Asked on Jul 09, 2018

Edited Removing tile from bathroom walls

Josile Reigle
by Josile Reigle
I would like to upgrade my bathroom and remove the tile from the walls without destroying the walls. I do not want to paint over them. I would also like to upgrade the vanity which has tile on it and maybe paint the wood.
I will probably need a new toilet since it's over 20 years old and a tile on the floor is in pretty good shape.
The sink definitely has to be replaced as it has rust and enamel damage. There is a large mirror and medicine cabinet that I would like to get rid of. I could paint the vanity cabinet white.
  8 answers
  • Zard Pocleeb Zard Pocleeb on Jul 09, 2018

    If the walls are made of drywall you won’t be able to remove the tile without ruining the drywall. If it is some brand of backer board you will need a lot of luck, but not as much as with drywall.

  • Nicki Petruzzella Kerns Nicki Petruzzella Kerns on Jul 09, 2018

    I'm not sure that's possible. I'm sorry!

  • Linda Sikut Linda Sikut on Jul 09, 2018

    Unfortunately, mastic, a type of glue, is used to attach the tiles. There is really no way to get them off without damage to the tiles. The only possibility I can think of might be to use a jig saw around each tile and take the drywall with it. You *might* be able to then remove some of the drywall from the back, but you won't have a really usable tile, due to the mastic that will still stick on the back. Of course, then you'll have to replace the drywall. :(

  • B. Enne B. Enne on Jul 09, 2018

    https://www.wikihow.com/Remove-Wall-Tiles

    http://homeguides.sfgate.com/remove-bathroom-tile-damaging-plaster-walls-20304.html

    http://homeguides.sfgate.com/remove-ceramic-wall-tile-damaging-drywall-99157.html

    This person managed to remove the tile without damage, but normally there is some:


  • Vicki Fischer Vicki Fischer on Jul 09, 2018

    I just removed the wall tiles around the tub area, and could not avoid ruining the drywall.

  • Jewellmartin Jewellmartin on Jul 09, 2018

    Did you mean without ruining the tile, or the wall? Either one will be a risk. The tile is often broken with the end of a shovel, then shoveled down the wall, breaking tiles as you try to get into smaller pieces. The countertop would be cleared the same way. Drywall is not expensive for a bathroom. Take good measurements of the toilet base before you go shopping. The closer you get to the original base, the fewer repairs to the floor tile you will have to do. Best wishes, Josile.

  • Sharon Sharon on Jul 10, 2018

    Here is a good way to remove the tiles..... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VDlEd-6HoGU

  • JudiGlo JudiGlo on Aug 05, 2018

    I smashed mine with the side of a hammer and peeled them off with a spackle knife. I was able to repair the sheetrock with a couple coats of spackle. The first coat looked really bad, but skim coating a second time fixed the problems.