Please help a Newbie - Tile Advice

[TJ Smiler]

This is mine and Les's thread!!!!!!!!!!!!! no room for you and Luke!!!!!

Everyone hates grout

TJ

 

[LesD]

OK thanks for the encouragement, sympathy and great advice guys,

Tonight I grouted the right hand wall and I do think it is a touch better that last evenings attempt on the back wall. I remembered to heed the one square metre at a time advice TJ and it is good advice. With the half hour pot life of the mixed up microflex I did another 1 kg and went all the way up to the top as quickly as I could but sponged the bottom half straight away after I reached the top leaving the top half for a further few minutes before sponging it.

Each half is roughly one square metre so it worked out well.

The pictures I promised are attached. Don't be too unkind, for me this is my best grouting yet! The wall on the right, was only done a short while ago and hasn't had the "tee-shirt" buff up yet. Left hand wall tomorrow all being well and the dreaded silicone bead round the bottom maybe Saturday!

 

[TJ Smiler]

Thats not too bad at all mate (although i would recommend sticking to your day job:lol

Practice makes perfect though mate and grouting is a hard thing to get right but when you do it all day every day like most of us it becomes just a boring, messy, irritating slog of a chore to do..... but the finish is always superb. For someone doing a bit of DIY on your own property it's not too bad at all.

Thanks for the pics Les


TJ

 

[LesD]

Thanks TJ,

When this is done the "Day Job" it is, well until I retire in a year or three's time that is!

 

[LesD]

Today the grouting phase was completed.
Tomorrow the plan is to get silicone bead between the bottom row of tiles and the tray. I have your instructions TJ printed out in readiness.

 

[LesD]

Here is a picture of my silicone seal (I hope it seals) between the bottom row of tiles and the tray.

Tomorrow my brother is going to give me a hand to fit the bi-fold door and that should be it, job done. :hurray:

I read on the bag of the BAL Microflex that the grout has to be left for two weeks before the shower can be used. This seems a long time to me but I don't want to spoil the ship for a ha'peth of tar so two weeks it is.

I will see if I can find some pictures to upload that shows the before, during and after once the door is fitted.

 

[lona]

Just been looking at your pictures, Les. Why did you need to curve the back wall bottom row of tiles. Just wondering.?

Hubby is ready to start tiling and we bought unibond title on tile adhesive. Should we take it back and buy Bal?

 

[LesD]

Les. Why did you need to curve the back wall bottom row of tiles?

I said I would post some before, during & after pictures when I had the door fitted but to answer your first question you need to see the before picture. This one will show you that my old, cira 1980 something tray was smaller than the recess and some small slightly sloping bridging tiles were necessary to fill the gaps. I decide rather than to risk taking the angle grinder to the previously shaped tiles to try and straighten the bottom line that I would make my own jigsaw and shape the new tiles to the old contour. Everyone to his own I guess.

Hubby is ready to start tiling and we bought unibond title on tile adhesive. Should we take it back and buy Bal?

I took my Unibond grout back and bought and used the BAL Microflex that TJ recommended some posts back.

First time round I used Wickes All Purpose Tile Cement and Grout (but don't tell TJ or he will be SHOUTing at me again ) It did the job at the time and I don't believe that it was the cause of my downfall but on this forum the advice was to use BAL or Mapei products and the cement/adhesive I have used this time round was Mapei Keraquick and local sources for me were Tile Giant in Cannock and Trades Direct in Newcastle Under Lyme, which are a bit remote for you I guess! :yes:

The Mapie Keraquick is mixed with Mapei Latex Plus instead of water to make it flexible and my new tray is bedded onto the new 18 mm WPB Plywood floor with this adhesive to allow a degree of levelling and bonding. It also serves as an equally flexible wall tile adhesive so I put all the new bits of tile on with it too. The ones up the wall where my old buttresses came out will have my new bi-fold door attached to them so I like the idea of a flexible adhesive behind them too.

Far be it for me to say that you should take the Unibond adhesive back but I bet the are some on here who wouldn't hesitate to say so! :whistling:

 

[lona]

I see what you mean now, Les. Is that a photo of your original shower tray.? I never knew you got red ones.

Regarding flexible adhesive, I thought when you were putting tiles on tiles flexible adhesive wasn't recommended or was it the other way round:huh2:

 

[LesD]

I see what you mean now, Les. Is that a photo of your original shower tray.? I never knew you got red ones.

Red may be down to the camera and the lighting it was more of a horrible brown colour to my eye!

Regarding flexible adhesive, I thought when you were putting tiles on tiles flexible adhesive wasn't recommended or was it the other way round:huh2:

Idon't know but someone on here will. :yes:

The bulk of the tile on tile job was done during the failed refurbishment about 2-1/2 years ago with the Wickes stuff I mentioned. The prime purpose of the Mapei Keraquick was to bed the tray onto the new floor. With plenty left I have stuck the remaining tiles on with it too. I guess it fingers crossed that they will be OK if what you say is right. Having failed utterly once I do live in fear of another disaster! :yikes:

 

[LesD]

With my brother's invaluable assistance I got the 900 mm bi-fold door fitted and sealed in today. Then I carried out a blitz of a tidy up so that the bedroom that the shower is en suite to looks like a bedroom again. It's too late for a photo tonight as it's back to work in the morning but all being well I will post one tomorrow.

 

[TJ Smiler]

Iona, USE BAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

TJ

 

[david campbell]

Iona, USE BAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

TJ

white star!

 

[Daz]

white star!

Sorry David, but if it's tile on tile then no way use white star or any tub for that matter. Unless I have read the post wrong, the only way to go is cement addy and Bal is good, but the prep needs to be done properly for secure results.

Also on the white star (tubbed addy), the size of tile will have an influence too.

 

[TJ Smiler]

Yeah i would go with cement based too...... White Star is superb stuff but it can take ages to go off on a tile surface so for me it would be BAL RAPIDSET FLEXIBLE, Iona make sure you score the old tile surface first to give them a key for your new ones to stick too (in other words get a scrapper or something and scratch them all over so the surface really roughens up)

Good luck

TJ