Meeting tiles in the corners

[donna-j]

Hello

We are about to tile our whole bathroom, floor to ceiling.

Is there a particular trick for making sure the tiles all meet in the corners when we get to them? We are having nightmares about it as two of the corners don't meet until above the door and window (IYSWIM) and it would be awful to do all that work and get to the top row of tiles to find that we are out by a cm or so.

Is it as simple as using a level and checking dilligently that we aren't going off the line?

Thank you.

d

 

[Diyisfun]

I think you are not getting any replies to this as I/We cannot understand what you trying to say.

 

[Nestor_Kelebay]

Donna:

I understand what you are trying to say, but the answer to your question is in fact that you're starting your tiling wrong.

You see, instead of starting your tiling in a corner (for example, the corner where the top of the tub meets the front wall of the tub enclosure, start your tiling ABOVE that by marking a horizontal line all the way around the tub enclosure some height above the tub.

Say for example, if you're using 6 inch by 6 inch tiles, you'd mark your horizontal line 5 inches above the top of the tub all the way around the tub enclosure.

THEN, you fasten something straight (like a piece of straight wood molding) so the top edge is right along that horizontal line.

You set all your tiles on top of that wood molding first, then remove the wood molding and CUT the very bottom row to fit down to the tub.

If your tiling is going to go down to the floor, then pick your horizontal line elevation so that you get most of the height of a full tile at the floor as well.

NOW, if by doing that, you find that you end up requiring 3/4 inch high tiles at the ceilng, then incorporate a 1 or 2 inch tall row of border tiles in your tiling so that the top tile at the ceiling will be almost a full tile cut at the top to fit up to the ceiling.

Similarily, don't start tiling the long 5 foot wall at the front of the tub or the back of the tub either. Mark a vertical line toward the middle of that wall and position that line so that you have to cut most of a tile to fit up to the front wall and to fit up to the back wall.

In that way, your tiling will look straight regardless of whether or not your tub is set level or not. That's cuz you set your tiling horizontally, and cut the perimeter tiles to fit up to your tub, walls and ceilings, and regardless of how crooked those lines are, your tiling will still fit up to them to make the installation look good.

If you start setting tile on top of your tub, then if the tub isn't level, all your vertical grout lines will lean one way or the other, with the result that you'll end up with a progressively widening grout joint in the corner as you tile up to the ceiling. By doing it my way, you avoid all those problems.

Also, if you are using rectangular tiles, set out two rows of tiles along the floor with spacers between them set both end to end and side to side. You can then take measurements off those rows to determine exactly where the edges of your tiles will end up once set.

I find that 1 1/2 inch wide by 1/4 inch thick wood moldings are darn near ideal for setting tiles on top of. I use double sided mounting tape to stick them to the walls, then just set the bottom two rows of tile first. Once the adhesive holding that bottom two rows sets up, then those two rows will support all the subsequent rows set above them. You just need the wood to stop the tile from sliding down the wall as the adhesive sets up.

Also, when I tile, I NEVER use mastic. I use a thin set mortar. I measure and mark off a rectangular area of wall about 6 to 8 square feet and then use 2 inch wide masking tape to mask off the edges of that area. Then I spread thin set on the wall with a 1/4" V notch trowel. Then, I simply back butter each 6X8 inch tile with thin set mortar before pressing it into place. That way, even if the mortar on the wall skins over, the moisture from the wet mortar on the back of the tile will re-activate it to give me a bond that's just as strong as if both mortars had been wet when pressed together.

Hope this helps. Post again if you don't understand anything I said.

 

[donna-j]

Thanks Nester for all your hard work in writing that out! It's really helpful.

And thanks Diyisfun for pointing out that I've not made myself clear.

We have to tile the whole room, floor to ceiling. Normally we would do a baton all the way round the tiled area, to ensure that the tiles are level. However, obviously the door and window get in the way of this line/baton, so we are worried about how we make sure that we don't go off the line, so that the tiles at one side of the door or window are slightly higher than at the other. This would mean that when we get to above the door/window that the tiles might not match up.

Am I making any sense?

 

[Nestor_Kelebay]

Yes, you're making sense.

Buy yourself 20 feet of 1/2 inch diameter clear vinyl tubing. Fill that tubing with water, leaving it empty for about a foot at each end. (see PS below) That "tool" is called a "water level". No matter what, the elevation of the water at both ends of the tubing will be the same, regardless of what the tube does between those ends.

Pick a starting elevation in one corner of your bathroom.

Mark a point a comfortable distance above that starting elevation in that corner (say 4 feet above the starting point).

Hold your water level on that upper mark so the meniscus at one end is right on the mark and have a helper mark the elevation of the meniscus at the other end of the tube on each inside and outside corner in your bathroom, as well as on both sides of every door and window.

Measure down 4 feet from each mark and mark the elevation of the starting point around the room.

Now, put up your wood battens so that the top edge of them is level with the starting point all the way around the room.

Check all the starting points to ensure you won't have to stretch any of the tiles to fit down to the floor. Make sure you have to cut them all to fit down to the floor or baseboard or whatever is going to be the bottom edge of your tiling.

Hope this helps. Now that I'm sober again, I better understood the question.

PS: How the heck do I fill a tube with water without getting air bubbles in it? Take your tube and wind it up along the inside diameter of a small basin or pail. (so that the tube forms a coil winding up the inside diameter) Now reach in and grab the bottom of the tube and stuff a funnel into it. Pour water into that funnel so that you actually fill the tube from the bottom! (That's a special trick they teach in DIY University)

The only reason I suggest buying a 1/2 inch diameter tube is because that size will fit a normal funnel. If you have a smaller funnel, you can fill a smaller tube without getting air bubbles in it. Otherwise, the smaller the tube the harder it is to get any air bubbles out of it.

 

[confidentincompetent]

Thanks Nester for all your hard work in writing that out! It's really helpful.

And thanks Diyisfun for pointing out that I've not made myself clear.

We have to tile the whole room, floor to ceiling. Normally we would do a baton all the way round the tiled area, to ensure that the tiles are level. However, obviously the door and window get in the way of this line/baton, so we are worried about how we make sure that we don't go off the line, so that the tiles at one side of the door or window are slightly higher than at the other. This would mean that when we get to above the door/window that the tiles might not match up.

Am I making any sense?

When you have determind the line where youre starting from and first baton is fixed level upto doorframe, make another (strait and tru) baton of same width thickness etc long enough to lie a few feet across fixed baton and span the doorway/window and the other end touching next wall/corner, mark your line carefully at end of baton onto next wall. Or use a lazer line.