Best way to remove tile adhesive

[Djnikon]

Hi all,
At the minute my whole bathroom is tiled floor to ceiling in 200x200 tiles and, frankly, it's horrible.
So... I intend to remove ALL of the tiles and replace the ones only around the bath and shower area (using larger 485x340 tiles) so my question is this;
What is the best way to remove all the adhesive used in the other areas where tiles are removed as I would like to paint the walls?

Many thanks

 

[Graemevw]

Your only hope is that the origional adhesive hadnt stuck properly.

Hate to say it, but i'd say there is no chance of getting the origional wall good enough to paint without re-plastering.

 

[Djnikon]

Thanks, tiles look like they have been there for a "number" of years (extension where bathroom is was built 35 years ago and I would bet not much has been done since)
I'm ok with plastering, but would I just plaster over the old adhesive or best to attempt to chisel it off?

 

[Lower]

A wallpaper steamer is often good at softening tile adhesive sufficiently that it scrapes of easily.

I doubt you'd get it off cleanly enough to paint though.

 

[Djnikon]

That's a good idea though, if I can get enough of it off to be able to either sand and skim or just skim the walls then that would be great. And I just bought a steamer to redecorate the living room

Many thanks

 

[Richard C]

Be careful using the steamer, if you leave it in one place too long you will overheat the plaster skim & blow it off the base coat, creating even more work; although given what I’ve said below, that may be the best option! Try removing a few to see what happens but you should approach it with the view that all the plaster & possibly even the render base underneath will need remedial work once you’ve removed the old tiles.

Assuming the walls are block & not plaster board & given the size of the tiles you propose, DO NOT use plaster to repair or re-skim any wall you intend tiling. Base plaster is completely unsuitable as a tile base & plaster skim is not ideal as even in good condition it will only support a maximum weight of 20 kg/sqm including > 4 kg/sqm for the addy & grout which is a problem with the trend towards large format tiles. If your tiles weigh in at any more than around 18 kg/sqm even the surviving plaster skim will not be suitable & you will need to prepare a new tile base accordingly. There is also the drying time to consider; new plaster skim needs 14 days & a conventional sand cement render will need 4 weeks to dry out/set before you can tile; you need to use either a quickset render or if the repairs are not too dramatic, a cement powder adhesive; this is also the only adhesive you should use on tiles that size, don’t attempt it with tub ready mix.

Tiling isn’t rocket science but there are many things that can catch you out depending on the type of walls, tiles prep & materials; suspended timber floors also need special consideration. I would advise you read the Tiling Sticky & Forum Archive posts before doing any work or buying materials, it could prevent you making disastrous & potentially expensive mistakes. It’s important to use only quality trade tilling materials of the correct type for your tiles & tile base; cheapo own brand & DIY stuff is mostly crap. Post back if you need more info.