How to Install Floor Tiles Around Kitchen Cabinets
Installing floor tiles in a kitchen, after the kitchen cabinets have already been installed, sounds intimidating. But it’s not complicated if you just treat the base of the cabinet—the part that sits on the floor—as if it's a wall, complete with base trim installed to cover the joint between the tile edge and the cabinet. It's especially important that you lay out the floor ahead of time, so you don't end up with very thin, awkward-looking tile cuts along the bottom of the cabinet. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Pencil
- Tape measure
- Chalk snapline
- Carpenter's square
- Thinset mortar
- Notched trowel
- Tiles
- Tile spacers
- Tile cutter
- Grout
- Grout trowel
- Sponge
- Base trim
- Trim nailer
Instructions
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1
Measure all the walls in the room, at the floor, and find the middle of each, marking the middle on the floor. Assuming the cabinets cross the middle of a wall, treat the base of the cabinet as if it's a wall, and mark the floor in front of it.
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2
Pull a chalk snapline across the middle of the floor from one of the marks to the one across from it. Snap the string, leaving a straight line of chalk. Re-position the string between the two other marks, so it intersects the first line at the middle of the floor. Square the string to the line, using your carpenter's square. Snap the string, so the floor is divided into four sections.
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3
Set floor tiles alongside the lines, without mortar, starting at the intersection and building out to the walls. Again, treat the base of the cabinets as one of the walls. Put tile spacers between the tiles. Lay as many full tiles as will fit along the lines.
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4
Measure the space between the ends of the tiles and the walls—or the base—of the cabinets. The space should be the same on both ends of each row. If there is less than 2 inches by any wall, adjust the rows of tiles so there isn't. For example, if a row of tiles has 1 1/4 inches of space by the wall—or cabinet base—at each end, then scoot the row in one direction so there is no space at one end, and 2 1/2 inches of space at the other. Re-snap your chalk lines, if necessary, to reflect the adjustments.
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5
Spread thinset mortar over the intersection of the two lines. Set your floor tiles in place at the intersection, putting tile spacers between them. Spread more mortar and tile, building toward the walls and the cabinet base. Cut the tiles by the walls and cabinets as necessary, leaving about 1/4 inch from the cut end of the tile to the wall or cabinet base.
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6
Let the tiles set for a day. Remove the spacers. Grout the floor with a grout float, forcing grout into the spaces between the tiles. Wipe off the excess grout with a damp sponge.
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7
Install base trim around the perimeter of the tile floor, using a trim nailer. Treat the cabinet base as a wall, installing the base trim around the bottom of it, covering the space between the cut edges of the tile and the cabinet base.
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Tips & Warnings
Wear eye protection when cutting the tiles.
