Concrete floor tiles?

Just curious, we are looking at new flooring options for the "Wolf Room"...They have destroyed the leno twice, we are looking at more durable options. We were thinking about making concrete tiles...anyone done this? Lots of conflicting info on the web. BTW, this will be going over a 3/4 inch OSB subfloor. We can do 1/2 inch hardibacker for stability if needed...

I don't like the idea of concrete inside the house -- don't like the look -- but then again I don't have wolves.

I thought one problem with concrete is trying to clean it and keep liquids from staining it. Not sure if your wolves are pissing indoors but it would suck to have piss-stained concrete in the house.

i've never installed them but we have them in our house. and don't really like them very much. like the poster above said about the staining. it is a prob. you can get the stains out but you need bleach and some elbow grease. you would want to coat them with something.. i have no idea what. i would go regular tiles over these anyday


sweet dog BTW

Ever consider terrazzo?

I guess the question is why are you looking at concrete tiles? From your post are you going to make concrete and then pour it into tiles? As the above post noted I would think for an inside job you would want to apply some sort of epoxy coating to the tiles to get them to look better and for easier clean up - this could blow away any cost savings from making your own tiles over buying.

Making concrete tiles yourself is not that easy because you need to rig up a vibrating table. I'd treat them like natural stone meaning you'd have to seal them. I think you'll be happy with a semi-commercial grade ceramic tile. I went with Rialto tile from Lowes but it looks like they discontinued them. They were 3/8" thick and had a colormatched core in case of chips. For OSB, you'll want to put down an isolation membrane like Ditra before the tiling but most importantly you need to check your beam span to see if the floor deflection is suitable for tile.

Thanks for the info! The wife would like to get "creative" in that room....I would like to install something i don't have to replace next year. Tile is my first choice, but we have to keep "all options on the table"

You might look at Spanish tiles. There are some that are basically adobe with a hard sealer.

honestly, go for a cheap porcelian tile. Lay hardi backer down with a motified thinset and screw down. i use a roofing nailer since its much faster. i set tile and stone for a living.

I think can make solid tiles in any shape, yet you require the correct materials, appropriate extent and the right procedure and control to make something that looks great and keeps going.

david_42 said:

You might look at Spanish tiles. There are some that are basically adobe with a hard sealer.

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Yeah, but it can't be all over the place, A little here and there with a very light theme all over the house can really make a difference.

tile would be just about as durable and no issues with staining and smell retention like unsealed concrete would have. I'd just do tile or if i really wanted concrete i'd skip the tile route and just pour a thin layer of that self-leveling stuff over the OSB and then stain/seal that.

Randall said:

honestly, go for a cheap porcelian tile. Lay hardi backer down with a motified thinset and screw down. i use a roofing nailer since its much faster. i set tile and stone for a living.

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+1. Your pups would probably love a heated floor too. Properly-installed porcelain is just about indestructible. A quality exotic hardwood is pretty tough, too, and has the option to sand and refinish. There are also bamboo flooring options that are borderline-ridiculous in hardness.

Concrete is porous, so I'm not sure I'd want to lay that down in an indoor enclosure meant for animals. I would look to something nonporous and tough, like ceramic or porcelain tile.

I don't have wolf at my home. Are you talking about Lino flooring, which already have been destroyed? If you are thinking of concrete tile, I will suggest for stamped concrete patio ideas. Vitrified tile is also durable.