Flooring Tile - restoring old bathroom tiles

I just bought an 80 year old Arts and Crafts home, with the original bath fixtures and tiles. Problem is that they are filled with caulk, holes and cracks(the tile's that is) there is also a large crack in the mosiac tile floor. I want to restore the tiles and floor, in that they are not only beautiful and unique, but I also dont want the mess of putting in a new bathroom at this point in the home restoration.
I need advice on several aspects of this job
1. best way to remove old latex caulk?
2. best way to fix the crack in the floor
3. how do i re-cememt some of the loose base tiles without tearing any of the others out?

can anybody out there give me some advice? i would appreciate it.

Old latex caulk comes out with utility knives and single edge razor blades.
Are the tiles cracked or did the crack follow grout lines? How wide is the crack? Hairline or open? Matching old tiles can be a tough job.
If you have loose tiles yo need to clean out carefully behind them to get a little bit of room for some thinset mortar. At least 1/16 inch or so. Do not worry if it is not even, the thinset will make it even.

To remove loose tiles, remove the grout first.

Cracks are caused from movement.
You need to fix the movement, or your restoration WILL crack too.:eek:

In an 80 year old house the motion has probably already stopped. You could watch the crack for a year and see if it changes (called a 'working' crack). Some cracks open and close as the seasons change the humidity, occasionally from temperature (wood is pretty temp stable, but very moisture unstable).
If there are not a lot of other cracks in the plaster below the bathroom I would start making the repair. Buy some extra tile if you find something that matches well. It may not be available in a month or a year.

consider a crack isolation membrane that can be placed over the crack to protect the tile from the movment in the substrate below.ie:nobleseal cis www.noblecompany.com it will also preform waterproofing for your bath room floor.

Are you proposing trying to isolate what are probably almost single tiles?

No-The broken tiles and the ajoining should be removed.Then install the membrane and new tiles.If it never moves again you dont need to to this, but if things are moving from seasonal changes go with a membrane to avoid having to fix it for the third time.

Unless you can find a batch of matching tile I would not take up any more than absolutely necessary. The supply of 80 year old tile is pretty limited. Waiting and checking for movement for a while will reduce the risk. There are other ways such as using epoxy to fill the crack that can be used, but they are not risk free either if motion occurs. A new crack can appear when stress builds up.
If the cracks look stable I would just repair the affected tiles and wait.
Part of the reason membranes work is that any substrate motion is effectively spread over the area of the membrane. A small piece of membrane cannot spread the stress out.

thanks for the advice guys, I'll report back with my next set of questions