If you have ceramic tiles in your home, you might not be particularly thrilled about them. Although tiles are very hard-wearing and easy to clean, they are notorious for their freezing surfaces – especially in winter. They are often seen as practical, but not the ideal surface for underfoot.
Those who value comfort in their homes might be looking for a way to cover their tiles up and make the room cozier. It’s possible to do this without removing the tiles if you want to – but you should be aware that only certain types of floor can be laid over ceramic tiles safely. Don’t try to put down flooring before checking it will work.
What type of flooring can you put over ceramic tile? There are quite a few options, including things like cork flooring, carpeting, vinyl flooring, laminate flooring, and wood. All of these come with benefits and drawbacks, so it’s important to think about these before you cover up the tile. Few will wear like tile, but they may offer other benefits!
What Kinds of Floor Can Be Installed on Top of Tiles?
If you want to put a new floor on top of your tile floor, you have a few choices. Even carpet can work well on a tiled floor, provided you add a suitable amount of underlay. Cork, vinyl, laminate, and wood are also excellent options – but that might leave you wondering which is the best.
There’s no single “best” floor type, as all the different types have varying pros and cons. It’s important to think about what you use the room for and what factors matter most to you. For example, you might choose carpet if warmth and noise elimination are crucial, or you might choose laminate if you need something cheap and easy to clean.
Let’s check out the pros and cons of each floor option in more detail.
Is Carpet Good on Tiles?
Carpet has several advantages over tiles. The most significant is the comfort factor. Carpet is far more comfortable to walk on and much warmer than tiles are, and this means that it is ideal for living rooms, bedrooms, and studies, where comfort is a significant factor. Carpet also reduces noise significantly, and it can make the floor safer for children to play on.
However, carpet has an obvious drawback when compared with tiles: it’s much harder to clean. If you have a tiled floor, you’ll already know how easy it is to mop it. Carpets must be vacuumed, and spills have to be cleaned up carefully. This is a major disadvantage.
Is Vinyl Good on Tiles?
Vinyl is warmer than tiles, and a little softer too. It isn’t comparable with carpet on either factor, but it offers the benefit of easy cleaning, so it can represent an excellent middle ground for some situations. If you love how simple your tiles are to clean but you hate how cold they feel, vinyl can be a good option.
Vinyl also tends to be inexpensive, making it ideal for laying over ceramic tiles. It comes in a wide range of colors, so it shouldn’t be hard to make it match your decor. A lot of people like both the appearance and the feel of vinyl.
However, it’s not as hard-wearing or waterproof as tiles, and it will fade if it is exposed to too much sunlight. Tile floors last for decades, which vinyl is very unlikely to do.
Is Cork Good on Tiles?
Cork is a soft, warm, and attractive material. It can be laid in squares, making it an ideal option for covering up tiles, and it has plenty of water resistance. It’s comfortable to walk on and pretty hard-wearing.
Cork is damaged by sunlight, however, and it won’t last nearly as long as tiles.
Is Laminate Good on Tiles?
Laminate is another excellent option that offers several benefits. The first is that it is warmer than tile, and because it is somewhat padded, you should find it easy to smooth over the bumps of the tile floor. Laminate comes in a whole range of colors and styles, and it is easy to clean.
In many ways, laminate is comparable to tiles, although you should note that it is not as waterproof and it won’t wear as well. Very few floor types can match tiles for their longevity, so this is a compromise you will probably have to accept.
Laminate floor does stand up to quite a lot of use, but it is easy to scratch it, and the laminate will bubble if you get it very wet. It’s not quite comparable with tile flooring, but it will do in many cases, and it is attractive. It’s also a fairly inexpensive option for adding to your home, and you may even be able to install it yourself.
Is Wood Good on Tiles?
Wooden floors are another great option for changing your tile floors, because they are warm and hard-wearing. Wood looks fantastic, and will give the room a softer, more natural aesthetic. It is more comfortable underfoot than tile is, and will hold the heat better.
However, wood is far more water-sensitive than tile. Even sealed wooden floors will not stand being made very wet. There is a risk of the wood buckling and warping. Wood probably isn’t a suitable option if your tiles are in a room with lots of humidity (e.g. a bathroom or kitchen).
Wood lasts very well, and you’ll probably get decades of use out of a high-quality wooden floor, but you do need to be more careful about how you look after it than you would with tiles. Choosing the correct cleaning products and never exposing it to excess moisture will be key.
Remember that wood can be pretty expensive, and get quotes before you settle on this material for covering up your tile floor.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, you have quite a lot of choices when it comes to covering up your tiles with another type of flooring. Bear in mind that few other floors will last as well as tiles, but they may offset this drawback with warmth and comfort.
