The ceramic tiles came off fairly quickly. The mortar removal has been tedious. Any suggestions?
Have you tried heating it with a heat gun to see if it softens up any? Then scrape it off with wide putty knife.
That is Thinset. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqoETYtMHQc
How about this one - sorta like Twigs suggestion but wider blade:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HL66I4eiFck
We were doing the hammer/chisel method today and what I call "whack a mole" trying to break it up some. Very tedious! Ed did have a power tool that he tried, but it didn't work as slick as in the video. Maybe we'll rent a different power chisel. Thanks for the suggestions. Deb
You might try a brick chisel as it is about 3.5 inch or so wide, wear gloves and use a regular hammer to tap it. Also a putty knife works. You just don't want to dig into the plywood floor if possible. I have used a diamond blade on my angle grinder and it works, just messy! Lot's of dust, but always have a construction vacuum working at the same time. Last job was removing over 1500 sq feet of thinset off a plywood floor. Just another reason why I install concrete board down before laying any tile.
What about one of these tools. Oscillating Tool, 1.5A Oscillating Multi Tool Oscillating Angle:3° GALAX PRO... (https://www.amazon.com/Oscillating-Tool-1-5A-Multi-Angle/dp/B07GRNGH5Y/ref=sr_1_8?hvadid=77927949706740&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvqmt=e&keywords=vibration+tool&qid=1564872859&s=gateway&sr=8-8)
Mine worked great chipping off some concrete on our driveway.
Mark
Do please wear breathing protection when dry cutting/creating masonry dust
Google silicosis.
Use a multitool with a scraper blade. It will go faster than a hammer and chisel. You can pick one up real cheap at Harbor Freight.
John M.
How-to use an Oscillating Multi Tool to Scrape Stuff Fast Tutorial - YouTube (https://youtu.be/ko2VcD6BZ-U)
Everyone is steering you wrong IMHO. What you want is an angle grinder with a diamond cup blade. Also a shroud that allows you to catch the dust in a shop vac. I think you'd be done with the whole coach in 15 minutes. I used a diamond bit on an oscillating tool but it took impossibly long for just a few tiles. Someone suggested the angle grinder method after I was done and it sounds MUCH better.
Not sure that it would help, but I would try tapping it with a hammer, preferably something like a mason's or brick layer's hammer. As it is pretty thin, creating a series of fractures on the surface might allow you to scrape it off more easily. When you're going at it from the edge with a chisel, your are trying break the adhesion which is very strong and just fracturing it on the edge where it is struck. I used a brick layer's hammer to remove old mortar from concrete pavers pretty successfully. I would be worried about digging into the floor with the angle grinder and diamond cup method since it was laid directly on plywood, but with enough skill and a steady hand, it might be quickly done that way. Some well calibrated tapping straight down might be effective and worth a try with little to lose. The diamond cups are pretty expensive, and the dust collection attachments can be even more pricey... Still, I would be tempted to try it just so I could add it to my tool collection. :o Either way you go, you will probably have some divots to fill.
Don
Agree, have tried flap disc grinding pads when trying to remove adhesive off wood.
Guess my hand eye coordination is not so good, and I gouged the wood and had to use filler to smooth out the wood. As usual turned I turned a 6 hour job into 2 days.
Hmm.. Well that stinks. All I know is I tried ALL of the less aggressive methods and it took absolutely positively forever for a very small job.
Don - that's what my "whack a mole" method has been, pounding, breaking it up and scraping it off. It has worked well in some areas. Deb
Watch this to the end. Really works.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JerVHGoj-d0
Keith
I have found that using a air scraper that is 42" long with a 4-5 blade on it will remove tile and mortar with little effort other than a air compressor that runs 90psi. I removed 1200sq ft of tile and mortar out of my home with this with little to no damage to the subfloor. They are just over a $100 at harbor freight. use one edge to pop the tile loose and the other edge to bust the mortar loose. Really saves your back
I just finished mine. Basically the best method I found was to use a angled pry bar that was about 16 in long maybe And a ball peen hammer. You hit the pry bar that's on the thinset several times and it will break it right off. I did find some really stubborn areas that just did not want to come off with that method, and for that I use a carbide blade on my Bosch oscillating tool. With the vacuum running the dust was minimum. I also tried a flapper wheel on my Bosch grinder and even with the vacuum running it created a ungodly mess. The floor is not perfectly clean but it doesn't need to be for what my plan is. I found the subfloor to be in fairly rough shape with water damage in several places. Going to put a penetrating epoxy down on the water damaged areas, and a self leveler floor patch on the damaged areas. Then luxury vinyl tile underlayment. Well I have no doubt that's some of the hammer chisel guns would be a good idea I didn't feel like spending any more money on a tool that I wouldn't use again. I always will use my hammer and the pry bar will come in handy too. And I already had both.