Flooring Tile - Easiest/Fastest Way To Remove Ceramic Tile & Thinset

We are going to be retiling our house. All of the existing tile is over the concrete foundation (single story house) and the tile is coming up pretty easy but the existing thinset is not. What's the most effective way of getting the old thinset up so we can level our floor for the new tile?

Thanks.

Go to a tool rental center and get a demolition hammer with a 2" spade for about $50 a day. That will get most of the thinset up. Whatever is left will come up with a chisel and hammer.

$50/day? Yikes. Might be cheaper to just buy one....got several days ahead of me. Thanks for the reply.

My Hitatchi cost about $400, the Hilti is even more.

My Hitatchi cost about $400, the Hilti is even more.

I ended up renting a Hilti for $68/week. Got a late start on Saturday so we only knocked out 1/2 of it this weekend. Will get the rest next weekend.

What should I do for any gouges in the concrete the chipper hammer made? Most are just scratches but there's a few that are maybe 3/4" deep and a couple inches in diameter. Will filling them with the thinset as I lay the tile be enough? Or is there some kind of patching I should use?

Thinset will be fine.:)

Thanks! I figured it would, especially since I'm going to be putting down such large tiles (20").