Tile removal problems

[BlueMonday]

Hi I am in the process of removing the ceramic tiles from my bathroom ready to have a new suite fitted and be re-tiled.
I have managed to get some tiles off but the adhesive is proving really tricky and I have had a couple of nightmares and i have ripped quite a big hole in the plaster I think which has exposed the brickwork which has worried me? This has also happened around the window where the tiles seemed to be stuck straight to the brick is this normal and a big problem? Any advice and help would be appr

 

[Richard C]

Damage caused by removing tiles can be controlled by technique but not always. The tiles have to come off but I wouldn’t worry too much about the holes, even if they are deep it’s not too much of a problem unless they join up in too many places. Sometimes it’s unavoidable & necessary to completely re-plaster the tile base but, generally, it’s not a good idea as it considerable lengthens the time involved. Once you’ve finished, you can decide the best way forward to get a flat, even tile base & posting pics is always a good idea.

 

[BlueMonday]

Thanks for the reply the inital shock of seeing a big hole in our wall has gone now and I have managed to remove the remaining adhesive around the hole without causing more damge to the relief of my other half ! I think I should be able to patch plaster the hole my self and hopefully that will do the job!

 

[Richard C]

If it’s just local holes & leveling, your better off not using plaster if your going to tile over it. It’s not that easy to use & you will have to wait for it to dry out before you tile; 10-14 days for patches back to brick, up to 4 weeks if it’s a full base coat & skim. Plaster is not the best tile base anyway, it’s far better to use a quickset render or even cement based tile adhesive to rough fill the holes & level before you tile; you will need to use this anyway if your thinking of laying large/heavy format tiles.