Flooring Tile - Removing vinyl flooring adhesive

I am replacing the vinyl flooring in my foyer with ceramic tiles. I have removed the vinyl flooring, but there is still a thin layer of the adhesive. The adhesive is water soluable, as I find it comes of easier after I wet it. Should I remove all the adhesive and get to bare wood, or can I leave the thin film. The surface is smooth already. Also, is there a chemical stripper available for the adhesive. Water works, but it requires alot of elbow grease.

I think, since you are going over a wood subfloor, that you can leave the adhesive in place and go over it with cement backer board. Then install the ceramic tiles on top of that.

I like Hardi-backer, but Wonder Board and Durock will work also.

John

http://www.johnbridge.com

Thanks for the reply John. I read about cement backer board on the main website, but wasn't sure if it was absolutely necessary. My subfloor is already 1" thick. I have some questions concerning the cement backer:
a) How thick is it? I'm afraid it may make the floor in the foyer higher than the adjoining areas.
b) Is it easy to cut?
c) How is it attached to the floor?

Also, I found a couple of moldy areas in the kitchen when I removed the vinyl floor. Is there a proper way to treat these areas to get rid of the mold before I lay down ceramic tiles.

Simon.

Hi Simon,

Backer board comes in 1/4 in. thiknesses, so it won't add much to the floor. A slight difference in height is usually handled with reducer strips, etc. Looks great.

You bed the backer in thin set mortar and nail it with 1-1/2 in. galvanized roofing nails every 6 in. in both directions. Then you stick the tiles to it with thin set.

Clean up the moldy area with clorox and let it dry. Once moisture is eliminated, mold cannot live.

John

http://www.johnbridge.com

Hi John,

Thanks for all the help. One last question:
Do I have to wait for the thinset to harden on the backer board before applying the tiles?

Simon

Simon,

If you get it nailed down tightly, it won't make any difference. Use a polymer modified thinset for everything. Customs makes Versa Bond, and TEC makes Flex Bond, for example, but there are many other good brands.

You do want to stay off the floor after the new tiles have been laid. One day at least, and two would be better. Then grout and stay off another couple days.

John

http://www.johnbridge.com

Based on some of the answers above I don't know how your doing your job but if you want a simple methof for removal of the adhesive use the PEEL AWAY 5 product. safe and will do the job easily