Preparing a brick wall for shower tiles

[diyfiesta]

Hi Folks,

Been poking around in the rendering section and just wondered if you might have one or two tips for a complete newbie...

...I noticed that around our shower things were getting a bit damp (a particularly persistent mushroom gave the game away!), so I set about removing the silicon and redoing it. However, a load of tiles just fell away showing a damp mess behind.

On closer inspection, I noticed that on one wall I have brick work covered by ~5mm of what I think is render, then the tiles. This render has turned to powder where the water has got in. So I'm thinking to remove all the tiles and start again and suspect that I'd need to redo at least some of that rendering. Does that sound about right?

Any links to how to render? the mix to us? Do I need something special because it'll be in a shower or can I rely on the tiles making it water/damp proof? Its an outside wall if that's any help? I'm guessing its not a good idea to tile directly onto the brickwork? I'm also curious how I go about making sure the wall is straight after the render.

Sorry, there's a lot of questions there but any starter tips would be great. Thanks

Cheers,
Toby

 

[Richard C]

If you’re sure the damp is a result of water getting behind the tiles & not coming through from the outside, I would remove all the damaged render/plaster back to brick & let it all dry out thoroughly. If possible, remove all the old the render/plaster from the whole shower area (or repair the section that’s damaged) & then fix Aquapanel over the whole shower area & tile directly onto that with a quality trade waterproof adhesive & grout (BAL); don’t bother with the DIY stuff, it’s mostly rubbish. This will help prevent any future damp problems.

 

[diyfiesta]

Thanks for the post, looks like wikies does this aquapanel stuff

http://www.wickes.co.uk/content/ebiz/wickes/resources/images/gil/54.pdf

so I'll take a look at that - good tip!

Cheers,
Toby

ps, is BAL the make of the adesive/grout?

 

[Richard C]

is BAL the make of the adesive/grout?

Yes; Tops Tiles sell, they charge a premium price for it but it may be your easiest option if you cant get it trade.