Ceramic Wall Tile Backer Board

Backer board is the best substrate for tile.

Ceramic wall tile backer board.

It s made primarily with cement and sand and it has no paper that can deteriorate or promote mold growth if it gets wet. Whether it s a wall floor or countertop tile installation using the right substrate is crucial for preventing cracks and breaks in the tile and grout. Plywood and osb substrates can warp and mold with water damage but tile backer board will do neither. The traditional method of installing ceramic tile called for setting it in a solid mortar bed.

Unlike wood or drywall sub surfaces cement backerboard will not rot warp or grow mold and mildew when exposed to water. Doesn t deteriorate when wet. It s hard flat and incredibly stable. Here s how to choose the best tile backer board for your project.

Never install new tiles over existing tiles or onto an unprotected wood or plywood floor. Ceramic tile backer board also called cement board or tile backer is a rigid panel material that installs over wood framing much like drywall. Tile needs to be installed on a backer board to keep the assembly stiff otherwise the assembly will flex at the grout joints allowing water to seep behind the tile and rot the substructure. Troweling a perfectly flat bed required great skill but the reward was a tile job that lasted for decades.

Cement board commonly sold under trade names such as durock hardiebacker and wonderboard is now the standard underlayment used for ceramic porcelain or stone tile laid with thinset mortar adhesive cement board is used for most floor tile and has all but replaced plywood and drywall backer materials for wall tile applications in wet areas like showers and tub surrounds. Fiber cement board and cement board are closely related. Fiberock is another popular product in this category. Backer board is everything that drywall is not.

Whenever you re laying tile on a wood subfloor you need to first install cement backerboard to prevent leaks and water damage. Hardibacker is the best known fiber cement board fiber cement board. You ve probably heard of hardiebacker tile backer board. But that s pretty much where the similarity ends.