Dr_Colossus
DIY Tiler
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Found this forum very late in my process but better late than never.
Long story condensed: Previous owners had a professional tiler remodel bathroom and ensuite with 800x450 porcelain but quadrant shower and tray in ensuite was failing slowing. Only noticed when I was replacing carpet in adjacent bedroom with the spongy subfloor under the dividing partition. End result I had to strip everything back to joists and studs as tiles were dot/dabbed onto plasterboard which was quite soggy around shower area so when I cut grout I could pull a number of tiles off with my fingers.
Redesigned the ensuite to make better use of the limited space so got rid of the small quadrant in favour of a wet-room style walk in shower with bench. Anyway I've finally finished tiling and somewhat foolhardily went with hexagons (liked the look) in a complicated enough 5 sided room with semi partition as pictured. The planning was a bit of a nightmare but one tip for future readers that helped was to mark out the tiles including spacers on a 2m roll of paper for both the vertical and horizontal orientation. It was a very slow process but the tiling is finally finished.
Anyway on to grouting and looking for recommendations for both colour choice and a recommended manufacturer. Given previous water damage I like the notion of epoxy but somewhat apprehensive as to it's application given my inexperience plus it's proving very difficult to source locally. I eventually found a store that stocked Ardex and having previously read up on the epoxy hybrid Ardex EG8 I'm thinking of this in either Silver Grey or Grey for the floor and depending on how I progress with that then consider it for the walls. Local store however didn't stock it by default and would have to order and they're yet to call me back with availability and more importantly price.
For the walls I'm thinking of framing the hexagon with a dark colour and possibly the Ardex-Flex FS in Innocent Black if the EG8 is proving too difficult (spacing is 3mm). However I've read some bad reports here about the FS Innocent Black and colour inconsistency with it fading to near white in parts. Also the stories regarding clean up and possible tile staining with black grout are somewhat worrying.
Although the tiles are glazed porcelain and thus far have been easy clean there is a satin texture to them so I'm going to apply a layer of Lithofin FZ impregnator in the hopes of making clean up that bit easier.
White grout could provide a nice contrast to the grey and darker tones in the tile and match the toilet/handbasin but I suspect would have to be epoxy based to maintain it's colour.
I've read some good reports here on Tilemaster Grout 3000 but haven't found a local supplier so would have to resort to sourcing it online and paying delivery. Would those of you more experienced favour the TileMaster Grout3000 over the Ardex Flex FS or any other recommendations for a dark/black grout or how do you think a white grout would look long term?
Apologies for the long post and thanks for reading.
Long story condensed: Previous owners had a professional tiler remodel bathroom and ensuite with 800x450 porcelain but quadrant shower and tray in ensuite was failing slowing. Only noticed when I was replacing carpet in adjacent bedroom with the spongy subfloor under the dividing partition. End result I had to strip everything back to joists and studs as tiles were dot/dabbed onto plasterboard which was quite soggy around shower area so when I cut grout I could pull a number of tiles off with my fingers.
Redesigned the ensuite to make better use of the limited space so got rid of the small quadrant in favour of a wet-room style walk in shower with bench. Anyway I've finally finished tiling and somewhat foolhardily went with hexagons (liked the look) in a complicated enough 5 sided room with semi partition as pictured. The planning was a bit of a nightmare but one tip for future readers that helped was to mark out the tiles including spacers on a 2m roll of paper for both the vertical and horizontal orientation. It was a very slow process but the tiling is finally finished.
Anyway on to grouting and looking for recommendations for both colour choice and a recommended manufacturer. Given previous water damage I like the notion of epoxy but somewhat apprehensive as to it's application given my inexperience plus it's proving very difficult to source locally. I eventually found a store that stocked Ardex and having previously read up on the epoxy hybrid Ardex EG8 I'm thinking of this in either Silver Grey or Grey for the floor and depending on how I progress with that then consider it for the walls. Local store however didn't stock it by default and would have to order and they're yet to call me back with availability and more importantly price.
For the walls I'm thinking of framing the hexagon with a dark colour and possibly the Ardex-Flex FS in Innocent Black if the EG8 is proving too difficult (spacing is 3mm). However I've read some bad reports here about the FS Innocent Black and colour inconsistency with it fading to near white in parts. Also the stories regarding clean up and possible tile staining with black grout are somewhat worrying.
Although the tiles are glazed porcelain and thus far have been easy clean there is a satin texture to them so I'm going to apply a layer of Lithofin FZ impregnator in the hopes of making clean up that bit easier.
White grout could provide a nice contrast to the grey and darker tones in the tile and match the toilet/handbasin but I suspect would have to be epoxy based to maintain it's colour.
I've read some good reports here on Tilemaster Grout 3000 but haven't found a local supplier so would have to resort to sourcing it online and paying delivery. Would those of you more experienced favour the TileMaster Grout3000 over the Ardex Flex FS or any other recommendations for a dark/black grout or how do you think a white grout would look long term?
Apologies for the long post and thanks for reading.
