Dot & Dab travertine? - Tile Advice

[pjtiler]

Considering the location of these tiles i would be more bothered about the lack of movement joints!
I would think that most of the woes spanky is having could have been avoided if he had picked a tiler that he knew was a time served tradesman,checked some of his references,had a look at some previous work this tiler has done,made sure he has the correct and up to date insurance cover and considering the cost of the tiles it would have been a good idea to get the spec from the adhesive manufacturer first.
its worth noting that adhesive manufacturers will always give a belt and braces answer to cover themselves.Over the years ive seen tiles stuck on with evostick that have still be well stuck 25 years on.And anyone who has tried to remove tiles stuck on with fix'n'grout will know how well the so called lesser adhesives can perform.Mechanical fixing of granite to shop fronts never calls for 100% contact.

this is a job i did a few years back in lisbon (granite ) every tile was spot fixed

 

[spanky]

Like the previous post though, I bet they're not stuck to plasterboard.

 

[pjtiler]

Like the previous post though, I bet they're not stuck to plasterboard.

quite right
sand and cement render and copper L pins
every 3 course
thats my point!!!

 

[grumpy]

I did wonder about the angle grinder on the floor.I put a job right last year that a so called tiler messed up.He also had just an angle grinder to cut tiles!Sounds like you've had a bad experience spanky.I would have said if the only issue was dabbing the tiles then i would'nt worry,to be honest if that is cement based adhesive there isnt a hope in hell that those tiles will come off.However it does sound from what your saying that it would be better to sack the guy off and get it done by someone who knows what they are doing.

 

[The D]

OK, I've pulled a couple of tiles off, right at the top of the wall, see pictures:
(although they had only been up 5 or 6 hours they came off with no effort whatsoever.)

You are most definately correct, this is getting re-done.

I will continue to post what happens.

It's such a shame as it looks beautiful.

Thanks to you all.

Grumpy if you call that fixed correctly you should not be in business as a tiler you should be in a rodeo with the rest of the cowboys. Personally it makes me sick to my stomach to have to listen to people like you make excuses and try to justify you sub standard work. We have British standards for a reason m8. This man is paying good money he deserves a good job :mad2:

 

[spanky]

To be fair he did go and buy a tile cutter also, although I figured he would have had one.

He bought a Plasplugs one. Protrade Plus or something.

 

[spanky]

This is the floor area where he was cutting them.

Doesn't seem right to do it directly on the floorboards, regardless of them being covered with Ply?

 

[LM Ceramics]

a plasplugs tile cutter i think you have definetly had an encounter with john wayne

 

[grumpy]

deanotile, if you took the time to read my posts properly you will see that i dont condone the standard of work done at spankys.I make the point that dabbing if done correctly is an acceptable way to fix tiles in some circumstances.If i understand you right all of your work over the past 25 years has 100% coverage does it? Get your facts straight before you go throwing words like cowboy about!

 

[grumpy]

Spanky you let him cut tiles in your house with an angle grinder!What took so long to come to the conclusion he want a real tiler.

 

[spanky]

Please don't argue, all I want is a bathroom, it's been 3 weeks.

All constructive critisism is willfully accepted, good or bad from my point of view.

I potentially stand to lose a fair amount of money if I go about this the wrong way, and like I said all I want is a bathroom that is done correctly, I am willing to pay what I consider to be the right money for the right job if you know what I mean.

 

[spanky]

Well, it's stone not porcelain which is all I've ever worked with in my 5 or 6 tiling experiences, and I'm not a tiler is all I can say to that, I didn't give it a thought, the Tile cutter I did though, I fix TV's, it like me buying a £4.99 multimeter?, I only use Fluke.

It was a "De Walt" angle grinder though. . . . . . .

 

[LM Ceramics]

unless its just me the correct way to fix tiles is the spread the adhesive on wall with a suitable notched trowel to gain 100% coverage.

since when has dot and dabbing tiles been acceptable in my 4 years as a tiler ive never been told d&b is ok

 

[The D]

There is nothing wrong with dabbing the wall tiles so long as its a cement based adhesive.From the photo you posted it looks like there is at least 75% coverage on the tile and thats good enough.Alot of whats been said on this post is inexperience.For those people who have been tiling long enough will remember bal used to sell tools a few years ago and one trowel they had in the range was a 50% coverage.Also the trowel method of fixing is big here in the uk and some other countries but many mediterainian countries dab tiles. do yourself a favour and speak to an architect for the correct imformation.

I’m not inexperienced and no not all my jobs were 100 percent coverage but no less than seventy percent and not less than eighty percent when fixing natural stone. As far as cowboys go if the Stetson fits then you should wear it.

 

[grumpy]

unless its just me the correct way to fix tiles is the spread the adhesive on wall with a suitable notched trowel to gain 100% coverage.

since when has dot and dabbing tiles been acceptable in my 4 years as a tiler ive never been told d&b is ok

It was all the rage before notched trowels came along!
There are many many ways of fixing tiles,The advantage of years of experience means that you can call on some of the old skills to help you overcome problems.