rubi batten holder or tiletracker

[Handyeire]

I know some tilers don't use or need these but for those who do, do you find them handy and speeds up your work. I'm old skool and have always used battens but last few jobs have been a nightmare setting the battens because its been in old Irish stone cottages. I'm now going to buy the tile tracker or rubi batten holder. I've priced 4 rubi batten holders for 40quid and 2.5m of tile tracker with 5 stands and a free bag for 75quid. If I go with the rubi, I was thinking of buying some cheap levels on amazon so I can get a true line instead of using the battens thou the price will rise to near price of tiletracker if I choose go with rubi/levels.

So out of the 2, what would you say is best for setting and sturdyness.

While I'm here, a wee question about starting from the floor so to eliminate using these items or battens. Seeing as I've never did this, did you find much difficulty when starting out like this. In any jobs ive worked on, the floors are all over the place so can't use that as a guide. I know I can pack in under each tile but would there not be an awful lot of messing about trying to get the tiles all level and plumb. Maybe I'm wrong but I can't help thinking this would be the case but in saying that, in all my years working, I've never tiled from the floor.

 

[Handyeire]

Mate get yourself a decent laser
And wooden battens
The rubi battens are absolute
****
Tile tracker is just a gimmick
Tile whatever way suits you
If you prefer battens use battens
If you prefer to tile off a line do it that way
Screw battens into gyproc or masonry nails into brick
It really is that simple,if you can leave a finish the way you are doing it why do you want to waste money on bits of metal?

I'm getting the dewalt dw088k in a few weeks. The reason why I'm wanting a rubi or tile tracker is that most of the work I'm getting now is in old Irish houses or cottages made with stone and plastered over and when I bang a masonry nail in, its bouncing off or when I do eventually get them in, most times it ain't in properly. Its a pain in the hole most times. A y new houses I do, masonry nails go in not a problem and I get a true level all around the room with my battens but different story altogether in these older houses.

 

[Handyeire]

A datum line is a level line marked around the room, I use a laser now but used to use a level to draw the line around, as long as your datum meets up your tiles will.
You can also use the datum to check your ceiling levels and floor levels, using this method you can land a full tile over a door casing, shower tray or bath(if there level) under or over a window starting from the other side of the room.
Have used it to meet up a 6x6 tile over 300sqm over 4 rooms with 2 of us doing the job and was bang on.
Everyone has there own way of doing things and as long as you give a first class finish and your customer is happy then stick to it.
Just know what works for me...

I thought that's what you meant and its how I've always did it but like I mention in previous post, these older houses are a nightmare to get battens set properly.

 

[Andy Allen]

So when you cut floor into wall how do you finish the cut?grey grout?its astetically a million times better to cut into a floor

I Always silicone where floor meets wall...

 

[Andy Allen]

Imo alot depends on the tile. A lot of adhesives will hold a tile in place so you can datum half way up the wall and work down alot quicker than batton.
Heavy tiles work of the floor or batton either way its a pain in the arse..lol

 

[widler]

I Always silicone where floor meets wall...

I'm lost at what dash means ?
Does he mean if your tiling the floor, leave bottom tile off the wall, tile floor(assuming the floor is going to be tiled last) then put the wall tile in cos it looks better ???
I don't get it , what's the difference ? Why does it look pants, when it's grouted and siliconed I can't tell either way [emoji15]

 

[stephenoneill]

Use a laser :mark from the bottom of the second tile from the floor.use a 2meter aluminium straight edge and use the boxs of tiles to support the straight edge simples

 

[Dash J]

I'm lost at what dash means ?
Does he mean if your tiling the floor, leave bottom tile off the wall, tile floor(assuming the floor is going to be tiled last) then put the wall tile in cos it looks better ???
I don't get it , what's the difference ? Why does it look pants, when it's grouted and siliconed I can't tell either way [emoji15]

you can definitely tell the difference wilder,cutting into a tiled floor is a better finish I stand by that

 

[widler]

you can definitely tell the difference wilder,cutting into a tiled floor is a better finish I stand by that

I don't see it myself dash( it looking any better) but like I've always said,everyone works different ,as long as it looks right when finished , you can start in the top left hand corner with a half a tile and work your way down as long as it look right at the end [emoji41][emoji106]

 

[Ian]

If there's a bead of silicone between wall and floor (as there should be), you can't tell if it wall tiled down to floor or floor tiled up to wall.

 

[Dash J]

That's assuming all tilers do silicone
I know loads who dont

 

[Andy Allen]

Bit like if you tile a wall facing you and cut the two side walls into it....yes it looks better to begin with but once siliconed you can't tell the difference..

 

[Spare Tool]

I'm getting the dewalt dw088k in a few weeks. The reason why I'm wanting a rubi or tile tracker is that most of the work I'm getting now is in old Irish houses or cottages made with stone and plastered over and when I bang a masonry nail in, its bouncing off or when I do eventually get them in, most times it ain't in properly. Its a pain in the hole most times. A y new houses I do, masonry nails go in not a problem and I get a true level all around the room with my battens but different story altogether in these older houses.

Would it not be easier to spend half a day dot and dabbing plasterboard around the room and making them old walls nice and flat and square and easier to tile on, marking up easier, screwing battens into plaster board easier, tiling easier, finish job spot on, just a thought...

 

[Handyeire]

Would it not be easier to spend half a day dot and dabbing plasterboard around the room and making them old walls nice and flat and square and easier to tile on, marking up easier, screwing battens into plaster board easier, tiling easier, finish job spot on, just a thought...

If I mentioned that to customers, they'd run a mile. Us Irish are a funny aul bunch and they would think I'm trying to get more money out of them for more work.

 

[Handyeire]

That's assuming all tilers do silicone
I know loads who dont

I don't and have never had any problems not siliconing. Ive also never seen it done here in Ireland on any bigger jobs I've been on.

 

[Andy Allen]

I don't and have never had any problems not siliconing. Ive also never seen it done here in Ireland on any bigger jobs I've been on.

So if you were tiling a wooden floor in a bathroom you wouldn't silicone where the floor meets the wall?

 

[Handyeire]

So if you were tiling a wooden floor in a bathroom you wouldn't silicone where the floor meets the wall?

Tiling on top of a wooden floor or tiling a wall that meets a wooden floor or tiling a wooden floor effect on a floor?

Where floor tile meets wall tile Ive never used sealant all around the room or even sealed my corners with sealent, always flexible grout.

 

[Spare Tool]

If I mentioned that to customers, they'd run a mile. Us Irish are a funny aul bunch and they would think I'm trying to get more money out of them for more work.

I know what you irish folk are like, been overt channel pleanty of times mate, have very good friends in County Mayo...:smilewinkgrin:
The bigger picture...roughly average price on dot and dabing a bathroom £150, you could save a days labour on total cost of tiling not messing about with trackers n levels and bits of tile and wedges under your first row of tiles, and get your battens on and corners square.
Word spreads...my bathroom is beeeaaauuuutiful Patricia, he spent half a day prepping and hiding all the pipe boxing, I kid ye not he made a silk purse from a Capricons' leg you have to get Handyeire in to do your bathroom...:8:

 

[Spare Tool]

Tiling on top of a wooden floor or tiling a wall that meets a wooden floor or tiling a wooden floor effect on a floor?

Where floor tile meets wall tile Ive never used sealant all around the room or even sealed my corners with sealent, always flexible grout.

....it aint that flexible I'm afraid

 

[Andy Allen]

Tiling on top of a wooden floor or tiling a wall that meets a wooden floor or tiling a wooden floor effect on a floor?

Where floor tile meets wall tile Ive never used sealant all around the room or even sealed my corners with sealent, always flexible grout.

Have you never heard of movement joints?

 

[Handyeire]

....it aint that flexible I'm afraid

Its just something you don't see often over here. Over here you rarely see tanking of showers, I've been on many housing estates where its just tiled straight onto plasterboard. 90% of builders or self builders wanted it tiled straight onto plasterboard and just seal around shower with adhesive even after I suggested tanking walls but hey! Its what the customer wanted. Same as last week I tiled an ensuite, I was asked to tile 2 different size tiles and colours into each other. IMO it just didn't look right but its what customer wanted.

 

[Spare Tool]

Its just something you don't see often over here. Over here you rarely see tanking of showers, I've been on many housing estates where its just tiled straight onto plasterboard. 90% of builders or self builders wanted it tiled straight onto plasterboard and just seal around shower with adhesive even after I suggested tanking walls but hey! Its what the customer wanted. Same as last week I tiled an ensuite, I was asked to tile 2 different size tiles and colours into each other. IMO it just didn't look right but its what customer wanted.

Well if all the builders got that attitude you should have pleanty of work for years to come :smilewinkgrin:

 

[The D]

It's also a far better finish if you leave off bottom cut and tile down onto floor
i was taught in my apprenticeship to mark a line and tile down
not for me anymore bottom cut left off,tile floor then put bottom course in,far better finish

it actually does not make a scrap of difference which way you do it as it should not be grouted in wall or floor grout. do you know where this method of leaving the bottom cut out came from ?

 

[Handyeire]

Well if all the builders got that attitude you should have pleanty of work for years to come :smilewinkgrin:

You wouldn't believe the carry-on went on over here. Thankfully everything is changing with building regs.

 

[Ian]

Ok, here's a bathroom I finished last week, did I do the floor first or the walls first? [emoji2]

 

[Andy Allen]

I would say wall first as you didn't need to line the joints. .....

Do I win a prize if im right. .?

 

[Ian]

I would say wall first as you didn't need to line the joints. .....

Do I win a prize if im right. .?

No prize I'm afraid, unless you want a pair of old socks [emoji2] and yes, walls first but, I don't think it's possible to tell after silicone.

 

[Andy Allen]

your right you can't tell... it was a guess. .

 

[Time's Ran Out]

it actually does not make a scrap of difference which way you do it as it should not be grouted in wall or floor grout. do you know where this method of leaving the bottom cut out came from ?

Yes - I did it on a job in 1973 and everyone just copied me!

 

[Spare Tool]

No prize I'm afraid, unless you want a pair of old socks [emoji2] and yes, walls first but, I don't think it's possible to tell after silicone.

Nice job but i bet you didn't start with a raked in cut to the floor Bri :smilewinkgrin:

 

[Time's Ran Out]

Try levelling the floor out!