Why tiles seams crack?

If you have a tile floor and you can see some of the seams have cracks and you probably wonder why is this happening. You keep asking yourself: could the reason for this may be too little glue under the tiles? What you should do not to have this? Answers by Ekobustas specialists below.

First of all, the problem can of course be that there is too little adhesive under the tiles that makes the tiles loose and this in end causes cracks in the seams/joints. However, it can be check easily: you can tap the tiles with a hard object and if the tiles are loose – a hollow sound will be created.

Another reason can be that the reason the tiles are loose may be that the tiles were installed too soon, or the adhesive is created unwanted layer before the tile was put, thus the tile did not touch the adhesive normally.

Movement
If this is not the reason for the cracks, there can be another explanation. Cracks in the seams can occur when there is movement in the floor, coming from the surface of the tiles. This will cause the tiles offset, and cracks in the seams occur. A common case in basements is that tiles are placed on new concrete that has not dried yet. When concrete shrinks after the tiles are laid – cracks occur.

Tiles crack easily
Tiles are easy to crack if you loosen them, but of course it also depends on their size and type. However, if the tiles are bonded tightly enough on the bottom, there is less chance that they will crack. One problem may be that the tiles are loose where there is a lot of walking, but they are tight in other places.

Retiling
In this case you should take up the tiles and then lay new ones again. If needed, start by preparing a new surface, before pasting, tiling and grouting again.

All in all
To avoid the problem of cracks in the seams - it is important that the concrete dries at least three months to tiling. It is also important that there is enough glue and that this adhesive does not harden too fast. Use your finger to feel if the adhesive has hardened or not.