How to Remove Tile From a Concrete Floor: DIY vs Hiring a Pro
Removing tile from a concrete slab is simple to explain and hard to do. Break it, scrape it, haul it, grind what's left. Here's how it goes, and when it makes sense to hand it off.
Tools You'll Need
- Rotary hammer or demo hammer with a wide chisel bit
- Long handled floor scraper
- Concrete grinder with a HEPA vacuum for thinset
- Heavy buckets or a wheelbarrow and a plan for disposal
- Safety glasses, hearing protection, gloves, knee pads and a proper dust mask
Step 1: Check for Asbestos
If the home is older and the tile is 9 by 9 or sits on black adhesive, test before you start. Our asbestos floor tile guide explains why.
Step 2: Prep the Room
Pull baseboards, toilets and appliances. Seal doorways with plastic. Cover HVAC returns. Tile dust travels farther than you think.
Step 3: Break and Lift the Tile
Start at a broken tile or a doorway edge. Get the chisel under the tile and work in rows. Some tile pops off. Some shatters into tiny pieces. Big rooms take hours of this.
Step 4: Haul It Out
Tile is heavy. A few hundred square feet can fill a truck bed. Most curbside trash won't take it, so plan a dump run or a bin.
Step 5: Remove the Thinset
This is where most DIY jobs stall. The slab is still covered in ridges of thinset. It has to be ground flat before LVP, tile or hardwood goes down. See how to remove thinset from concrete.
Step 6: Patch and Clean
Fill low spots and cracks, then vacuum everything. Now it's ready.
When DIY Makes Sense
A small bathroom or laundry room with tile that comes up easily. You have a weekend, a strong back and somewhere to dump it.
When to Hire It Out
- More than one room
- Thick mortar beds
- You live in the house and can't live with the dust
- You need it done in a day so the installer can start
Our crews use ride on machines for big rooms, hand tools for edges and a HEPA shroud for dust. Most single family homes are done in one day, with thinset ground and debris gone. That's our dustless tile removal service.
Curious about price first? Read our tile removal cost guide.
Get your tile removal price or call (916) 542-3333. We price every job in your home, and the price we quote is the price you pay.