Key steps necessary to remove ceramic tiles

Q. A few of the 12- by 12-inch ceramic tiles on my kitchen floor are damaged. I have replacement tiles, but can this be fixed without damaging other tiles on the floor?

A. Tiles can be removed and replaced without damaging adjacent tiles by following these steps:

1. Remove the grout around the damaged tiles, using an inexpensive grout saw sold by most tile dealers. Try to get all the grout out cleanly.

2. Spread an old towel over the damaged tile and whack it near the middle with a hammer until it is broken into fragments. Remove the fragments by prying from the center toward the edge of the tile with a screwdriver, stiff putty knife or similar tool; do not pry at the edge or you might damage an adjacent tile.

3. When all the fragments are out, carefully scrape up the old tile adhesive with a sharp chisel. Vacuum dirt and grit from the recess.

4. Butter the back of a replacement tile with tile adhesive. It is best to spread the adhesive with a notched trowel that leaves little ridges in the adhesive. Press the replacement tile into the recess and tamp it down carefully with a block of wood or hammer handle.

5. Put a couple of heavy books or other weight on the new tiles until the adhesive has time to set.

6. Finish by grouting around the replacement tile, using latex-modified grout that matches the rest of the grout.

Keeping a few replacement tiles, as you did, is a smart step. I recommend that homeowners keep a small stock of replacements for often-damaged materials such as tiles and other types of flooring, shingles, vinyl or aluminum siding, patio bricks and so forth.

Q. I removed a foam-backed carpet from a plywood floor. Some of the foam is still sticking to the floor. Is there a way to remove it?

A. You should be able to scrape the foam off, with no damage to the plywood if you work carefully. If there is a lot of foam to remove, sharpen the edge of a flat shovel with a file and use it as a scraper.

Always scrape with the grain of the wood and be especially careful when scraping around the edge of plywood panels. Smaller areas of foam can be scraped off with a wallpaper scraper or flat paint scraper. Sweep up the foam and dispose of it in a plastic bag.

I removed foam carpet backing from a hardwood floor this way and the floor looked great afterward. No sanding was needed.

Q. My neighbor in a condominium next to mine smokes, and the odor penetrates to my condo. How can I get rid of the odor?

A. Smoke odors in a multifamily building can penetrate from unit to unit in many ways, and the sources are often very difficult or impossible to pin down.

If the neighbor won’t quit smoking and you don’t want to move, I think the best bet is to try an air cleaner with a high rating for smoke-odor removal.

I can’t recommend a specific air cleaner because I haven’t tried them, but a good place to start looking is the Internet site www.allergybuyers club.com. Click on Air Purifiers for an illustrated list of some air cleaners that are said to help control smoke odors. Prices start at about $300 and go way up, depending on air-cleaning capacity and other factors.

The cleaners listed have a star rating system, with five stars presumably the best.