Half Bath Renovation: The Ongoing Battle

Last night as we are crawling into bed, my partner suggests we finish the half bath that has been torn up and unusable since last summer, and I agree. Arguing ensues as to the best possible way to do it, as is usually the case when we have opposing ideas, and we go to bed deciding it will just never get done.

My partner wants to install so much underlayment that it will raise the tiled floor of the half bath, and eventually the laundry room, kitchen and full bath an inch above the wood floor. I want to find a solution that will allow the floors to be as close to level to prevent people from tripping and possibly causing loss of life or limb simply on the quest to pee. Let the most logical choice win.

I understand that the floor needs to be level, that much is a given when installing tile in order to prevent cracking. But I don’t see how installing subfloor over the decking will help with this matter when the subfloor also isn’t level and has a few areas where it gives a little when walked upon. Simply throwing concrete backer board on top of that will not make it any sturdier than just screwing it directly into the decking. Of course, this means we will have to pull out all of the subfloor everywhere we plan to tile.

The other issue that arises during this dilemma is if we do put the concrete backer board on top of the subfloor and then the tile on top of that, it will create a one inch height difference above the rest of the floors in the house. For some, this seems like a minor issue, but most trips and falls occur from about a half an inch discrepancy. Another thing to consider is that from a resale standpoint, having that raised surface will limit the buying pool, as people with mobility issues and the elderly will be excluded.

So, I’m certain we will end up going to a tile store and ask for professional advice, as we still need thinset and grout, and go from there. I’m sure if we do need to install a subfloor first, we would be able to get away with a thinner one and also a thinner concrete backer board, but honestly, I’d think the thicker backer board that we have would be more stable, and just find a way to easily shore up the couple spots where the floor bows slightly. We’ll see whose idea wins… and probably end up putting linoleum back on.