Hi
As someone halfway through a house renovation (we're now at the decorating stage, which some might argue is the most important - certainly aesthetically it is), this forum looks like a lifesaver to me!
I'm about to start tiling the bathroom. I've never tiled before. I'd describe myself as "basically DIY competent" (I'm confident with tools, having tinkered with motorbikes and cars for many years).
I have darker tiles for the bottom half of the wall, lighter tiles at the top, and a "border" to separate the two.
I've done some research and have sussed the bits about:
- Don't assume any wall is straight or floor is level (my house is 1939 vintage and has been knocked about a bit over the years so this is definitely true)
- Make a "gauge rod", in my case marked for half a dozen tiles
- Plan your tiling from the middle of the wall, not an edge
- Use horizontal and vertical battens to support newly stuck tiles and keep everything straight
- Start by installing a row of tiles along the bottom batten then add tiles row by row
So far I've drawn a horizontal line around the entire room which indicates the bottom of the border row. My plan is now to install the lower tiles, then the border, then the upper tiles. So I guess my first question is: Is this the best order in which to install the tiles?
Working on the assumption that installing the lower tiles first is best, I'm now stuck for the best way of tiling beneath the line I've drawn for the lower edge of the border tiles. Clearly I can't tile downwards because the tiles will slip (is this correct - will they slip?), so the most logical way would seem to be to:
- Using the gauge rod, measure from the line I've drawn and mark where the bottom of the tiling needs to be (just up from the skirting board - gap to be filled in later with cut tiles)
- Repeat several times
- Connect up all the marks using a spirit level
- Fit the lower batten to the wall along this line
- Tile upwards until I reach the "bottom of the border" line I've previously drawn
My concern is that this process may not be accurate enough, meaning I'll end up with an uneven gap between the bottom of the border tiles and the top row of lower tiles.
Is there a better way to do this...?
Very grateful for any advice!
sf
As someone halfway through a house renovation (we're now at the decorating stage, which some might argue is the most important - certainly aesthetically it is), this forum looks like a lifesaver to me!
I'm about to start tiling the bathroom. I've never tiled before. I'd describe myself as "basically DIY competent" (I'm confident with tools, having tinkered with motorbikes and cars for many years).
I have darker tiles for the bottom half of the wall, lighter tiles at the top, and a "border" to separate the two.
I've done some research and have sussed the bits about:
- Don't assume any wall is straight or floor is level (my house is 1939 vintage and has been knocked about a bit over the years so this is definitely true)
- Make a "gauge rod", in my case marked for half a dozen tiles
- Plan your tiling from the middle of the wall, not an edge
- Use horizontal and vertical battens to support newly stuck tiles and keep everything straight
- Start by installing a row of tiles along the bottom batten then add tiles row by row
So far I've drawn a horizontal line around the entire room which indicates the bottom of the border row. My plan is now to install the lower tiles, then the border, then the upper tiles. So I guess my first question is: Is this the best order in which to install the tiles?
Working on the assumption that installing the lower tiles first is best, I'm now stuck for the best way of tiling beneath the line I've drawn for the lower edge of the border tiles. Clearly I can't tile downwards because the tiles will slip (is this correct - will they slip?), so the most logical way would seem to be to:
- Using the gauge rod, measure from the line I've drawn and mark where the bottom of the tiling needs to be (just up from the skirting board - gap to be filled in later with cut tiles)
- Repeat several times
- Connect up all the marks using a spirit level
- Fit the lower batten to the wall along this line
- Tile upwards until I reach the "bottom of the border" line I've previously drawn
My concern is that this process may not be accurate enough, meaning I'll end up with an uneven gap between the bottom of the border tiles and the top row of lower tiles.
Is there a better way to do this...?
Very grateful for any advice!
sf
