Should tile spacers be left in?

[zanwan]

I was removing tiles from an old bathroom last night and found that every single tile spacer had been left in. The job was done 5 years ago, walls had not been tanked, all the plaster came away with the tiles revealing the brikwork etc. Job was apparently done by people working for the council.

Question is should tile spacers be left in? If not what are the reasons?

 

[Richard C]

This is always controversial & you will get conflicting views. Generally it’s always best to remove them as they can show proud through the grout if left in; some wide joint spacers are hollow which reduces the risk of show through. Using them peg style allows easy removal & you can use many of them again. At the end of the day as long as you can’t see them, it doesn’t really matter.

 

[sergeantash]

I'm with Rich, remove them - I've heard stories of the spacers being left in place causing water penetration as the grout can't entirely fill the void, if you remove them you can guarantee a good thickness of grout and therefore reduce the potential for water ingress.