Loose tile "hearth pad"?

someone that knows better will answer but i'm pretty sure it has to be a one piece seamless item, grout between tiles makes it one piece. have you looked into a metal or even glass as an option?

A piece of steel or if I were doing tile I wood lay a couple thin pieces of hardy backer screwed to the floor and grout the tile to that. Trim it out with a nice piece of stained quarter round. Should only cost an extra $50 to do all that. Easy peasy

You could lay a loose sheet of continuous tin under the loose tile. Like hvac metal. Or rubber/plywood/tile with grout on top of laminate.

I just had someone over for a consultation on my work and before I even got to the hearth he said it must be a continues non combustible surface. You you'll need to mortar down that tile. The mortar acts as a continues surface.

I'd cut out the flooring with a knife and cement it to the floor underneath. Or if you need it raised use a cement board.

Good luck.

Just to pile on, my hearth is tiled, but my tile is mortared and grouted...

I hired three college students to lift and position my A30 onto the hearth. Cost me a large delivered pizza. No cracks in the tile yet.

You could also use things like a piece of quartz or granite counter top. I went to a local countertop store and they cut a piece of scrap material for me to size, cost me $40.

TheRambler said:

You could also use things like a piece of quartz or granite counter top. I went to a local countertop store and they cut a piece of scrap material for me to size, cost me $40.

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Yea a new 4x4 22 guage sheet of metal runs about $40-$60. If it doesn't need to be secured down then you've got a nice and easy solution.

I'm not 100% sure but a layer of metal, some tile on top of that should protect the floor from melting.

If it was me, I'd cut the flooring out around were the hearth is going...because I just don't like stacking flooring on top of one another. Then, I'd screw down my durock or hardibacker and start tiling.
(edit)
Put a layer of thinset down on top of the floor before you put the board down. Makes a really nice foundation that takes up any voids.

Make sure you have a nice chalk line and you understand your center. A laser is really great for this stuff.

Plus, most laminate is a floating floor system that is not supposed to be pinned down in one location. It can cause the floor to buckle somewhere else when it can't expand and move under the stove.

Highbeam said:

Plus, most laminate is a floating floor system that is not supposed to be pinned down in one location. It can cause the floor to buckle somewhere else when it can't expand and move under the stove.

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??? I thought the idea of laminate flooring was to use in areas that standard wood flooring would expand / contract (like basements and stuff) The idea for a floating laminate floor is ease of install by joey homeowner, without leveling off the whole floor. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

Highbeam said:

Plus, most laminate is a floating floor system that is not supposed to be pinned down in one location. It can cause the floor to buckle somewhere else when it can't expand and move under the stove.

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I'm pretty sure vinyl sheet flooring like this is glued down. These don't look like tiles to me..but I can't really tell.

kennyp2339 said:

??? I thought the idea of laminate flooring was to use in areas that standard wood flooring would expand / contract (like basements and stuff) The idea for a floating laminate floor is ease of install by joey homeowner, without leveling off the whole floor. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

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Laminate flooring is like pergo. It's used because it's fast, cheap, and dang durable. Click together strips of pressed wood that aren't attached to the floor and usually look like wood by being painted with a wood picture on top. They also make this in vinyl for wet areas. They float, aren't attached. You need to provide a gap around the edge to allow for expansion.

This has nothing to do with leveling the floor. All floor systems require relatively level subfloor/underlayment.

There are some engineered flooring systems that are nailed to the floor like traditional hardwood but they are rare.

sportbikerider78 said:

I'm pretty sure vinyl sheet flooring like this is glued down. These don't look like tiles to me..but I can't really tell.

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He didn't say vinyl sheet flooring (aka linoleum). He said laminate but then showed a photo of a tile looking thing. Is it tile, linoleum, or what?

You could always pay full price for a piece, not like it would break the bank for that size.

kennyp2339 said:

??? I thought the idea of laminate flooring was to use in areas that standard wood flooring would expand / contract (like basements and stuff) The idea for a floating laminate floor is ease of install by joey homeowner, without leveling off the whole floor. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

Click to expand...

You are correct it expands less than hardwoords but still has some expansion and contraction. I think it is 1/16"-1/8" in 8' worth.

sportbikerider78 said:

I'm pretty sure vinyl sheet flooring like this is glued down. These don't look like tiles to me..but I can't really tell.

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There are vinyl floors that do no need to be glued. Usually the glue down is thinner and doesn't have the soft foam like backing.

Calentarse said:

I should have clarified. Sorry. It's linoleum. Ours is glued down.

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I don't know what to classify this business as, but he cut me a limestone mantle, custom dimensions for about $120. Look for a guy like this, or if you know a mason, ask them where they get their materials.
http://www.miltonsupply.com/

If you like granite, you can get standard size countertop slabs 25x70 for $110-150 ea.

For my dark black granite counter tops, I paid $55/sqft installed. I'm sure it would be much less for not installed and you pick up.