by Jim Bessey

Created on: July 04, 2009

Ceramic tile floors form a natural complement to hardwood floors. The trick lies in how you transition from tile to wood. Since the two materials are so dissimilar, they expand and contract at very different rates. You should never simply butt new tile to an existing wood floor, or vice-versa. Let's look at the two most common scenarios.

A. Your new tile floor will be nearly the same height as the existing wood floor:

This occurs fairly often, since hardwood floors are generally 3/4" thick. Floor tile is often best laid over 1/2" cement board; add tile that's about a quarter-inch thick, and the two floors will be nearly equal. In this case you'll need some sort of simple expansion joint.

Product choices:

Most home centers carry a nice assortment of Schluter brand transition strips designed for this purpose. You can usually choose from plastic (in colors), aluminum, or brass. Brass is the most durable and most expensive, and sometimes considered a bit gaudy. Plastic is inexpensive and by nature more susceptible to wear; but the choice of colors allows for some designer creativity. Aluminum falls between the two.

Viewed from the end, these strips all present a simple L-shape, with the short leg facing up. The longer, thinner leg is installed just beneath the tile. Choose a short-leg height that most closely matches your tile's thickness (take a sample along to check this).

Installation method:

Transition strips are laid after the tile underlayment is complete, and before you set the row which will finish the tile floor as it meets your existing wood floor. To allow for expansion, leave a gap between the wood and the Schluter strip of about 1/8". It's best to use some sort of spacers to set this gap, although you could certainly do it by eye.

These edging strips also include a tiny "bumper" on the tile side to provide proper minimum spacing for this final row of tiles. You can increase this space to better match your chosen grout-joint size, if you like. Complete your tile project by grouting up to the inner edge of the transition piece; use masking tape to protect the hardwood.

Once the grout has cured for a day or two, finish the job by adding a bead of silicone-based caulk between the edging strip and the wood floor. This caulk can be clear, translucent, grout-matched, or of a color to complement the wood itself. Your tile supplier will have each of these choices available. Remember the rule of caulking: use half as much as your think you need, the

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