Setting out and best practice?

[Tarquin]

I have a guy coming round to tile the bathroom in a couple of weeks time and would like to have some guidance as to what to expect.

For example, a mate of mine says that a good tiler will take a day just setting the job out, which seems a hell of a long time for a small bathroom? In this respect I want it right but apart from cutting to give balanced tile size in the corners, even grout etc., what else to look out for?

Another mate, don't you just love em, says that the tiles that will go over the radiator pipes coming out of the floor should be drilled neatly to slot over each tile, whereas another says it's normal practice to cut a rectangle out to the edge of the tile and fill with grout?

 

[Richard C]

A day to set out , I don’t think so I would be concerned if the guy turned up & didn’t spend any time at all thinking about the layout & perhaps discussing it with you but I would be even more concerned if he spent a whole day doing it. There are standard practices for tile layout but windows, doors, sanitary fittings, size of tiles etc. will all influence what you do and it’s usually a compromise. It’s important that it looks right when you first walk into the room so I will concentrate on the wall opposite the door & the corners around the bath area, bending a few rules elsewhere to get the best overall effect. It will look better if you have a full or near full tile adjacent to the floor & cut the tiles around the bath & ceiling to suit, this will also help maintain a 2mm gap around the bath which is essential for a good silicone seal. It’s usual to tile from the centre of the wall outwards but you can do this either on a full or half tile so you need to decide which will look better in the corners; generally, tile slivers less than ¼ tile will look crap especially if the adjacent wall isn’t similar. If you’re tiling floor to ceiling, its best is to start half way up the wall & tile both up & down, this minimises the effects error build up & tolerances will have as you tile. Start at the floor & it can be a fair way out by the time you get 2/3 of the way up the wall, causing problems; for this reason, it’s very important that any battens you use are absolutely straight; I use aluminum extrusion not timber.

Regards tiling around pipe work, many will just cut out a rectangle but others will take extra care to get it looking right. If it’s just pipe work stubs it’s easy to drill a hole & fit over but if the radiator is already on the wall, no tiler is going to start isolating & removing it to fit the tiles over the pipes. If the fittings are on the pipe the size of the hole would need to be quiet large to pass over it meaning a rather thick grout line around the pipe! I will fit over pipe work if possible but I never just cut out a rectangle; I always drill a hole & cut the back of the tile but with one side at an angle so you have a tile wedge to fit rather than a parallel square which results in 2 thick grout lines.

I don’t know how you’ve structured the job & to what extent you've done the prep but, if it’s going to last, it’s even more important to use the right materials for the walls & floors, i.e. no plaster if you have large format tiles with a weight in excess of around 18 kg/sqm. Waterproof backer board in wet areas not plasterboard & a decent floor material or backer over board (not woodchip). Then there is correct preparation & the use of quality trade materials of the correct type for your tiles.

 

[Tarquin]

Many thanks......

Just one query.what do you mean .......i.e. no plaster if you have large format tiles?

We are using ceramics, not stone, so big tiles but not overly heavy.

.

 

[Richard C]

Plaster finish in good condition has a max weight limit of 20kg/sqm including > 4kg/sqm, for adhesive & grout. If your tiles are more than 8mm thick they may weigh more than 18 kg/sqm; if they do, you have a borderline problem. Ceramic tiles can be quiet heavy, often more than natural stone so check your weight to be safe

You must use cement powder adhesive on large format tiles not tub ready mix & if your laying over Gypsum plaster or plasterboard, you must acrylic prime to avoid possible reaction between the cement in the addy & gypsum in the plaster. What sort/colour ceramic are they? Some ceramic tiles need sealing prior to laying/grouting & use of the correct colour adhesive to avoid staining; but your tiller should know that

 

[Tarquin]

Thanks Richard. The walls are relatively new plaster (20 years) and solid as a rock, straight as a die etc.,

The tiler is a full timer doing major contract stuff so knows his stuff and my original question was simply because of a bad experience with a contract plumber some years ago, who's work was solid and leakproof but not pretty! Obviously with the tiling we need pretty and i'm better armed for the on site discussion on the first day.