how not to tile

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Hi All

Had to rip out a shower cubicle then re-tile it, got as far as the rip out.
I took every tile off by hand after i had pulled the trim off sides and top by just pulling it.
tiling was dot and dabbed on to paint plus really bad grouting,think the only thing holding them up was the grout. the only tile to break was one where the shower cubicle was screwed to the wall. As soon as i got 2-3 tiles off the musty smell hit me and i knew i was having the rest of the day off. 30 mins to take down all tiles 4.5mtrs and clean off old adhesive and paint. Cant do anything for 3 days to let walls dry.
Its block walls with a plaster skim so hoping it should dry out,have been checking it every day and it is drying quite well.
Anybody think the plaster will be ruined or once dried, brushed down,cleaned and primed and i always use powdered addy should be ok to tile.
ive come across 3 jobs now that have been ruined by dot and dabbing and 2 of those was travertine.

got pics but cant upload them or i upload them and they dont appear.
 
When it does dry check to see if it's blown as the damp can do that too.
It might be better to strip it back to the block and board it for extra peace of mind.
 
The damp can break down the plaster...you say a skim on block walls..more than likely a float and set and it's the backing plaster that will be unreliable.

Personally I would recommend to hack off the old plaster.
 
Hi

Where the bad plaster is there is a hole where the shower pipes come up and it is only a 2mm skim of plaster onto the blocks,might be different lower down,i will check.
The other wall looks like they plastered around where the tiles are and then either ran out of plaster or couldnt be bothered to mix up some more but left the center of the wall as it was being tiled.
The shower cubicle is in a corner of the room so over boarding probably isnt possible.

Its only a days tiling so i dont mind waiting it if gets replastered just most of a days work lost due to somebody else's bad work.
 
2mm skim on block work would be a struggle to make it flat, a pic would be good.

Could it be a tight coat of bonding/browning plaster.
 
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It could be a sand/cement backing there which would'nt be damage from the water, what a mess though.
 
The wall where the plaster is patchy is the old outside wall which was rendered the other wall with the shower on is a new build with block work as the 3 walls are all outside walls. The bit between the pipes is a filler of some kind but if you look closely you'll see the breeze block(??) is very near to the edge.
 
try poking the plaster with a screwdriver, if it's soft then it needs removing and reboarding/plastering
 
This reminds me of a shower I ripped out a few weeks ago, 700mm x 700mm 1980's enclosure and the shower area and the bathroom were tiled in 6x6 blue and white Pilkinton tiles of which there were no spares.

My breif was to rip out, sort damage and refit everything as it was including tiles! Not for the faint hearted.

The shower leaked so badly that the whole of the downstairs ceiling and wall had to be stripped bare and replastered after I left. The shower had been drawing water through the tiles for about eight solid years and they kept on using it every day. Six of the tiles had dropped through into the stud wall and there was a bin liner duct taped over the hole!
Most of the rest of the tiles could be pushed into the cavity aswell.

Behind the tiles the stud walls were in as bad a state as you can imagine, all wood from half way down was so rotten you could push a screwdriver all the way through, it was black, moudy and stuck of rotten wood.

I cut all the rotten wood out and replaced with new studwork, then used 12mm Hardie (they didn't want to pay for tanking). All tiles had been carefuly removed by myself in one piece thankfuly (apart from one) and were left to soak in water. Luckily the tubbed addy came off a treat and all tiles were put back on and even the 80's recessed soap dish!

Old tray back in, old enclosure back round and it took most of the week but the result was excellent.

I've never seen such water damage from a shower, it should have been dealt with 7 years ago and it would have saved them a fortune!
 
Hey guys im new here and have never tiled. just interested as to why someone would dab the addesive than apply it with a trowel? And also why has it not bonded properly? does the trowel force the addy into the plaster?
 
(they didn't want to pay for tanking). Thats what they said 8 years ago. :mad2:Imo if its not tanked you will only delay the inevitable. Illegal over here now. Even if they say they cant afford the waterproofing, we as the Tiler will be responsible when they start crying in a few years time. Even if the property gets sold the new owner can go you for the repairs if within 5 years of installation.
If they cant afford it , or dont want it, I walk away.
 

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