Tile Installation & Tile Flooring in Minneapolis

Tile installation is the prep, layout, setting and grouting of tile, and tile flooring is that same work done on a floor — Top Notch Floors handles both across Minneapolis. We set tile floors, showers, tub surrounds, walls and backsplashes. Same licensed crew since 1990.

Porcelain, ceramic and stone are not interchangeable. Porcelain is dense and absorbs almost no water, so it belongs on floors, in showers and anywhere it gets wet or takes traffic. Ceramic is softer and cheaper, and it is fine on walls and in light-use rooms. Natural stone — marble, travertine, slate — is beautiful and porous. It needs sealing and it stains if you ignore it.

Tile floors earn their keep in kitchens, bathrooms, entries and basements. An entry takes salt and slush all winter and wipes clean. A basement floor over concrete does not care about humidity. In a kitchen, tile handles dropped pans and spilled water better than any wood floor will.

Whether a tile floor cracks is decided before a single tile goes down. The subfloor has to be flat and stiff. Bouncy joists or a flexing plywood deck will crack grout and then tile, no matter how good the setter is. Over wood we add backer board or an uncoupling membrane so the floor can move a little without taking the tile with it. Over concrete we chase cracks and isolate them. This is the step people skip and then pay for twice.

Shower tile is a waterproofing job first. The tile and grout are not the water barrier. We build the wall with a proper waterproof membrane or foam board system, band the corners and seams, slope the pan, and pressure-test before tile goes up. Grout is cement. Water passes through it.

Layout changes the whole room. Straight stack reads modern and clean. Offset hides small variation in older houses. Herringbone costs more in labor and waste and looks like money. We dry-lay the first rows so the cuts land where you do not stare at them, and so you do not end up with a sliver of tile at the doorway.

Heated tile floors are worth it in a Minneapolis bathroom. Electric mat goes under the tile and ties into a thermostat. It takes the January chill off the floor at a cost of a few dollars a month.

Then it cures. Thinset needs about 24 hours before you walk on it, grout goes in after, and sealer waits another two or three days. Rushing a tile floor is how you break the bond you just made.

Comparing tile against wood, vinyl or carpet for the same room? Our flooring page lays out every material we install.