Have to retile bathroom - Aquapanel? Tanking?

[Pansan]

Hello -

I have recently taken on renovating my mother's house and roughly two years ago she had a supposed friend retile her bathroom. This guy is not a professional and really messed it up. So much so that the bathroom tiles are 'slipping' there are great gaps in between tiles, some have in fact completely fallen off, which has obviously led to the room becoming damp.

I'm wondering what the best option is for retiling the room, sorting the problem in the process?

I've read a lot about removing the existing tiles, treating the damp with a dehumidifier and then when ready to retile, use aquapanel underneath the tiles surrounding the shower area. Would this do the job? Would it be needed in the sink area?

Also, I keep seeing 'tanking' coming up as a better alternative to the aquapanel method. What is this and would it be a better option?

Any help and advise would be really appreciated!

 

[3DGuy]

Hi there,

It might be a good idea to add some photos of the room/damage.

If tiles have come off and damp in there the background plaster/plasterboard may have been affected. If some tiles have come loose its something that could be assumed that others are also loose or will come loose.

You may have to cut out affected board and aquapanel/MR/Plasterboard the area again. If you have to get all this done most fittings may have to come out and basically take the bathroom back to square one and re-do it from the ground up. You can also spot if any other hidden problems are there.

Aqua panel is waterproof and wont deteriorate as its cement based. However I went the plasterboard/Tanking kit route. And I would be annoyed if water got through grout lines and got to the plasterboard after putting that kit on because it was impressive when it went on.

I did the entire shower area above the bath, past about 50cm of the shower screen, then as far away from the shower wall and nearly up to the ceiling. This way the likelihood of water in the areas is all covered. I also did a section of floor outside of the bath for a metre.

There are mixed thoughts, some people like certain brands, some go with MR plasterboard/Some Standard plasterboard (both tanked) some cement backer board (several makes).

The main thing is sorting out the underlying issues first and exposing any further problems before deciding on the ideal route/course of action to take.

Tanking is using a kit which provides a Skin over the wall to make it water proof (not just water resistant). You prime/Tape any joins then place a first coat on the wall, followed by a second coat (applied in 2 different directions allowing it to dry between). The ending coast needs to be 1-2mm thick and feels almost like a rubber skin preventing water getting to the tiles background.

I'm sure others will chip in soon with some extra info but this is some base info. Suggest getting the photos so everyone can see the rooms condition.

 

[Pansan]

Thanks for the reply... I haven't got any photos to hand atm, but in the area where the tiles have fallen off (this is just adjacent to the shower, not within the shower itself) it is damp to the touch, and looks to me like the cowboy guy just put a thin layer of whatever adhesive he used - I don't think it was proper adhesive at all to be honest. The tiles have fallen down from the halfway point of the wall there. I have also noticed that he put a board - sort of like skirting at the bottom- with no tiling or any kind of protection for the wall behind and that is also damp.

As I'm dealing with renovating a whole house with next to no money I'm really hoping someone could tell me which of the two (aquapanel or plasterboard with tanking) would be the cheapest. And also - would I actually need to plaster the plasterboard before tanking?

Someone mentioned installing an extractor type fan to help with any excess moisture in the future. Would this be expensive? Can it be done by myself and also is it effective?

Really, any advice would be welcome. Thank you.

 

[3DGuy]

A few things to consider first.

*It might be best to check that its not actually a leak behind the wall from pipework if there is that much damp. As even re-doing thigns the problem might re-occur.

He may have used a non cement based adhesive and not left it long enough to dry before grouting trapping moisture behind. Or if it was a plastered wall before and used cement based adhesive it may have reacted and caused the tiles to separate from the wall.

Many say aquapanel, I've used plasterboard and tanked it considerably. I used 2 tanking kits and covered an area far greater than water will reach to be sure.

Defiantly an extractors a good move/essential in a bathroom. You may (not 100% sure on this) be able to do an extractor yourself. I think it would depend and this is probably a moot point. Generally bathroom electrics need to be notified/carried out by electrician. same as kitchen. However I don't know how this applies if you mount a roof/loft fan and then just add the ducting to the room as the electrics are not inside. I'm not sure here so an electrician would need to recommend.

Your tiles determine the best route, but if you are doing new plasterboard all around you probably don't need to plaster. also the weight of your tiles if you are re-tiling the room (is it half way or floor, or up to the ceiling etc?). Different tiles have weight limits. Plasterboards 32kg a square metre, plastered walls are about 20 I believe. So it depends what you plan to do with the room. Really suggest getting the photos, others can also help out then far more easily