A little advice please - wall prep before split face tiling

[giveitago]

Hi all,

I have a load of split face tiles to go into a kitchen wall. I took off the old ceramic ones which have been there since the 60s i think. The cement stuff they were put on with isn't steaming or scraping off, it's pretty solid. I don't think it's adhesive as such. I'm wondering if I can just sbr it and put on new tiles or should I get stuck in and try to get it back to the sand and cement underneath.?
Any advice gratefully received.

 

[Dumbo]

To be honest I wouldn't put split face tiles into a situation where hygiene and easy cleaning is a must . Not the answer you are looking for but very relevant I feel .

 

[LM]

Completely agree with @jcrtiling, have you or your clients considered this. It’s a bad option because of the stated reasons.

 

[Time's Ran Out]

Only you can tell how well adhered the old adhesive is.
As far as the split faced tiles go it’s all about aesthetics.
As it’s a kitchen wall but not described as in front of a cooker or sink there are brick slips and rustic tiles used, and once sealed they can be cleaned.

 

[giveitago]

Thanks for the advice. I should have mentioned that it's my own kitchen and I'm a keen DIYer.

The wall is at opposite side of room to cooker, hob and sink, more of a breakfast bar wall. I will consider cleaning and hygiene implications however before proceeding.


I think the cement is solid tho - so If i did decide to go ahead , would I be OK to apply them over the cement - is that something that tiler's do if it is solid enough ?

 

[GoneGuy]

It all depends how lumpy the adhesive is that is left on the wall?
Would it be easier to overboard with a cement board to take the weight of the splitface tiles

 

[Lou]

Welcome! What have you decided?

 

[giveitago]

I'm thinking overboard would be safest solution. I've looked at a couple and the only downside seems to be losing a (little (12mm)) bit of room space. The split face tiles are kind of heavy - don't know exactly but perhaps 30Kg/m2 or so - so that would remove the guesswork. It would be easier to fit them too without am uneven surface. I'm looking at Hardiebacker 500 as a solution - up to 100kg/m2! That's mechanical fixings and glue.

 

[GAZ5518]

I think the what you are describing is 'sand and cement'.. Which is how tiles were fixed before the introduction of Ready mix and powdered adhesives.
With a bolster and hammer you can get behind it and chop it off( wear gloves)!... Failing that if it's as stuck as you say ... Bond / fill in the gaps and Tile away..( A Tiler would probably fill in and fix at the same time using a flexible powder adhesive)... Good luck .

 

[giveitago]

It's not too bumpy. I have attached a picture. I used an SDS tile chisel to to get the tiles off and could attack the cement with that, but would rather not!