tiling around shower / bath

[jmac80]

hi there
in the middle of a bathroom renovation,
installing a p-shape bath with electric shower on one side.
the plasterboard on the walls is new 9.5mm..
can i just put 8mm tiles direct on to this or is there some sort of paint on sealer i should use first.

i hear people saying the water can get through the grout etc but the plasterboard that came of the walls was 9.5 mm and it was tiled for over 20 years and there were no signs on any water getting through.
only reason i replaced the board was because they were messed up after taking the old tiles off...

 

[Softus]

The only times I've removed tiles to find wall damage has been when the grout has become cracked.

Standard grout is indeed porous, but I think the possibility of water getting through it is overplayed by many people.

It's for more important that the walls and bath are rigid, and that the bath/tile joint is effectively sealed. There are lots of topics on that subject, but if you can't find them then please come back here.

 

[Spr0cket]

My personal take is - if you've already got the wall bare and a nice fresh surface, why not use a small tanking kit - it adds no more than 24 hours to the job (which in many DIY implementations is not too challenging) and around 30 quid.
It may be that the the bare board would be fine, but for such a small investment in terms of money and application - I'd say it's wise to invest it up front, than 5 times more down the line through a risk that could have been avoided.

I also find the wall to bath / tray joints to inspire a lot more confidence when taped and tanked than using a bead of silicone alone.

 

[jmac80]

hi mate
thanks for reply.
the plasterboard was damaged due to the tiles been stuck down so well.
i thought it would probably be ok to just tile onto plasterboard, i mean as i said above thats what was done before and there was no dampness atall.
surely theres more houses out there with tiles straight onto plasterboard rather than aqua panels etc...
and if the tiling job is a good one..... i cant really see a problem, just wanted to check to put my mind at rest..