Cracked Floor Tile Causes

Tiles provide a durable covering for floors walls and backsplashes.

Cracked floor tile causes. In many cases the crack is not the result of an inferior tile. To discover the cause of your tile s crack you ll need to carefully inspect the crack s size and pattern. Natural circumstances such as moisture penetration pressure changes or aging can also cause cracks. Cracked floor tiles aren t cause for immediate panic.

In many cases cracked tile floors are signs of foundation issues it s possible that soil movement or water has caused your foundation to shift move or even be pushed in an upward direction. Cracks in concrete substrate. To prevent cracks from forming in the first place we recommend you ask your contractor to install a crack isolation membrane during tile flooring installation. Knowing what can cause cracking can help to troubleshoot cracked tiles and lead to a better tile floor.

Ceramic tile can develop hairline cracks for a variety of reasons. Although cracks sometimes indicate serious structural issues they re often a symptom of superficial damage. Cracked tiles on floors and walls is a problem because it can be difficult to track down the source of the crack. Sometimes hairline cracks in tile floors are one of the first tell tale indications that soil or moisture is affecting a foundation.

Ceramic tiles should not crack under normal usage and when they do it is almost always due to improper subfloor conditions or improper installation. This is known as reflective cracking and often causes multiple tiles to crack. Whatever the cause you can remedy the cracks yourself without having to hire a professional. Concrete substrate did not cure.

Or if your ceramic tile was installed over newly laid concrete the tile may crack as the concrete settles. Perhaps you dropped something heavy on the tile such as a cast iron skillet. When tile is bonded directly to concrete and that concrete happens to crack so can the tile layer above. In areas with cold winters porous tiles like terracotta contract at freezing temperatures and then expand during mild spells eventually leading to cracking.

In far more instances the crack was caused by anomalies under or around the tile.