw in a few more additional screws, most importantly, drown their heads in the canvas.

Yes, by the way, before starting work, we will need certain tools and materials at hand:

Ideally - Sander, but if it is not available, then you can take grinding tool.
Elastic adhesive. We will lay tiles on it.
Waterproofing. AT this case mastic.
Roulette.
Hammer with plastic tip.
Building level.
Bulgarian for cutting tiles, or a special "tile cutter".
Crosses for tiles.
Solution for grouting.

With all this tool, the question of whether it is possible to lay tiles on plywood becomes even more transparent and easy to do.

Waterproofing

Work on waterproofing must be carried out with particular care, we are dealing with wood, which in any case can be subjected to deformation and decay when high humidity.

Firstly, even during the installation of the panels, waterproofing can be laid on the surface of the concrete. It can be polyethylene or mastic.
Secondly, before laying the tiles, we prime the plywood several times with a special mastic. Moreover, it must be remembered that for complete absorption and drying, the mastic requires at least 5 hours.

With such careful processing, the question of whether it is possible to glue tiles on plywood also turns out to be positive and is no longer a question.

masonry

We take into account that the glue solution dries rather quickly, so we are not in a hurry to knead a lot of the solution at once.
We put the mortar in an even layer on the surface and install the first tile. There is one caveat here, you need to start from the corner in which the whole tile should be.
We put the ceramics and press a little with our hand. In order not to deform the tile, you can easily tap it in the corners and in the center with a plastic hammer. We can adjust ceramics for some more time, until the glue is completely frozen.

After the first row, it is clear that everyone who is interested in whether it is possible to glue tiles on plywood can safely do this.
The crosses that we install between the tiles will help us to withstand a certain size of the jointing. On average, our seam does not exceed 3 mm, however, if the tiles are laid in rooms with a constant temperature difference, then we make the seam wider, up to 7 mm.
We conduct masonry according to the level, trying to comply flat surface, and we go out to the edge of the floor already on half-hearted ceramic parts. This is where we need a tile cutter.

Conclusion

Once the glue has dried, we can start grouting. The price of the grout mixture is minimal, so you can buy a little more than necessary in order to finish everything at once, and not be distracted by additional purchase of material.

Advice! Start grouting 3-4 days after laying ceramics. By this time, you can already walk on the floor surface.

Advantages and disadvantages of plywood base

Before starting work, you need to learn about the advantages and disadvantages of this technology.

pros

The work is done in a short time.
There is no need to bring concrete, reinforcement into the room, lay film waterproofing, and then worry that the ceiling of the neighbors from below does not get wet.
In houses old building low load bearing capacity the structure does not allow pouring a heavy concrete screed, so laying tiles on plywood on the floor is almost the only acceptable way to level and strengthen the existing base.
You can lay tiles in rooms with high humidity (bathroom, kitchen).

Flaws

It is necessary to use plywood with a thickness of at least 22 mm, and when it is mounted on logs, then 30 mm.
In a room with high humidity, it is necessary to take care of reliable waterproofing.
It is impossible to make a warm floor.
If water gets on the base under the tile, then the plywood will delaminate.

After weighing the pros and cons, and having made the final decision in favor of this technology, we will consider how to lay tiles on plywood.

Training

Deciding to stick tile on plywood, you need to take care of the base, making it durable. Depending on the type of existing floor, the approach to leveling it varies.

Smooth wooden floor

Very rare old wooden floor it can be even, with differences of no more than 5 mm per 1 m2. In this case, it is still recommended to check the condition of the log and boards.

Most often, the problem is observed in the corners of the building, so it is necessary to dismantle the edge board and look under the floor - if the board is intact and not eaten away by bugs, then by setting the board in place, you can continue to work.

Using the rule, you need to check the condition of the floor. The illustration below shows what kind of floor is, and how to navigate the available wooden base when choosing plywood thickness.

note

The undulating floor cannot be leveled with thin plywood, as it will subsequently sag, and the tile will fall off of it.

Wooden floor with significant differences

A very uneven floor will have to be leveled with wooden crate(as under drywall when leveling walls).

The design of the crate should be such that the plywood sheet is located in the middle of the board. For example, if a board with a width of 50 mm is used, and the sheet has dimensions of 1525 × 1525 mm, then the cell should have inner dimensions 1500×1500 mm, and outer 1550×1550 mm (you need to add 5 mm (or a little more) to the gap between the sheets, otherwise you will have to trim the edges of the plywood later).

The internal parts of the crate, which act as stiffeners, are located at a distance of no more than 500 mm from each other. If tiles on plywood will be laid in the bathroom, then under the crate should be laid polyethylene film serving as a waterproofing material.

The laser level marks the horizon along which the crate is aligned. Pieces of plywood can serve as supports different thickness. Having finished with the alignment of the crate, it should be securely attached to the floor with self-tapping screws, screwing them through the paved supports. Then a sheet of plywood is laid, and fastened with screws to the crate.

Installation of plywood on logs

The most unpleasant, but, unfortunately, the most common situation is that the floor is rotten and must be dismantled, and concrete base fails to do. This is not a judgment because tiling on plywood can be done if the plywood is attached to the joists. The principle is similar to mounting on a crate, only the technology is different.

We bring to your attention a video that demonstrates the process of installing a log and attaching plywood to them.

When fastening plywood sheets, it is important to take into account the possible thermal expansion, so they need to be placed at a certain distance:

from each other - 5 mm;
from the walls - 1 cm.

The voids near the walls can be closed with a plinth. The seams between the sheets are sealed with polymeric elastic putty.

What kind of glue to buy

How to glue tiles to plywood? This issue deserves detailed consideration, because you have to glue the tiles to the base of wood material characterized by its instability.

Therefore, when choosing an adhesive composition, it is necessary to take into account some nuances:

A plywood sheet is made up of thin layers of brittle veneer, and if the bond is broken, the plywood will delaminate and no longer be strong. This feature of the material is a good reason to choose an adhesive that does not penetrate deep into the structure of the material.
No matter how strong the base, it can still bend slightly under load. In this case, the cement-based adhesive will not hold the tile, and it will easily move away from the plywood. Therefore, only elastic adhesive mixtures should be used.

The composition of such mixtures includes highly elastic components:

microfiber;
fiberglass;
silicone;
silane and other modifying additives.

Laying tiles

Having made a solid base, consider how to glue ceramic tiles to plywood.

Regardless of the technology used to level the base, work is performed in the following order:

If you are not sure that each self-tapping screw is recessed into plywood, you should check again and, if necessary, tighten them with a screwdriver.
The existing base must be sanded and dusted with a vacuum cleaner, and then wiped with a damp cloth.
Regardless of, plain plywood used or moisture resistant, the surface is primed twice. The second time the primer is applied only after the previously applied adhesive has completely dried.
Before gluing tiles to plywood in the kitchen or bathroom, an additional layer of waterproofing is applied to the base.

Upon completion of these actions (only after complete drying wooden base) can be tiled on a plywood floor.

How to lay tiles on plywood step by step video instruction

The process of laying tiles on plywood

An example of laying tiles on a plywood floor - video

We hope that you have found the answer to the question of how to glue tiles on plywood, and now you can do this work yourself.

There are situations in which there is a need to lay tiles on plywood. This process is necessary when replacing flooring or when completing walls. physical characteristics the base coating of plywood differ significantly from the concrete base. Therefore, the laying of tiles will be different.

Advantages and disadvantages of the plywood tiling procedure

Beginners are wondering - is it possible to lay tiles on plywood? For experienced professionals, this is not challenging task. But the procedure as a whole is relatively complex and jewelry. The technique of tiling is the same, but there are differences at the preparatory stage.

Laying tiles on plywood cover has the following advantages:

speed of work;
low mass characteristic of the base, which is well suited for wooden houses on foundations with low strength parameters;
no need to perform laborious and expensive work on the device of a concrete or cement-sand base under the coating;
it is possible to lay tiles on a plywood floor in rooms with wet operating conditions (baths, bathrooms).

In spite of positive sides plywood flooring under tiled flooring, you need to take into account its shortcomings:

it is impossible to mount a “warm” floor system on a plywood base;
there is a need for additional waterproofing measures for rooms with high humidity conditions;
The thickness of the plywood sheet must be at least 22 mm.

Surface preparation for plywood base

Before laying plywood, you need to perform such preparatory measures as:

remove the old finishing putty from the surface;
clean the base from debris and dust;
perform sealing of cracks and joints of the floor with walls using a cement-sand mortar;
in the case of a rough wooden floor, additional antiseptic measures must be taken;
install the necessary beacons using the building level.

You can replace the level with a line drawn on the wall around the entire perimeter of the room. It will show the level at which plywood sheets should be laid.

Substrate preparation for plywood flooring

Fastening plywood on logs with a thickness of 30 mm. With this value of the thickness of the base, the required rigidity is ensured, at which the mounted tile cannot crack or vibrate.

To eliminate the stress of a single sheet of plywood, it is divided into several parts. Then they are fixed on plank floor or a lag system in a checkerboard pattern. If it is necessary to lay the substrate on the logs, the gaps between them should be within 30–40 cm.

When laying plywood flooring, there is no need to limit the number of self-tapping screws, since their more frequent step minimizes plywood deflection and reduces its vibration. Self-tapping screws must be screwed in so that their heads are recessed into the plywood. This should be done to prepare the base for floor and wall tiling.

During installation plywood base, it is necessary to regularly monitor its horizontalness through the building level.

Often there are situations when you have to use plywood with a smaller thickness. What to do in this case? Use thin material it is possible, but in several layers. In this case, you need to lay out the squares so that the seams of the lower layer do not coincide with the upper ones. To obtain the necessary hardness of the plywood base, the sheets are fastened to each other and fixed with self-tapping screws.

Plywood flooring process

Base plates must be placed with certain gaps between themselves and distances from the walls:

the gap between the sheets must be at least 5 mm;
the distance from the edge of the plywood to the walls - 10 mm;
the gaps are then foamed up.

Before laying tiles on a plywood base, it must be leveled with a grinder and cleaned of debris.

The polished surface is dust-free, because laying tiles on plywood without pre-training practically impossible. This procedure is performed with a vacuum cleaner, damp cloth or sponge.

Then, activities are carried out additional protection and plywood base(padding):

the primer should be applied in two layers;
in the case of rooms operated in conditions of high humidity, the plate must be moisture resistant;
but before attaching the tiles to the plywood on the floor or on the walls, the base is still exposed to additional measures waterproofing;
in this case, a special composition is used as a waterproofing material.

After the primer or a special waterproofing composition has completely dried, the stage of preparing the plywood base is considered completed. Next, the stage of tiling on plywood begins.

Installation of tiles on plywood

How to lay tiles on plywood? This is possible subject to next order actions:

mark the base;
prepare adhesive composition;
lay down in even rows using special delimiters.

markup

It is necessary to apply the required marking on the surface of the plywood. It is performed in accordance with the previously selected pattern (checkerboard or diagonally).

With a conventional device, the position of the first and next row should be noted. This is necessary so that after completion of the work it is possible to accurately trim the rows for junctions directly to the walls. Laying should be carried out from the far wall to the entrance to the room, this will make it possible not to walk on previously laid tiles.

Adhesive preparation

Special glue is used for work, surface preparation usually does not cause problems.

Glue is prepared in small volumes, but sufficient for the device of one square meter surfaces. The composition is applied directly to the prepared plywood surface, in a thin layer, because the strength of the future cladding depends on it. The tile is pressed against the base and held for several seconds.

To maintain accurate laying of tiles, you must constantly check the evenness of each row with a level and use a rubber mallet to adjust the installation. Such measures are necessary in order to tile flooring was even.

Panel laying process

When laying tiles, it is best to use special dividing crosses, with which the thickness of the seams is regulated.

The laid tiles with the use of these tools have an aesthetic appearance, are convenient in operation and maintenance.

The result of a job well done should please throughout years coating operation. The question of how to lay tiles on plywood is not difficult if you follow simple rules tiling devices.

An important problem that must be solved when carrying out repairs is the selection of optimal building materials. Incorrectly selected components can later lead to the fact that the repair will not be durable enough, problems will arise that are invisible at first glance. When laying tiles on plywood, it is very important to choose right glue. This is even more important than, as an example, the quality of the wood used. The market offers a rich variety of options, from which it is sometimes difficult to choose. Consider the most popular species adhesives, namely elastic adhesive for tiles on plywood.

Glue features

Elastic adhesive is called two-component polyurethane.

It got its name due to the fact that it comes with two main components:

special hardener;
polyurethane resin.

They are mixed, after which a very elastic mixture with outstanding adhesive properties comes out. Mixing two-component tile adhesive on plywood is carried out using a mixer or using a drill with a specialized mixing nozzle.

They must be mixed right before use, they must be used up about half an hour to an hour after mixing.

On the packaging, they periodically write that the mixture dries for about half an hour, but it is better to wait much longer, up to three or four days, to be sure. The question of whether it is possible to glue tiles on plywood does not even arise when this specialized adhesive is used. But why is he?

Why is this glue

There are reasons that motivate the use of the described adhesive when laying ceramics. Wood and ceramics have different properties, as a result, they are able to change sizes relative to each other. This is facilitated by jumps in humidity and ambient temperature. If the adhesive composition does not adapt to this, it will turn out that noticeable damage may occur, or, even worse, imperceptible, which does not appear immediately, but some time later. It is necessary to consider the type of adhesives at the stage of initial selection of materials in order to understand how to glue ceramic tiles on plywood in the most optimal way.

The wooden coating is strongly deformed under heavy loads; without the elastic properties of the adhesive, the tile can peel off.

It is important to take into account other features of the compositions, in particular, the tree tends to delaminate, the composition should not penetrate too far into the material so as not to create additional problems. Before gluing tiles to plywood, it is important to understand this point.

Restrictions

Not in all cases, the use of such a composition is necessarily permissible. The limitation is underfloor heating, heating up, which will lead to the potential melting of the adhesive layer and the violation of integrity.

Not all similar mixtures are focused on working with ceramics and porcelain stoneware. By making the wrong choice when choosing a method for how to stick tiles on plywood, you can simply lower the quality of the results by several times. Look carefully at the label on the packaging, it is always indicated there.

Installation principles

Consider the approach to laying on wood using an elastic mixture. Here's how to glue ceramic tiles to plywood in this way:

Initially, a wood layer with a thickness of 30 millimeters or more is laid on logs, carefully fixed with self-tapping screws. You should not place logs too rarely, less than half a meter is not recommended.
The surface of the material is thoroughly cleaned of dust and other contaminants, treated with a tile primer. It is necessary to wait a little longer until the primer dries thoroughly, otherwise the result may not be good enough.
The adhesive is applied to the floor surface (it is recommended to use a notched trowel), leveled so that the layer is small and as uniform as possible.
Next, the composition is applied to the reverse side of the tile, similarly in a small layer.
Installation begins. The material is oriented in the necessary way (optimally, in advance, before gluing the tiles on the floor to plywood, mark the surface so as not to go astray in the future), after that it is placed and slightly pressed against the floor.
When the composition dries, the filling of the seams begins. For this, a special grout is used. If there is too much, then it is removed.
The coating is wiped with a soft cloth and left for some more time. About a day after you decided to glue the tiles to plywood (or earlier), it will be permissible to walk on it.

Alternatives

Although elastic adhesive is the main solution in this situation, other alternatives are used. A simple tile grout does not work very well. But it is also realistic to use it if you use drywall as an intermediate coating. Drywall is attracted to the tree with self-tapping screws. The work ahead is dusty, not very suitable for the kitchen and similar premises.

Liquid nails are a popular alternative. They are applied in the center of the tiles with several points. For grouting in this case, it is important to avoid cement compositions and use only epoxy, otherwise chipping will occur. Can ceramic tiles be glued to plywood? cement mixture basically? Not desirable.

Silicone sealant is the third alternative, worthy, allowing you not to be afraid of coating vibrations, except for especially significant ones. It is used together with a grout with transparent silicone, it has good properties.

Mounting foam is theoretically applicable, but it is important to consider that its volume will increase, but, due to the fact that the coating is laid without gaps, this effect will be compensated.