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Ever been stumped by a tiling problem? Use our online form and we'll do our best to help you with your query here and we will feature the answers on this page,which over time should build into an excellent resource for your tiling needs. Q,1 26/JUNE/'98 We are currently renovating an old house and I want to replace the carpet in the upstairs bathroom with tiles as the carpet is well past it's best,I was going to tile directly to the tongue and grooved floor but my neighbour says I should put down sheets of chipboard first,There is a little bit of movement on the floor (but not much) is it o.k. to tile directly onto the floor without the chipboard being used. A, This is a relatively common question John as more and more people are replacing carpet and vinyl floors in the home.First of all dont even think about using chipboard for this job,you will need to use plywood and the good news is that the cheaper plywood i.e rough/unfinished exterior grade is brilliant for the job,(the roughness gives your adhesive more areas to cling to).If you use chipboard sheets they will deteriorate quickly on contact with dampness and destroy your tiling job. Get the thickness of your existing floor(I will assume that the T & Groove floor is in good condition.)That will probably be anything from 1/2" upwards.For sheer durability I like to see AT LEAST an inch and a quarter of timber under the tile as this reduces movement considerably.So if you have a t&g floor use 5/8" or 3/4" ply on top also try to use at least 1/2" ply on top of your base for reliability and strength even if it takes you over the 1"1/4 guide (any thinner and it starts getting quite flimsy).Remember to allow for expansion and I can't emphasise this enough use plenty of screws,Just nailing down the sheet is pointless ,the nails will loosen over time and again we're back to a ruined installation.There are a few handy tools on the market for finding the floor joists, check your local d.i.y. store,and watch out for electric wires that may be lurking under the existing floorboards especially when it is an older house.I have included a brief piece on preparing a plywood floor for tiles ....see below) GOOD LUCK and thanks for your e-mail
Use exterior grade, unfinished ply,...................while we have seen people use chipboard and other such boards they are not suitable for this type of situation.Not only do they tend to be less stable than plywood but they tend also not to be water resistant. Normally it is not advisable to exceed a 16" joist span with the plywood. Most important!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If the plywood is'nt well secured i.e. Well Screwed Down at approx. 6 inch intervals!,( NAILS WILL NOT DO) do not go any further (even if it is go back and put a few more in,you wouldn't believe the amount of faulty floors we see,... all because of a few screws!) Usually we like to see at least 1"1/4 (inch and a quarter) being used. Leave a 1/4" space between the plywood sheet edges and all materials to which they adjoin, such as walls, posts, etc. These joints are filled with theDurabond Rapid Set adhesive while the tiles are being installed. Adjacent edges of plywood should not be more than 1/32" above or below each other. When finished, all surfaces must be structurally sound, dry, and free of all contamination especially sawdust, cleaning compounds, sealers, oil, dust/dirt, etc. Before applying the tile, we always advise that a primer(P.V.A.) be applied to the plywood. Just apply the primer over all surfaces to be tiled. The tile adhesive may be applied over either wet or dry primer.By priming the surace you ensure a better bond with the tile and achieve water resistance don't be afraid to use enough! Also if you need to use an admixture (we recommend Durathon) to improve the flexibility of your adhesive,remember to add some to your grout(Ardex C2 is the one we find best) as this is liable to crack if there is too much movement!.Remember also the adhesive with the admixture will take longer to set so allow extra time before grouting. Q. Am I making a big mistake by having my kitchen counters tiled?
A.Jennifer, Q.We have a new bathroom to tile. we want to tile the floor and walls . The
room is already fitted with toilet, shower tray and plinth mounted hand
basin. How do we get started. Would it be worth buying a good tile cutter
jig. I'll sent you a plan if that would be helpful Q. We are interested in the following swimming tiles:
A.Price and specification on the way but I need your address to work out shipping Q.I have questions about applying pool tile. Please call me at 307-3**-**** as soon as possible. Thank you Kent A.Sorry Kent but we can only answer written questions, for a number of reasons
Q.Hello, A. Q. A. Q. A.
Q.We've just installed a new tile floor in our kitchen and the grout is lighter than we had hoped. Is there a way to stain or color grout once it is in? The existing grout is a bone color and we were hoping to go a few shades darker. Thank you! A.Thanks for your enquiry, Unfortunately as far as I'm aware the only solution for you is to remove the grout with a "grout rake" and replace it with a darker shade grout, The grout rake should be quite easy to purchase at your local tile or hardware store but if the area is quite large make sure you get replacement blades , When you are getting the new grout it should be easy to get the shade you require in readymade powder form, I'm not the greatest fan of dye mixtures as these have a high failure rate,so if possible try and find a brand that already has the colour already made up for you. Hope that answers your question, Drop us a line and let us know how you got on, or if you have any further problems. Regards, James Q.I have to do tiling in my bathroom.The tiles are 6"x6".How do you arrange tiles at the corner where two walls meet?If I start with whole tile at one coener,the other end of the wall will take only one inch or 3/4".of tile.Would such small width adhere properly or should I put pieces at both the corners? Please advise. Thanks Manu A.Thanks for your enquiry, You should start from the centre of your wall and work out towards the corners so you end up with an equal size cut on each side, otherwise you will end up with small sliver sized cuts that will look ugly and be very awkward to fit. James Q.I am interested in finding some bath wall tile with fish or some sort of tropical designs. Do you carry such products? I can be e-mailed at A.Thank's for your enquiry, http://homepage.tinet.ie/~023tiles/colli.html Should be worth having a look at if you're looking for fish tiles. Check it out and let me know what you think, Regards, James Q.Hi We want to remove tiles from bathroom wall. They were fitted 4 months ago.The wall is plasterboard and we have removed one tile but they are stuck down so well that it also left the plasterboard with bumps and holes in the wall. Is there any method to remove them without tearing up the plasterboard wall off at the same time?. The tiles cover one half of the bathroom we would like to not have the expense of new walls. We have no D I Y skills and need some advice. Chris PS Leaving the originals up is not an option either. A.Thanks for your enquiry Chris, Unfortunately I can't really help you there, as it is a pretty common problem to which I'm afraid there is no easy solution. Try using a long blade bread knife to remove the tiles . If you can get the knife behind the tile and "cut" the adhesive from the plasterboard as it bulges out you will minimise but not eliminate the damage. Good Luck. James Q. Further to your advice on tiling over wooden floors, I have heard that there is now a special thin mesh/matting (metallic I believe), which can be laid on the floor and tiled over, which further helps to minimise the effects of flexing of wooden floors. (Presumably this is similar in principle to wire mesh in re-inforced concrete. Do you have any experience using such a product, and if so, would you recommend it, and would you still use an additive in the adhesive/grout if it is used? Being stuck with Plasterboard on a partioion wall, where we wold wish to put a shower, is there any particular brand of waterproof adhesive/grout that is better for plasterboard as opposed to wood. Regards PS: Tilers, who are upmarket enough to operate a Website - I am really impressed - thanks for a really good site, and for being enlightened enough to share knowledge. I hope that this will bring as much benefits to your company as it does to those you advise. A.Thanks for the enquiry ( and the compliments), Yes we have come across this mesh although we haven't actually used the system at present it appears to be used mostly in the U.S. , It does operate in the same way as wire mesh in concrete as it is nailed/screwed in place on the floor and the floor adhesive is troweled over although I would expect an additive would still be needed. I don't know if you are familiar with "Durock" but they have a 1/4 inch sheet which can be laid directly onto an existing wooden floor (with both screws and tile adhesive) and you can tile directly onto that without priming (but I'd still recommend the use of a flexible additive just to be extra sure) On your second question re- waterproof adhesive for plasterboard, There are hundreds of products on the market which are waterproof, but the trick is to use a PVA sealer first on the plasterboard , this will seal the board (just in case you do get a leak) and provide an excellent bond with your adhesive. As for the adhesive we would recommend "ARDEX X7" however if you can't get some locally your local tile store should be able to recommend a good one for you. Good luck with the job. Regards, James Q.I want to regrout my tile in my bathroom. What is the best way to get the old grout out and do i need to treat the seams in between the tiles before i apply new grout? There seems to be mold in between some of the tiles. Your help would be greatly appreciated. A.Thanks for your enquiry, Get a "Grout Rake" from your nearest hardware store and use it to remove the grouting be be careful not to scratch the edges of the tiles as you are doing so. Most places selling tile accessories should have a grout rake in stock and they are usually quite cheap. As for the mould , the regrouting should sort this out but there are also numerous treatments and grout restorers on the market. again these should be readily available. for more details check out http://homepage.tinet.ie/~023tiles/hg.html Q. Hi, I'm buying an apartment with a bathroom that has recently been redone, but I'm not crazy about the type of border accent tile the previous owners used on the wall. Is it practical for us to replace just the border trim tile while leaving the rest of the wall tile (which is just plain white ceramic tile) intact? Thanks in advance for any info you can offer... you have a great site! A.Amanda, Thanks for your enquiry (and the compliments), There should be no problem replacing the border tile, First of all though see if you can get a border anywhere that you like and most important ....one that is the same size, once you have done that , rake out the grout from the joint above, below and between the old border.(you can buy a grout rake in most hardware/tile stores). Then as gently as possible using something like an old table knife or bread knife put pressure on the border tile using the border next to it as leverage.....N>B> not the tile above it as you may cause splinters. Watch out for splinters too ...use eye goggles and wear gloves as the fragments can be tiny . Anyway as soon as you have dislodged the first one the rest should be easy. Just be careful and patient. Good luck, Regards. James Q.Is there an adhesive that can be used to reattach tiles to a gunite swimming pool? > > I am looking for a product that I can apply either with a calking gun or a a putty knife. > > Thank you...George A.George, Due to the dense nature of the gunite you will need to use an epoxy bonding agent , because of the number of different brands available drop into your local tile/hardware store and they should have one suitable for your particular application. Also ensure that the grouting you get afterwards is fully waterproof with additional additive if necessary. Regards, James Q. I NEED A PRODUCT TO KILL MILDEW IN BATHTUB/SHOWER. PLEASE RESPOND TO ME AND LET ME KNOW IF THERE IS ANY PRODUCT OUT THERE. THE BATHROOM WAS REMODELED ONLY 3 1/2 YEARS AND THIS PROBLEM DOES NOT WANT TO GO AWAY. THANK YOU. A.Thanks for your enquiry, "Hg" manufacture a number of very successful products that should sort out your problem and prevent it from reoccurring. The details are on our website at http://homepage.tinet.ie/~023tiles/hg.html You will need Hg. mouldspray initally and if there are any other problems then check out the Hg Grout Protector , and Hagesan Blue, All the products are available from us and we can ship them directly to your door if required. Hope that solves the problem for you. Regards, James Q. Have you any idea how to remove cork tiles stuck to a quarry tile floor with contact adhesive ? I would be grateful for any suggestions. Danny. A.Danny, Thanks for your enquiry, Unfortunately as far as I'm aware there is no easy way to remove them apart from a lot of elbow grease, Removing the cork tile shouldn't pose too much of a problem but the adhesive residue will probably be awkward, If you know who the manufacturer of the adhesive is drop them a line and they will advise you on which chemical compound can be used to break it down,or at least the best method by which you can tackle the problem. I know that you could tackle it with a gas torch and scraper but this is as a last resort only. The fumes and smell would linger in the area for quite some time. Hopefully though the adhesive manufacturer can provide you with more help. Regards, James
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