Ceramic tile in my kitchen is tenting

QUESTION

Tenting Tile (debonding) - I am having a problem with ceramic tile in my kitchen tenting as to where we have already pulled up 55 sq ft.The insuranc ecompany is saying it's because it was laid on a dirty slab. The tile was put down in 1995. The other day we spotted water coming through the grout. Could the dirty slab statement be true or a possible slab leak?

ANSWER

ANSWER - Generally speaking when a tile tents (lifting up) the failure is due to debonding that is caused by compounding reasons.  Part of it could be that there was a contaminate on the substrate to which it was attached. Having excessive moisture in the slab could contribute to a failure, poor workmanship by the installer could contribute to it failing, and not have proper expansion joints could contribute as well.

Having water coming up through the grout is not normal and could suggest there is hydrostatic pressure from the water contributing to the problem. So moisture could be the primary cause of the problem or a contributing factor.

An intrusive inspection would have to be performed to determine what has caused the failure and how to remediate the problem.  CTaSC performs these types of inspections throughout the country and it does get expensive, so it may or may not be practical for you to have us perform an investigation. Visit our website for more details on our services at www.CTaSC.com.  Good Luck.

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