R
Rob Z
Roger (Roger is from the UK but all of his tile trade work has been in the US) and I are learning all the terms for tile work in the UK via this forum. :smilewinkgrin: I jokingly suggested that we should have a thread detailing the vernacular used on both sides of the Atlantic, and Dave said to go ahead and get it started. So, just for fun, here are some of the terms we use in the tile trade over here in the USA (in no particular order):
1. Mud Bed....any layer of mud floated from sand and cement (floors) and sand/cement/masonry lime (walls and ceilings). Mud is Mixed or Chopped in a Mud Box.
2. Float....two meanings...first, float is a verb for troweling mud over over lath or other reinforcment, then screeding and finishing the surface for tile. Some guys refer to it as Pulling Mud.
Float is also a noun...for example, a grout float is used to apply grout, and a wood float is used to finish the surface of a mud bed.
3. Float strips....pieces of metal or wood that are leveled or plumbed in the mud bed , and used as a guide to Screed off the excess mud and to form the flat level/plumb surface for tile.
4. Slip sheet ....any piece or plastic or roofing paper used to isolate the mud bed from the wood floor or walls over which the mud is floated.
5. Pan Liner....any sheet of lead, copper, PVC or CPE that is used to form a waterproof barrier under the mud floor of a shower...the pan liner is mechanically connected to a Clamping Drain.
6. Waterproofing....any product that does what is called Tanking in the UK.
7. Thinset.....our general term for any cementitious product used to set tile with a thin layer. Medium Bed is used in thick layers (up to 3/4"). Thick Bed is a general term for setting tile over mud. Thinset is sometimes called Dryset because the tiles are set over a dry (cured) bed, as opposed to Wetset, is the old-school method for beating the tiles into a fresh bed of mud and bonded with a Slurry Bond Coat or Neat Coat of pure cement.
8. Mastic....is mixed stuff in a bucket, ready to go with no additive or water. I am told that the mastic in other countries is decent stuff, but here in the US the stuff is crap. Many tile setters won't use it at all except for something like a Backsplash (the area behind the counters in the kitchen).
9. Crack Isolation Membrane, Control Joint, Expansion Joint, Soft Joint...I think all of these are used in the same context in the UK.
10. Additives/Admixes...the liquid "Milk" that is added into Thinset, Grout or Mud to make it stronger/improve performance.
11. Tub Surrounds or Tub Hops are the tile installations around a bathtub. The Tub Deck is the flat area around a tub. Curbs separate the shower from the rest of the bath (the Wet Room concept isn't common here).
12. Trim is any piece of tile that isn't a Field Tile (the main tile). Bullnose is any piece of trim that has a rounded edge and transitions from the tile installation to the plaster or drywall outside of the tile. Surface Cap is Flat bullnose , and Mud Cap is a type of Radiused Bullnose that has a curved edge that is used to cover the thickness of the mud on the wall.
13. Tile is Set by Tile Setters. Professional Tile Setters do not want to be called Tile Installers. We think carpet and vinyl guys that do a little bit of tilework on the side are tile installers. :lol:
OK, that is enough to get started.
Maybe some of these words are used the same way in the UK, and if so, we can take them out of the list.
Fire away with the translations into The Queen's English. :smilewinkgrin:
Roger, what did I leave out?
1. Mud Bed....any layer of mud floated from sand and cement (floors) and sand/cement/masonry lime (walls and ceilings). Mud is Mixed or Chopped in a Mud Box.
2. Float....two meanings...first, float is a verb for troweling mud over over lath or other reinforcment, then screeding and finishing the surface for tile. Some guys refer to it as Pulling Mud.
Float is also a noun...for example, a grout float is used to apply grout, and a wood float is used to finish the surface of a mud bed.
3. Float strips....pieces of metal or wood that are leveled or plumbed in the mud bed , and used as a guide to Screed off the excess mud and to form the flat level/plumb surface for tile.
4. Slip sheet ....any piece or plastic or roofing paper used to isolate the mud bed from the wood floor or walls over which the mud is floated.
5. Pan Liner....any sheet of lead, copper, PVC or CPE that is used to form a waterproof barrier under the mud floor of a shower...the pan liner is mechanically connected to a Clamping Drain.
6. Waterproofing....any product that does what is called Tanking in the UK.
7. Thinset.....our general term for any cementitious product used to set tile with a thin layer. Medium Bed is used in thick layers (up to 3/4"). Thick Bed is a general term for setting tile over mud. Thinset is sometimes called Dryset because the tiles are set over a dry (cured) bed, as opposed to Wetset, is the old-school method for beating the tiles into a fresh bed of mud and bonded with a Slurry Bond Coat or Neat Coat of pure cement.
8. Mastic....is mixed stuff in a bucket, ready to go with no additive or water. I am told that the mastic in other countries is decent stuff, but here in the US the stuff is crap. Many tile setters won't use it at all except for something like a Backsplash (the area behind the counters in the kitchen).
9. Crack Isolation Membrane, Control Joint, Expansion Joint, Soft Joint...I think all of these are used in the same context in the UK.
10. Additives/Admixes...the liquid "Milk" that is added into Thinset, Grout or Mud to make it stronger/improve performance.
11. Tub Surrounds or Tub Hops are the tile installations around a bathtub. The Tub Deck is the flat area around a tub. Curbs separate the shower from the rest of the bath (the Wet Room concept isn't common here).
12. Trim is any piece of tile that isn't a Field Tile (the main tile). Bullnose is any piece of trim that has a rounded edge and transitions from the tile installation to the plaster or drywall outside of the tile. Surface Cap is Flat bullnose , and Mud Cap is a type of Radiused Bullnose that has a curved edge that is used to cover the thickness of the mud on the wall.
13. Tile is Set by Tile Setters. Professional Tile Setters do not want to be called Tile Installers. We think carpet and vinyl guys that do a little bit of tilework on the side are tile installers. :lol:
OK, that is enough to get started.
Maybe some of these words are used the same way in the UK, and if so, we can take them out of the list.Fire away with the translations into The Queen's English. :smilewinkgrin:
Roger, what did I leave out?
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