Advice on what to put under plastic tiles

[bazzateer]

OK, first of all I know I've always said I'd prefer to go with porcelain or ceramic tile, and I know I've just painted my floor but .......................................

A friend has offered me enough PVC/plastic garage floor tiles to do my entire 600 sq ft for a grand total of £25. They're second-hand and will be a little dirty/dusty. They're pale blue in colour (at this price I'd have them if the were fluorescent pink to be honest!).

He says they're the same as these: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Garage-Fl...ooring&var=&hash=item19e9fc7f61#ht_971wt_1399

Those are £5.99 per tile (I checked with the seller). Each tile is 500mm x 500mm so four tiles (£24) = 1 sqm. I need 56 sqm which would cost me £1,344 for brand new from that seller. I'm getting 56 sqm (600 sqft) for £25.

I hope to be collecting the tiles on Sunday - I'm expecting them to need a lot of cleaning etc at that price but I can't really turn down such a great deal.

Back to the main reason for this thread - what, if anything, do you guys recommend I put down under theses tiles to keep noise down etc?

 

[Munich77]

I think people put landscaping fabric down. But I wonder if that is necessary? I am going to put my floor down next weekend. It has been sitting in the garage for a couple of weeks now.

 

[Slowbra]

I have nothing down under my RaceDeck FreeFlow tiles. No noise or anything when walking.

 

[bazzateer]

Landscaping fabric? Hmmm, will have to look into that.

My friend has done his garage floor with these tiles so I'll have a look at his before I decide on whether to put anything under mine.

 

[John Harry]

No direct experience, but I have read that using landscape fabric under tile can cause mold and mildew if it stays wet - for instance, if cars in rain and snow are often parked on it.

 

[bazzateer]

Thanks John, definitely something to consider.

 

[Shea]

PVC tiles do not make noise. I think you are confusing them with the harder plastic polypropylene interlocking tile. Here is an article about noisy tile issues and which ones are the offender.

 

[bazzateer]

PVC tiles do not make noise. I think you are confusing them with the harder plastic polypropylene interlocking tile. Here is an article about noisy tile issues and which ones are the offender.

Yep, you're right.

Picked up the floor tiles today - car was riding on the bumpstops all the way home - surprising how heavy 234 tiles are!

They're just in a pile in the garage at the moment - I'll make a start tomorrow before work. It will mean moving a lot of stuff and the cars around while I lay them, and unloading the shelves etc so they can be laid below, but should be worth all the aggro.

The tiles are flexible in a 'rubbery' kind of way so I don't expect there to be any noise when walking on them - so no need for landscape fabric.

 

[bdamico]

Are you going to put down some urethane on top just to be safe? Might make sense to have triple protection.

 

[tncatadjuster]

I had great luck putting them in the sun and letting them get extra pliable, rotated to sunny area, as I put them in all day long. This is a great floor product for walkways in factories, I have no experience with them in a garage, my guess is your going to be very happy.

Tiles need nothing other than mopping.

 

[bazzateer]

Are you going to put down some urethane on top just to be safe? Might make sense to have triple protection.

Nope, the concrete below has a few coats of paint to protect and seal it. The tiles will cope with daily use.

I had great luck putting them in the sun and letting them get extra pliable, rotated to sunny area, as I put them in all day long. This is a great floor product for walkways in factories, I have no experience with them in a garage, my guess is your going to be very happy.

Tiles need nothing other than mopping.

Sun? This is England mate!

 

[Garage Flooring]

Yep, you're right.

Picked up the floor tiles today - car was riding on the bumpstops all the way home - surprising how heavy 234 tiles are!

They're just in a pile in the garage at the moment - I'll make a start tomorrow before work. It will mean moving a lot of stuff and the cars around while I lay them, and unloading the shelves etc so they can be laid below, but should be worth all the aggro.

The tiles are flexible in a 'rubbery' kind of way so I don't expect there to be any noise when walking on them - so no need for landscape fabric.

Obviously I am coming into this conversation late. Landscape fabric is a great idea for hard plastic tiles but not needed for PVC. This appears to be clearly established in this thread. The next question is how are you going to protect those PVC tiles from tire marks. There are urethane's available and many of our customers use acrylic floor finish. Both have upsides and downsides. The acrylic floor finish can be a pain to maintain. It is not permanent and there are some environments it does not work well. But its cheap and easy to apply.

Urethane is a more permanent solution, but its more work and needs to be done just right. It also can create issues down the road if it needs to be buffed and refinished.

 

[bazzateer]

To be honest I'm not worried about tyre marks. As long as I can clean up oil spills etc and mop the tiles occasionally to clean up general dirt I'm fine. My garage will be a working garage and will get dirty, it will never be a spotless 'show' garage.

 

[bazzateer]

Started putting these down today before heading off to work. lots of shifting stuff around the garage to free up the floor space but so far it's going well. I'll update my main thread (see sig).

The tiles are pre-used so some are quite dirty and marked but that doesn't bother me. If it was too clean I'd be afraid to use the place!