What kind of flooring on slab

[rwolf]

The 12x12 ceramic tiles on my Florida house are actually popping up and need to be replaced. I think they are lifting because of cheap mastic with no flexibility and the way it was installed butting the baseboard leaving no room for expansion. I don't want to put in a full 3/4 " hardwood floor because of the height I would lose. I don't know if I should go with the pergo floor or a laminate. Also, should the foam be installed under both? Maybe the foam can be laid on top of the dried mastic and create an even enough surface..I've put back some of these tiles in the past and the mastic that sticks to the floor creates an uneven surface that must be considered. Of course, cost is a factor.
R. Wolf

[statjunk]

You will need to bring the floor back to flat. You can rent equipment that will make this a breeze depending on what you have there. If you have soft flexible mastic on the ground must be soft and flexible, you can use a scarifier. If you have mastic that is closer to a cement you will have to use a chipping hammer with a large flat blade. The foam padding will not flatten the floor sufficiently for an install of pergo or any other snap flooring. It will bow and undulate under the weight of a person. It will also likely be noisy or crunchy.

Over a slab it isn't the greatest idea to go with a product like pergo. The mdf can swell with moisture. If you want to go with a thin flooring you'll have to look at the engineered wood floors which are essentially ply wood with a hardwood veneer over the top. They are sandable and stainable but they cost more.

Tom

[jadnashua]

Mastic is never a good option for installing tile on a floor IMHO. There needs to be a gap around the periphery to allow for expansion and preventing tenting.

Engineered flooring requires a quite flat floor for installation - you'd have to scrape off the mastic and potentially flatten the floor often to 1/8" in 10'. The underlayment is required to allow it to float, and to act as a vapor barrier.

[rwolf]

Thankn you, sounds like good advice:)