Hi, everyone! I've been lurking for a while now and gathering tips. I'm about to start my first tile project and could use a little help. We've ordered Daltile Continental Slate in Asian Black, and we're going to do a hopscotch pattern in 6" and 12" tiles. The tiles are on-order, so I have a week or two to prep the subfloor.

I could use some advice from a pro, or at least a more experienced DIYer. I've read John Bridge's Tile Your World, but I still have questions. Thanks in advance!

This part of the house is built on concrete slab. The eastern end of the room is concrete and there is concrete near the doorway at the western end as well. The majority of the room is tiled - I'm 99% sure it's vinyl asbestos tile, so we're not planning to mess with it. The room is largely level but has a few low/high spots, so I think we'll need to use SLC over everything. Any tips or tricks? That part makes me the most nervous.

Onto the big question: we've pulled up the carpet and padding from the PO, but the padding was glued down with what I believe is cutback - blackish glue that appears to have been troweled on. There's a thin, fuzzy layer of carpet padding stuck to the cutback. We've tried scraping it off with elbow grease and Krud Kutter, but we haven't had much luck. Is there another product we should try, or can we leave it as is? I was told that Laticrete 254 Platinum is okay to use over cutback, but I'm not sure about the padding fuzz. I would normally consider sanding, but not with asbestos tile. How should I proceed?

And last, do you think Ditra would be useful in this application? If we get the floor level with SLC, I don't think it will be necessary.

-Lindsay