QUESTION

Stairs - I would like to install ceramic tile on inside steps. Is this a good process? Can it work? How would you finish off the front edge of the step.

ANSWER

ANSWER #1 - You can install ceramic tile on interior steps. The ceramic tile needs to be slip resistant enough so it is not unsafe when wet.

The best installation is to install over concrete. Assuming the steps are now made of wood, you can apply a cement mortar bed on top of them, which requires some expertise. Or next best, you can attach a thin cement backer-board over the wooden steps and then adhere the ceramic tile to it. You can attach directly to wood with some products, but it needs to be very sturdy wood that will not get wet.

ANSWER #2 - There are some requirements for various heights of stairs to make them safe from step to step. You can get the Tile Council of America Handbook for ceramic tile from www.tileusa.com that will give you all the details for stairs.

As far at the nosing of the stairs you can use what they call a bullnose edge, which is rounded on one edge, for the stair tread, and then tile on the riser will fit under the rounded edge of the tile on the tread.

Or there are a few tiles that have a stair nosing piece that is much more pronounced and somewhat raps around that tread edge. If you miter that leading edge, rather than use the bullnose trim, it is more susceptible to chipping and can be more dangerous if someone falls against its sharp edge. Good Luck!