Limestone Floor Tiling - TilersForums.com

[Coastaltrades]

We're quoting to rip up and replace a tiled floor with Limestone tiles. I'm looking for advice to ensure I allow for proper preparation & any additional/specialist materials that we might need during installation.

1. There will be a new UFH system, likely one that combines a decoupled like Warmup, I plan to self-level over & then prime with Mapei EcoGrip - Should I be using anything different here?
2. I tend to use Mapei thinsets, but wonder if I need anything different for Limestone? Or any sort of primer for the tile itself?
3. Should I be sealing the tiles prior to install?
4. Any recommendation on sealing prior to grouting
5. Generally any advice people have on laying limestone vs porcelain?

Thank you in advance!

 

[ciego21]

Hi coastal.
I'm not a lover of the uncoupling mats that have the cable clipped into them.
I do alot of work for one particular builder and we use warm up in nearly every bathroom.
Lay the electric wire. Latex over with fibre latex then install crack mat. Even heated screeds we crack mat. Biggest one to date 250m2. All ditra matted big expense for the customer but they don't want issues.
This keeps the tiling layer completely separate from the strains and stresses of the heating and in alot of cases movement from the timber floor.
Natural stone doesn't like any kind of movement at all.
Compared to porcelain some natural stones have the strength of a digestive biscuit.
I've never sealed tiles prior to installing even though I can see the benefits.
I've always laid tiles. Clean of dust from cutting etc. Sealed(one or two coats) grouted then sealed again.. normally lithofin.
White S1 rapid set or if I can get away with it semi rapid white.
Rapid sets ruined about 100 mixing buckets way before their time over the years. I try to only use rapid set for putting crackmats down.

 

[Coastaltrades]

Nice one! So do you tend to use the type of UFH where the wire is stuck into a self adhesive mesh matting? Then level over, then dittramatt, then tile? I've used the Bodeum mat before and it seemed pretty good

 

[ciego21]

I've always used warmup for bathroom floors.
The loose wire...it's easier to manoeuvre round sanitary ware.
Etc. Simply because I find it easier to latex over in one application.
Nothing worse than seeing netting floating up through latex and setting overnight!! Doom!
Warmup have changed their system from a roll of tape that went down completely over the loose wire to hold it down to a double sided tape you lay in strips peel back stick wire to then cover over with scrim like plasterers scrim.
Have used the electric on matting a few times. On quite big areas too. God knows what it's costing customer now.
150m2. We laid it with an electrician. Latexed. Had floating netting etc. Primed and latexed again. Ditra matted. Then tiled 1200x1200 porcelain. From memory with a bit of making up levels from room to room we used 50 odd bags of tile master levelflex.
The 25 kg green bag not the 20kg brown bag .
So alot of prepping before tiling.

 

[ciego21]

My only advice I can give you...whatever system you use.
Be happy to use it. Be happy with the preparation before you start tiling. I would never lay tiles over electric systems particularly large format or stone without an uncoupling membrane.
It's belt and braces.

 

[Coastaltrades]

My only advice I can give you...whatever system you use.
Be happy to use it. Be happy with the preparation before you start tiling. I would never lay tiles over electric systems particularly large format or stone without an uncoupling membrane.
It's belt and braces.

Yeah cheers man. So just to confirm, you would usually use a wire fixed to the subfloor, covered in leveller and then ditramatt on top before tile?

 

[ciego21]

That's how I would do it.
The thing about the crackmat. It separates the tiles from the ufh.
I've done bathroom and the plumber has dropped the bog trying to fit it onto the rods on the wall hung rods and put a divot in the tile.
It was a nightmare to get it out....but easier with a layer of duramat over the electric ufh. If it was just a layer of leveller primed up with tile adhesive on top...DOOM!

 

[ciego21]

As I said before stone just doesn't like movement.
I was talking to a tile master rep a few years ago.
He was singing about how good tile master ultimate is.
Will stretch by 20 percent of its volume etc.
It's good gear granted. I have used it. But what I can't get my head around...a piece of travertine or limestone isn't gonna stretch by 20 percent of its volume...it's just gonna crack.
Thank god travertine has died a death...and may it rest in pieces.

 

[Lou]

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