Hi All . I am about to gut my bathroom, moving bath , toilet and sink, going to battern walls and rigid board insulate, My probs are I am unsure on materials for wall and floor etc some say backer board only in shower area and plaster board the rest, fine but do I tile straight to plasterboard ? no skim ! is that kerdi board a newish gimmick ? errr plywood on floor got that bit but can I tile straight onto it ,screwing it to floorboards etc or does it need prepping first. I am using Quartz Tiles , heavy buggers ( white, 36 sq/m in total, inc. floor ) just so many peeps saying so many different ways. plumbers, tilers and builders all different. I have spent enough getting the suit and tiles and need to get this right...... well will have my girlfriend telling me her way to . lol.
General Tiling and Bathroom INFO Please,Please Please
- Thread starter Topphoto1
- Start date
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Christ I’m not even going to attempt that lot tonight 
; too many variables/alternatives which would take far too long to answer & most of it would be repeating what's already in Tiling Sticky or Tiling Forum archive. Read both & draw some conclusions/direction of your own & come back with specific questions; you will then get excellent advice either from me or one of the other regular trade contributors.
; too many variables/alternatives which would take far too long to answer & most of it would be repeating what's already in Tiling Sticky or Tiling Forum archive. Read both & draw some conclusions/direction of your own & come back with specific questions; you will then get excellent advice either from me or one of the other regular trade contributors.you say your tiles are heavy and they will be (quartz)
well first you will want to stud your walls out and use a 12.5mm backerboard..hardie/kerdi/aquapanel..etc..
these will take more weight per m2 than the plasterboard.
what ever one you decide.. just follow mfr instructions.
as for you tiles check with the manufacturer regarding on what type/color of adeshive and grout should be used,also back butter your tiles for full coverage.
for floor what are your joist spans,what condition are your floorboards in..is it better to lift and replace.
quartz tiles are exspesive,so you will want to get that 36m2..done right first time.
well first you will want to stud your walls out and use a 12.5mm backerboard..hardie/kerdi/aquapanel..etc..
these will take more weight per m2 than the plasterboard.
what ever one you decide.. just follow mfr instructions.
as for you tiles check with the manufacturer regarding on what type/color of adeshive and grout should be used,also back butter your tiles for full coverage.
for floor what are your joist spans,what condition are your floorboards in..is it better to lift and replace.
quartz tiles are exspesive,so you will want to get that 36m2..done right first time.
Christ I’m not even going to attempt that lot tonight
Hi I see where you are coming from, but my main point about any information is that I along with many others are confused, because there seem to be many ways of doing the same job, but who is right, why is there no standard, who do you listen to ? was hoping that I might get to the bottom of a few DIY problems. Sounds like I need to spend A few days looking through this site rather than the internet. ! Or ....and it is a big or if I could find someone, which is not going well at the mo, who can do the job for me. Taken 4 weeks to get 1 quote back and even that was a bit vague. So I should be starting this wk end. Cheers will keep looking.
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Sorry if my original response seemed less than helpful but broad brush posts can be very difficult to answer concisely & can be disproportionately time consuming. There is always more than one solution to any particular problem & individuals will always have a personal preference on what materials they use & how they do things. It’s down to experience, understanding the materials your using & largely common sense, it doesn’t necessarily mean one way is better than another but some skimp on preparation & quality of materials; cheap generally means less reliability & with this stuff you tend to get what you pay for. Plumbers don’t necessarily make good tillers & vice versa & either may not make a good builder. I work to high standards & will do everything if required (I can do electrics but buy that in as I’m not certified); it’s unusual & I’m not cheap but there are others around like me, you just have to find them.
In general terms, this is what I do;
• A proper plaster job is always better than dot & dab plasterboard
• If using plasterboard in a bath/shower room, only use Moisture Resistant
• Always tile straight onto PB; unplastered accepts 32 kg/sqm plastered only 20 kg/sq/m but add 4 kg/sqm for adhesive & grout.
• If you want to plaster MR PB, it must be primed first or the plaster won’t stick.
• If ½ tiling, plaster down to the tile line (wasting in) before tiling don't leave it til after.
• PB (even MR) should be tanked in wet areas but preferable use waterproof tile backer board. Even more important with recessed shower valves as this puts water behind the panel/tanking membrane & any leak/problem with the valve will destroy it from behind.
• If using really heavy tiles, go for Aquapanel (or similar) rather than PB as Tictic says; it accepts 50 kg/sqm but you can’t plaster it (well you can but you have to prep correctly & know what your doing)
• You don’t necessarily have to batten the walls when using cement based backer boards.
• Fill & tape the board joints before tiling; I use tile adhesive not silicone as not much will stick to it; spread too much of it around & you could have probs. Or use the manufacturer’s proprietary expensive sealer.
• Don’t grout down tiled corners or around shower trays, bead of silicone but after you’ve done the rest of the grouting.
• I prefer to rip up & replace the floor with new 18-25mm WBP ply regardless; thickness required depends joist size, pitch & span.
• Never use chipboard in a bathroom, even green MR
• I rarely over board but if I do, prefer to use 12mm WBP ply minimum; many use 6mm backer boards successfully but I prefer to stick with ply as I believe it gives less chance of failure.
• Prime the back & edges of ply with SBR sealer before laying; do not prime the tile surface unless your chosen adhesive manufacturer recommends it
• If using cement based adhesive, Gypsum plaster must be primed to avoid a reaction
• Never use PVA to prime a tile base or new plaster
• Fix ply with screws every 150mm & with over boarding, screw into the joists (check location of pipes/cables) not just into the top of the existing boards.
• If over boarding, secure existing floor with additional screws first (again watch pipes & cables)
• Lay ply in the largest possible sheet size, support longest edge down the centre of a joist & fit 4 x 2 noggins under any cross joist joints.
• Only use quality trade adhesive & grout of the correct type for your tiles not cheopo DIY products
• If moving sanitary ware around make sure you can get the correct falls, use a sufficient size waste for the job & separate stack connection whenever possible; don’t be tempted to notch the joists & observe Building Regs for pipe work/connections
• Invest in a decent diamond wheel wet tile cutter for Quartz tiles; as tactic says, they are expensive & you don’t want to be making many if any mistakes.
• Quartz tiles will be very slippery when wet! Check for staining, you may need to use a stain inhibitor before tiling.
Don’t think I’ve missed anything but probably have, come back with specifics if that lot doesn’t put you on the right track.
In general terms, this is what I do;
• A proper plaster job is always better than dot & dab plasterboard
• If using plasterboard in a bath/shower room, only use Moisture Resistant
• Always tile straight onto PB; unplastered accepts 32 kg/sqm plastered only 20 kg/sq/m but add 4 kg/sqm for adhesive & grout.
• If you want to plaster MR PB, it must be primed first or the plaster won’t stick.
• If ½ tiling, plaster down to the tile line (wasting in) before tiling don't leave it til after.
• PB (even MR) should be tanked in wet areas but preferable use waterproof tile backer board. Even more important with recessed shower valves as this puts water behind the panel/tanking membrane & any leak/problem with the valve will destroy it from behind.
• If using really heavy tiles, go for Aquapanel (or similar) rather than PB as Tictic says; it accepts 50 kg/sqm but you can’t plaster it (well you can but you have to prep correctly & know what your doing)
• You don’t necessarily have to batten the walls when using cement based backer boards.
• Fill & tape the board joints before tiling; I use tile adhesive not silicone as not much will stick to it; spread too much of it around & you could have probs. Or use the manufacturer’s proprietary expensive sealer.
• Don’t grout down tiled corners or around shower trays, bead of silicone but after you’ve done the rest of the grouting.
• I prefer to rip up & replace the floor with new 18-25mm WBP ply regardless; thickness required depends joist size, pitch & span.
• Never use chipboard in a bathroom, even green MR
• I rarely over board but if I do, prefer to use 12mm WBP ply minimum; many use 6mm backer boards successfully but I prefer to stick with ply as I believe it gives less chance of failure.
• Prime the back & edges of ply with SBR sealer before laying; do not prime the tile surface unless your chosen adhesive manufacturer recommends it
• If using cement based adhesive, Gypsum plaster must be primed to avoid a reaction
• Never use PVA to prime a tile base or new plaster
• Fix ply with screws every 150mm & with over boarding, screw into the joists (check location of pipes/cables) not just into the top of the existing boards.
• If over boarding, secure existing floor with additional screws first (again watch pipes & cables)
• Lay ply in the largest possible sheet size, support longest edge down the centre of a joist & fit 4 x 2 noggins under any cross joist joints.
• Only use quality trade adhesive & grout of the correct type for your tiles not cheopo DIY products
• If moving sanitary ware around make sure you can get the correct falls, use a sufficient size waste for the job & separate stack connection whenever possible; don’t be tempted to notch the joists & observe Building Regs for pipe work/connections
• Invest in a decent diamond wheel wet tile cutter for Quartz tiles; as tactic says, they are expensive & you don’t want to be making many if any mistakes.
• Quartz tiles will be very slippery when wet! Check for staining, you may need to use a stain inhibitor before tiling.
Don’t think I’ve missed anything but probably have, come back with specifics if that lot doesn’t put you on the right track.
I know, i know. A lot of people don't know that the quality correct adhesive is latex based though. Just being helpful
Sorry skitzee2k; just re-read your first post & noticed it says also; I miss-read it first time around as almostI know, i know. A lot of people don't know that the quality correct adhesive is latex based though. Just being helpful
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Take a look at a few bathroom design magazines and you'll see that floor to ceiling tiling is out of fashion. Better off tiling in the wet areas around the bath and painting the rest. Looks way better and you can change the colour whenever you want to. Floor to ceiling tiles looks like a public loo.
If you are tiling the floor make sure you put some under-tile heating in as they are very cold otherwise.
If you are tiling the floor make sure you put some under-tile heating in as they are very cold otherwise.
Couldn't agree more about tiling; but dedicated UFH in a bathroom is overrated & not worth the effort/expense IMO, just add a few loops into the supply pipe work to the towel rail like someone posted just recently; I’ve done it before & it works very well.
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