One of the reasons people reach for rigid SPC is that it often goes down over what's already there. Ceramic tile, old vinyl, sheet flooring, even a tired laminate can stay put in a lot of cases. The old floor has to be doing its job though: stuck down, dry, and flat enough. If it's loose, hollow or moving, that problem travels straight up into your new planks. Here's how to read the floor you've got and decide whether it's ready.
Check the tile is sound first
Walk the whole floor and listen. Tap suspect tiles with a knuckle or a coin — a hollow ring means the tile has let go of the adhesive underneath. A cracked or drummy tile will flex under load, and a floating floor can't fix movement below it. Re-bed or screw down anything loose, and pull tiles that are beyond saving and patch the gap flush.
Grout lines and texture
Wide or deep grout joints are the usual sticking point. Rigid SPC bridges small dips, but a plank sitting across an open grout line has no support there and can telegraph the joint or click apart over time. As a rough guide, joints deeper than a couple of millimetres or wider than around 5 mm are worth filling with a levelling or feather compound. Heavily textured, riven or slate-effect tile should be skimmed smooth for the same reason. Follow MILAT's product installation guidance for the exact deviation your floor is rated to bridge.
Mind the extra height
Tile plus SPC raises the floor. Check it against door swings, appliance openings, thresholds and the bottom stair riser before you commit. You may need to trim door bottoms and fit transition strips where the new height meets carpet or another room.
- Sweep and de-grease — SPC's click joints hate grit and residue
- Fill grout lines and any chips flush with a suitable compound
- Confirm the tile is dry; test if the slab below has ever had damp issues
- Lay planks across the run of grout joints where you can, not parallel to them
- Leave the perimeter expansion gap all the way around
Why MILAT SPC suits a floor-over job
MILAT SPC uses a licensed Unilin click system, so it's tool-free and reversible — handy if you ever want to lift it off the tile again. The 100% waterproof core means an old kitchen or bathroom tile floor is fair game, and the IXPE acoustic backing (up to 21 dB) takes some of the click and echo out of a hard tiled base.
When ripping the tile out is the smarter call
Going over tile is a shortcut, and shortcuts have conditions. If more than the odd tile sounds hollow when tapped, if the floor has visible humps or dips beyond what a straightedge tolerates, or if there is history of moisture coming up through the slab, removal is the honest fix. The same is true when finished height is already tight at doors and appliances. Demolition is loud and dusty for a day; a floating floor laid over a bad base is a complaint that lasts years.
- Multiple hollow or drummy tiles: the bed underneath is failing
- Height already critical at external doors or under appliances
- Signs of damp, efflorescence or previous water damage in the slab
- Large format tiles laid badly, with lippage a leveller cannot economically bury
Kitchens: go under the units or around them?
A floating floor should not be pinned down, and a run of cabinets sitting on top of it does exactly that. The clean method is to fit the floor around the units, up to the kick line, leaving the expansion gap hidden behind the plinth. Freestanding appliances can sit on the floor, since they can move with it and be pulled out for service. If a full kitchen refit is coming later, sequence matters: units first, floor second saves material and protects the floor's freedom to move.
Bathrooms and fixed fixtures
Tiled bathrooms are tempting floor-over candidates because SPC's core is 100% waterproof, but the fixtures set the rules. Fit around the toilet and pedestal rather than under them where practical, keep the expansion gap at every wall and fixture, and seal the perimeter with a flexible sanitary sealant so surface water cannot travel under the floor and sit there. The plank will not care about the water; the point of the detailing is that nothing underneath gets a permanent bath.
Old floors other than tile
The over-the-top question extends beyond ceramic. Well-bonded sheet vinyl and glued-down LVT generally make an acceptable base if they are flat and not cushioned. Existing laminate and other floating floors must come up, because stacking one floating system on another creates movement on movement. Carpet always comes up, along with its underlay and gripper. Loose, curling or cushioned vinyl comes up too. The test is always the same: the base must be flat, dry, clean and firmly attached to the building.
If in doubt, tape a square of polythene to the old floor for a day or two; condensation underneath signals moisture that needs addressing before anything goes over the top. It is a crude test, but it has saved more floors than most gadgets.
The perimeter details that make it look built-in
A floor-over job succeeds or fails visually at its edges. Plan the trims before the first plank: skirting refitted over the new floor hides the expansion gap best, while quadrant beading is the quicker compromise. Doorways need a threshold that manages the step to neighbouring rooms, and door architraves are best undercut so planks slide beneath them instead of being scribed around. These finishing choices cost little and are the difference between a retrofit that whispers and one that announces itself. Buy trims when you buy planks, in matching or deliberately contrasting finishes, so nothing holds up the final day.
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