Hello, sorry if this has been asked before, but I'm a bit a noob when it comes to flooring.
I just purchased a home recently (built in 1993) and during the inspection it was noted that there may have been a leak in the powder room bathroom. You can visibly see the damage from the basement and there were visibly cracked tiles around the toilet. I figured, oh replacing the subfloor in that small section can't be that bad. At the same time the tile is pretty ugly so I thought I would replace just this room only. The existing ceramic flooring extends through the majority of the lower level (Kitchen, Hallway, Powder room, Laundry room). I really don't have the capital to replace the entire area at the same time. While removing the damaged (cracked) tile to get to the subfloor, I noticed that there's no cement board. I'm no expert, but it looks like someone just attached the tile using mortar directly to the subfloor. My dilemma is, I know you should use cement board underneath tile, but because I'm just replacing one room, I'm going to have a height difference with the hallway and the rest of the house. Anyone know of any creative ways to resolve this? Are there transition pieces you can get for tile? I'll eventually replace the remaining tile, and make sure it's done the correct way, but that requires a complete re-do of the kitchen which I'm not prepared to invest in at the moment.
I just purchased a home recently (built in 1993) and during the inspection it was noted that there may have been a leak in the powder room bathroom. You can visibly see the damage from the basement and there were visibly cracked tiles around the toilet. I figured, oh replacing the subfloor in that small section can't be that bad. At the same time the tile is pretty ugly so I thought I would replace just this room only. The existing ceramic flooring extends through the majority of the lower level (Kitchen, Hallway, Powder room, Laundry room). I really don't have the capital to replace the entire area at the same time. While removing the damaged (cracked) tile to get to the subfloor, I noticed that there's no cement board. I'm no expert, but it looks like someone just attached the tile using mortar directly to the subfloor. My dilemma is, I know you should use cement board underneath tile, but because I'm just replacing one room, I'm going to have a height difference with the hallway and the rest of the house. Anyone know of any creative ways to resolve this? Are there transition pieces you can get for tile? I'll eventually replace the remaining tile, and make sure it's done the correct way, but that requires a complete re-do of the kitchen which I'm not prepared to invest in at the moment.
