Removing commercial vinyl tile over ceramic tile

I need to remove a layer of commercial vinyl tile that is set over a layer of ceramic tile. Using a blow dryer I was able to pry the corner CVT up which showed that the underlying ceramic tile is in good condition. The issue is that the CVT has left a sticky adhesive residue. I have tried hot water and soap to no avail. I have also tried Goo Gone, which worked better than just soap and water, but still left the surface sticky. I have been told that I can use Acetone, but that I would ahave to turn off the electricty to the room and wear a respirator. There was another product, 747 Adhesive Remover, that was also suggested as a non-toxic option, but every example I find is related to mastic and not the sticky glue. Can someone provide a proven method to remove the glue residue from CVT from a ceramic floor base?

Thanks.

What you are doing is unusual. There are no proven prescribed methods I have ever heard of. Be careful when using solvents they can be explosive. Are you hoping to reserect the ceramic tile? Good Luck!

I think once you get a tile or two and it's adhesive removed, you will find that the existing grout joints were filled to ensure a flat surface for the vct. You will find that to be a much bigger challenge than the thin spread adhesive.

Thanks for the replies. My plan is to install a new ceramic tile over the old. The old floor is 1 inch square tiles. This is a second floor bathroom and the tiles are sitting in what I assume to be a 1 inch mortar bed (almost looks like a whitish gray cinder block layer).

A more naive me put the CVT over it about 5 years ago. I have been told that putting new tile over existing tile will work just fine, but first I need to remove the CVT and adhesive.

I have decided to use Goo Gone. It is doing a decent job on the adhesive, but I just can't seem to get the tiles to be clean and dry. With the adhesive stripped they are still a bit oily and tacky.

With the adhesive stripped they are still a bit oily and tacky.

And therein lies the reason you don't use solvents to clean old adhesive in preparation for ceramic tile. The old adhesives must be mechanically abraided. Chemicals are forbidden.

VCT (Vinyl Composite Tile) can be removed using a heat gun. Typically 2 types of adhesive are used to install VCT. "Cut back" adhesive is almost ashphalt based (black) and can be heated to the point where the tile can be removed. White VCT paste is rarely used because of its cost. You should be able to go right over any adhesive residue with your tile mud.

As Bud said you should not use solvents to remove the old adhesive residue, no need to anyway.

First I've heard the opinion that the white adhesive that turns clear when it's ready is too expensive and is rarely used. That is true in large commercial jobs, but the white/clear is used most of the time for residential work.

Please do not refer to thin set mortar as "mud". It is NOT mud. Mud in the tile industry is something else all together.

Jaz

It's been a week so who knows what he's been doing. I suddenly had an idea, though. Contact custom building products. They have an underlayment that was designed as a sound reduction/crack suppression underlayment and later got marketed to the diyer in Home Depots as "easy mat" soon after Ditra hit the shelves. I'd be willing to bet the peel and stick version of either easy mat or crack buster, (50 ish sf or 25 ish sf respectively, would bond like nobody's business to the vct adhesive residue and give you a perfect surface to tile upon. Their tec support number is 800-282-8786