Once you’ve realized the benefits of travertine tile over the old flooring already in your kitchen or bathroom, you’ll probably be eager to get started on your DIY travertine installation project. The hardest part may be choosing the tiles themselves from the wide selection available, but after that you’ve still got plenty to do!

For example, have you taken the time to remove the old tile from your kitchen or bathroom yet? If not, here’s how.

Gather your materials
Before you make way for your new travertine tiles, you’ll need to take a trip to the local hardware store for some supplies. Once you’re there, pick up some plastic sheeting to hang in the kitchen or bathroom doors to prevent dust and debris from making its way into the other rooms of your home. You’ll also need a hammer, a floor scraper, a chisel, a pair of sturdy work gloves and a pair of safety glasses.

Prep the area
When everything’s ready to go, it’s time to get your kitchen or bathroom prepared for the work ahead. Start by putting up the plastic sheets in the doorways, then using a few cut-up pieces of the sheets to seal the air vents and keep dust from getting into the ducts.

Now use your chisel to delicately remove the baseboards around the room. Marking the backs of the baseboards with pencil will ensure that you’ll be able to tell where they go once you’re ready to put them back on.

Finally, take out any appliances that may be on the floor, like the fridge or toilet.

Break up the tile
When it’s time to finally remove the old tiles to make way for your travertine tiles, you’ll need to start by breaking up a few pieces. Hit each piece in the middle with your hammer, then use your chisel along the grout lines to start separating the tile.

When you have a good space cleared out, you can start using the floor scraper to make quicker work of the job. Eventually, you’ll have all the tile removed, as well as any dried thinset or grout on the subflooring.

Clean it up
Finally, when all of the tiles and old thinset is cleared from the floor, you should do a thorough vacuuming to clear any leftover dust and debris. A light mopping afterward will ensure that you did a thorough job.

Once you have the old tile removed, your kitchen or bathroom will be ready for travertine installation!