Tile Over Laminate Counters

by Adrienne Carrie Hubbard | Crafty Little Gnome

2 Materials

$250

1 Week

Advanced

If you want to tile over a laminate counter, the counter has to have a flat edge. Counters with rounded edges cannot be tiled over. The laminate cannot be peeling or chipped off and needs to be in decent condition.

I started by sanding the counters with 60 grit sandpaper. Sanding the countertop surface will help the tile stick better.

I used a product called the Simple Mat to adhere the tile on top of the laminate. Simple Mat is basically double-sided tape that you stick on the wall or counter to adhere the tile to the surface instead of using thin set mortar. You stick the tile on top of the Simple Mat and you can grout immediately

Before and After of the area under my microwave

The area around the sink was the most difficult. I had to partially remove the sink in order to lay the tile. The sink is secured from the bottom with little screws. I unscrewed those and unscrewed the pipes and popped it up. It was annoying but it wasn’t difficult.

I used white sanded grout from Home Depot. It was a powder that I mixed with water. I applied it with a trowel and used a grout float to smooth it into the cracks. Remove the excess grout with the float and then use a sponge to clean off the tile. Buff off the grout "haze" after letting the grout set for at least 2 hours.