Ceramic Tile Over Vinyl Asbestos Tile

In many cases installing a new floor over the tiles encapsulates the asbestos fibers and is an acceptable way to manage the material.

Ceramic tile over vinyl asbestos tile. One of the biggest factors of installing a new floor over the old is thickness. Cork pattern vinyl asbestos floor tiles were produced in at least three hues by armstrong as well as montgomery ward and sears and possibly kentile and other companies. No other specialized prep work or treatment is necessary. If you aren t removing the old floor you may be creating a new floor that is too thick for doors to open and shut or for thresholds to have clearance.

Like floor tiles vinyl sheet flooring is a long lasting and economical material and it also offers more aesthetic options to suit a homeowner s taste. Vinyl is a type of plastic that has long been a popular material for floor tiles and sheets. You can assume this floor tile contains asbestos. Photo by russell kaye i m told that the old vinyl floor tiles in the basement of our 1950 house contain asbestos and that i should not try to remove the tiles but cover them with wall to wall.

Asbestos found in the vinyl floor tiles at the toh tv project house means a state licensed and well protected abatement crew must do the removal. New vinyl laminate flooring hardwood engineered floating flooring and carpeting can all be successfully installed over asbestos tiles. Installing ceramic or porcelain tile over asbestos tile. That said it can be difficult to get a level surface for the new floor especially if the old tiles have chipped away.

But that changes as soon as you decide to remove it. Even ceramic slate and stone tiles can be installed on. This is trickier as you can t simply slap mortar down on top of old asbestos tile put down the new tile and expect a good result. Unfortunately vinyl sheet flooring manufactured with an asbestos backing poses a serious exposure risk when it is disturbed.

Above we show a 9 x 9 cork patterned vinyl asbestos floor tile found in a 1960 s ranch style home in new york. Vinyl tile is an excellent option for sealing in asbestos tiles. Installing vinyl flooring is a similar process.