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Vent: My 'easy' tile floor fix turned into a three day mess
So, I had a single cracked tile in my kitchen, right by the fridge. I watched a few videos and it looked straightforward. I got a chisel and hammer, thinking I'd pop the old one out, clean the spot, and set a new one. In my experience, things are never that simple. The tile came out in a million tiny pieces, and I found a bunch of wet, crumbly mortar underneath. Turns out, the grout had been cracked for a while and water got under there. I ended up having to pull up six more tiles to get to solid ground, and the subfloor was a little soft. I spent the next two days cutting out a small section of plywood, putting in a new piece, and then redoing the whole area. I learned that a single broken tile can be a sign of a bigger, wetter problem. Has anyone else had a small repair blow up like that? What's your rule for when to stop and call a pro?
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williamw756mo ago
So you found the secret project under the floor. How long do you think that water had been sitting there, and what tipped you off that it was worse than just one tile?
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margaret7366mo ago
Sounds about right. Home projects always have a secret second, worse project hiding underneath them. My rule is to call someone when I have to Google what a subfloor is.
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