I removed tile on my kitchen floor myself. It was really messy and took me a few weeks but got it done. I just hit the tiles with hammers and pulled them up. It got done and I had installers put in the new floor.

It was messy because the old tile was laid in cement. I just kept chipping away.

Jane

It may not be easy but you can do it. Take safety precautions: eye protection, cut-resistant gloves, mask (It gets dirty and dusty), I do ear protection, even if just using a hammer and crowbar. Also protect surrounding floors/cabinets/walls/appliances/people/pets. Chards could fly everywhere.

I have tried a hammer drill but that caused more chards flying and more stuff getting damaged. Some of my tile had wire mesh under it, which does not get removed with a power tool. I used crowbar and hammer with tin snips, over several days/shifts. For repairs I used hammer and chisel and removed pieces carefully.

I do not recommend renting tools (although I did see one on a tv show that looked pretty effective). You may feel rushed.

If you do it, take your time and be safe. IMO, it is worth it to remove the tile. Just have a lot of time and patience.

Hopefully a pro can add more info. I just winged it.

I did not deal with removing cement board, so I don’t know if that would add a layer of complexity. Hardibacker is supposed to be screwed into the subfloor and secured with thinset. I don’t know how you remove the thinset screws. I only removed tile from concrete, and from subfloor when wire mesh was used under tile, and from wood substrate where no mesh was used.

Hopefully it will be easier for you than it was for me, but if the original tile installer did a good job, it probably won’t be easy to remove. Unless someone else knows a better way.

One more thing to think about: Is there tile under the kitchen cabinets? If so, then you have another problem to figure out to ensure a smooth transition to the toekicks.

The tile doesn’t look bad to me. Maybe you can figure out another design change that will make it less objectionable to you.

I'm not seeing a HUGE height difference. If you had two layers of tiles, you would have MORE than 1" variation. I'm seeing less than 1/2" here.

So what does that mean? Probably the TILE sits properly at 3/4". The wood-look stuff is probably 1/2" thick. That means you will have the 1/4" - 1/2" difference.

Remove the tile or you will be faced with a MUCH LARGER floor height variance. Removing tile = $2-$3/sf.

One more thing to think about: The tile may affect your range height (if you have a range), depending on what parts of the floor you uninstall and reinstall. Make sure that whatever you do, the range height can be adjusted to the level you want, especially if you need it to be level with the counters. Also check that the power source for the range is not an obstacle if height changes.

Raising the height, can also affect your dishwasher. Not a good idea to raise the height of your floor. Remove the tile.

How big is your kitchen flooring area?