Removing cork tiles

[antman]

Hi all,
I am wondering if there might be a tried and true method of lifting cork tiles? We want to remove about 18 metres squared of cork tiles that are stuck to yellow tongue floor boards but there doesn't appear to be an easy way. I had though of using a circluar saw with a minimum depth (say 8 mm or so) to cut a stack of lines then use a big chisel to remove the remaing cork. I just don't really know how successful this might be. We intend to lay slate down once the cork is gone but getting the cork gone is the drama.
Any suggestions? I'd appreciate them before I really get into it....
Anthony

[Theva]

Anthony,

So there is no underlay.

Then it is hard to remove because cork will break into small bits.

One other option is to remove with yellow tounge?

Regards,

Theva

[Jacksin]

How about asking at your local hire outlet, Kennards etc, they may know.
Some have a floor stripper that removes vinyl (and almost anything) from concrete or timber floors.
Jack

[bitingmidge]

Messy.

I would try: a Kanga (or similar rotary drill with a thin blade)- Mick will hopefully give you some details, but you can get a blade which is about 2mm thick. This will not lift the tiles in any useful pieces, becuase they have been stuck down with Contact adhesive, but I think that you'll crumble enough to have a reasonable chance of running a floor sander over them with a 24 grit paper to take the balance off.

Or you could just mow them down with the sander?

Or from somewhere on the net:

Everybody is looking for a miracle answer to this horrible job. Sorry, there isn't one. Its just hard work with a wide scraper to remove the tiles and then even harder work to remove the adhesive underneath.

Once the tiles are off, the only method we have found which successfully removes most (not all) adhesives is to warm it gently with a hot air gun.*

When the adhesive starts to go soft, it can be scraped off. You will still have a small residue left on the surface and this can usually be removed by rubbing very hard with a cloth, or green scouring pad, dipped in solvent thinners

Or you could take them up slowly and personally using only a razor blade, developing an intense relationship with each tile as you go....after the first three or four you would have to be careful that you didn't accidentally slit your wrists though!

Good luck...

P

[seriph1]

kero and a match?

Seriously though, maybe there's a contact adhesive solvent out there that would soak into the cork and enable lifting them...? In my deep dark past I may recall a method of "ironing" contact adhesive to soften it.....

Frankly I feel queazy just thinking about it! New yellow tongue sounds like the go - or even lifting it and inverting it all, so you only have to rebate where the joists are.

[journeyman Mick]

Anthony,
like Jack says the hire companies have machines that will rip vinyl tiles off the floor, Id be very suprised if one of these wouldn't do the job. Otherwise a rotary hammer drill with a chisel bit but the chisels aren't ideal for this application. You could either heavily modify an existing bit with a grinder or get an el-cheapo wood chisel and weld it onto an appropriate shank :eek: . Another possibility is an air chisel as used by panel beaters etc to cut sheet metal. Otherwise "Fein" make a tool called a multimaster. You can put all sorts of different tips on it so it can be used for detail sanding, grout removal, chiselling through skirtings etc etc.
Good luck!

Mick

[soundman]

Fein do a little scraper thing but it would be like cleaning the bathroom with a tooth brush.

Hows a sharp shovel sound.

I wouldn't try this on a timber floor but a friend of mine had a holiday job when he was a student removing vinyl tyles with a shovel and a gas burner.
one man warms up the tile till it looks rubbery then the second man SHHHHUPTT with the shovel off she comes. Fumes were a problem though.

perhaps you could sharpen up a crowbar.

not a fun job.
ripping up the floor would probably be easier.

[echnidna]

Most of the adhesives used to lay cork tiles will soften up when heated.
I would try a hot air gun and a big paint scraper. Just be careful with the heat gun as they can scorch timber if played on one spot too long.

[antman]

Hmmmm, do I really want to do this???

We are removing the cork because over time it has become 'sunburnt' through the western window. We also want to put real tiles from the front door through to the back room, including this area. I have no real desire to keep any of the cork.

So this then opens a couple more questions.
How clean would the floor need to be for tiles to be laid on it? Would I need to get rid of all the adhesive? Theva mentioned an underlay, what is that likely to be if it exists?

Maybe I need to do an exploritory cut. (Evil grin!)
Thanks all for your advice!
Anthony

[Theva]

Anthony,

Underlay is a thin (3 to 5mm) fibre cement sheet. It is normally installed on top of timber flooring and then tiles on top. Do check if this exist in your place, if so then you can cut a few strips and chip the rest out.

Same goes with new tiling. Tile underlay first on timber flooring or chipboard then tiles. So, to start with, the timber floor should be free of lumps and bumps.

If there is no underlay, my choice (considering the effort involved) will be to remove cork with the chipboard and install new chip board.

Hope this is of some use.

Regards,

Theva