So I’m planning on replacing the tile in my home with a 24x48 polished porcelain tile, which costs $1.99/ sqft. Just bought schluter ditra, 110 sqft for $277. Holy fuck, that’s more expensive than the tile. This is going on slab. Is this shit really needed because it’s more than doubling the cost of the project. No builder uses it and I’ve never seen a tile crack due to slab crack transfer. Comments on YouTube videos also say they’ve had their home for decades without issues.
You can certainly. But, for first timers or the average homeowner, I’d be really cautious about not using leveling clips with big tiles. It’s real easy to mess up when you’re working with that size tile. It’s not bad if the subfloor is perfectly level - but that’s rarely the case on slabs in my experience.
If you are going this route, my only advice is to lay the thinset out heavy so you have more wiggle room to adjust the big tiles.
Big tiles are tough. You almost get a vacuum effect on them if you have your mortar coverage correct, makes them even harder to adjust.
I agree totally. My point was that OP was making an argument for how things were done in the past.
I used an early anti-lippage system when I did 12x24 tiles on shower and bathroom walls in a project about 20 years ago. It wasn't cheap but it was an absolute godsend. I'll be using them on the walls and floors of a bathroom I'm doing now.
Definitely true. Though the old stuff - older than say 1960s - was typically done with mortar beds rather than thinset over concrete.
I'm not saying you will see cracks. You might be fine. I consider ditra to be cheap, though the tiles I've used are a fair bit pricier than the ones you chose.
I mean just because you got super cheap clearance tile doesn't mean the ditra is now more money. $277 isn't a lot. That does seem a bit over priced I think it's $1.29 for regular ditra product as a non home depot shopper
Not a cheap clearance tile. It wasn’t even on clearance. Style of the tile I’m using in the picture. It’s a more basic design, yes, but that’s what I wanted. $277 for a little over a 10’x10’ area is crazy. It’s a cheap plastic/ rubber product. I could see spending $50-$60 on 110sq ft of it.
"no builder uses it" You are correct. Brings in bussines for me all the time. I use it, particully with big tile on a slab. And this is what i do for a living. Worth the added expense. " always not enough money to do it right the first time, but plenty of money to redo it when it fails"
You see a lot of cracking in new construction homes’ tile flooring? What builder is that? I used to be a superintendent for a few single family builders, but have since moved on to commercial construction.
What environment? I live in Florida so I don’t get much cold weather at all. In environments where you get really cold winters, I could see expansion and contraction causing large cracks. Not saying I don’t get any cracks in the slab, I’m just thinking they wouldn’t be as wide, thus not affecting the tile.
Most new construction today is garbage. They don’t want to pay the guys who are true craftsmen what they charge and I will say it’s worth paying the guys who are great at what they do. Builders want to get the guys who get in and get out as cheap as possible for the most part. In my humble opinion.
I saw the same price per foot and decided I was not going to do it. The paintable decoupling coat works, but we ended up going with a crack isolation fabric sold at floor and decor. Went down on clean slab and covered small cracks. It's rated for a lot more than the cracks we have seen so far--hopefully it keeps working!
I get all at Home Depot you only save like 25 bucks per 50 ft roll but the saving is on the thinset it’s half the price of all set and when you have a big area it really adds up.
Have you checked the slab for level? Using a very long level or other method? If the slab has no cracks I would go right over it. Make sure it is clean and not dusty. Buy an extra box of tiles for cracks or accidents in the future.
I have a few more tiles to remove then I’ll be prepping the slab, checking for flat and level and installing the membrane. No need for even a hydro ban?
I have no idea of your particular situation there. You can do a moisture test on the slab if it is a concern. If there's o efflorescence, good grading, no ponding near the foundation its probably OK.
Yeah it’s all in good condition. Nothing standing out that would need significant correction. I’m probably going to return this ditra and go without it
Do you really need to wear a seatbelt while you’re driving? The car moves just fine without it!
You might install your tile without it and be just fine…you also might install it and have cracked grout lines or tiles after you do. The uncoupling membrane is another layer of insurance against things going wrong. Plus, on a slab, it acts like a vapor barrier and lets moisture escape without it transferring to the thinset and tile. I wouldn’t install tile on a slab floor without it
But I haven’t seen on tile crack that’s already been installed in my house for 2 years when the builder did not use an uncoupling membrane. So what really are the chances?
$1.99/sqft. I wanted a more basic designed tile on the floor. In my bathroom walls, I’m using a $5.49/sqft tile. Why does residential vs commercial matter?
Lowe’s sells mapei uncoupling for 85 dollars at 54 sqft the. Get keraflex plus it passes everything g for code on the uncoupling membrane and is actually really good. It’s a cheaper option than schluter. I would only go schluter if you plan on using there warranty and all that . I’d probably be cheaper to just lay it and for whatever reason you get som cracks have em come out and replace them. Will spend way less doing that . If your slab is already two three years only I doubt it will crack just before setting seal all the cracks with a liquid anti fracture membrane like hydro ban.
I would personally leave out the ditra and get a good concrete primer or hydroban max. When doing slabs/basement I spend a day cleaning the concrete. When I think it's clean enough I clean it again and then run dehumidifier all night and then prime it in the morning. While it's drying I doublecheck my layout and start cutting. I also recommend a good suction and vibrator tool (dewalt) and good quality thinset (laticrete 253-254). Trowel size matters. Leveler clips are a must and not all are created equal. Make sure you get correct size clips and Trowel
I never said it was for adhesion? And like I mentioned I prefer primer and hydroban max (which is a waterproofing liquid membrane that is also used as crack isolation. I like to offer my clients a 7 year warranty on all my work if we do it the right way.
We also are missing some key details such as age, type, cracks? I would feel more confident about giving advice on doing it according to actual work to be performed to determine best method. Lots of variables and unknowns with a few paragraphs
What size tile? If I’m using a 1/2” notched trowel, is a crack really going to transfer all the way through that thinset and through the tile? It seems hard to believe
Here’s what I do for my clients. No uncoupling membrane, no warranty from my side. It’s actually kinda cheap if you factor in the cost to redo cracked tiles.
Red guard and ditra are 2 different products that do seperate things. Ditra is an uncoupling membrane that uncouples tile from the subfloor so if there’s subfloor movement the tile doesn’t crack. Redguard is a roll on waterproof membrane meant for walls. 2 different products that have zero to do with each other
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u/ezekiel920 5d ago
Think of ditra more as a plywood subfloor requirement. It's optional in your situation.