[Shop-talk] getting tile and mortar off a slab?

[scott.hall at comcast.net]

I'm trying to break up the tile floor on the new house to install the new tile and wood flooring.

damn.

this stuff is on there like nothing I've ever seen, and it's only slightly thinner and a satillo tile.  I'm getting up the tile--slowly, but a lot of the mortar is proving permanent.  won't yield to a hammer, and I'm afraid too much more pounding is just going to gouge the slab.  chisels and scrapers might as well be made of plastic.

any ideas on how to get back to a smooth slab?  muriatic acid?  I thought of renting a grinder if I could, but some of the bathrooms are probably too small for it to do much good in there.

thanks in advance.

scott