Preparing surfaces

[DeadBeat]

Ive been searching and getting so much conflicting advice that ive decided to post and hopefully get some straight answers.

I want to tile my bathroom and have 3 surface types to tile. the Tiles are Ceramic 12" x 35"

Surface 1 - wall, plasterboard Moisture resistant green - outside shower area
Surface 2 - wall, Aquapanel - inside shower area
Surface 3 - Floor, Plywood WBP

I have bought Aquaseal waterproof tanking membrane and I would like to tank the aquapanel, some seem to say its not neccesary but i would prefer to do it.

1. Should i Prime the Aquapanel with BAL APD
2. Should i prime the plasterboard surface with BAL Prime APD
3. Should i Prime the plywood surface with something like BAL Prime APD
4. should i consider tanking the plasterboard or the plywood to protect it long term? ive seen videos on you tube where they have tanked almost the entire area floor to ceiling.


the tiling Adhesive I have is Mapie Pro Flexible Grey Tile Adhesive

Thanks

 

[PrenticeBoyofDerry]

You would normally follow the manufacturers instruction of the adhesive you use, certain adhesive types require differing methods of wall preparation.

Never seen or used BAL pro-flexible, cannot even find it on BAL website.

 

[DeadBeat]

Sorry its Mapei ProFlexible

 

[DeadBeat]

Just spent all morning searching the forums and google looking for answers and im even more confused than before! and on top of that I cant find the mapei proflexible on the mapei website which is absolutely no help.

I was hoping to make a start on all this this weekend, but you can guarantee the second im done, someone with tell me ive done it wrong.

can any of you prod me in the right direction?

edit: this may be the same stuff with a different name
http://www.mapei.com/public/GB/products/mapeker rapid-set flex_uk.pdf.PDF

 

[Paul C.]

Proflexible may not be one of their mainstream products and are only exclusive to specific suppliers. I notice Tile Magic do it.

Read the specs and it will be fine for that size tile. But if the tiles are ceramic, I'd opt for a white version as grey can sink into the back of a porous back tiles and "may" cause a small amount of discolouration. Most professional tilers I know would also opt for a slower setting adhesive so that you have time to adjust if required and it gives the cement longer to bond. Mapei Keraflex would be a good one, but if you want to go for everything BAL, their Singlepart Flexible is awesome. But a bit on the pricier side. But the one you have chosen will be fine if you can work accurately.

So........

Aquapanel - It's water resistant, not fully water poof. So it will need priming and Tanking. If you get the BAL WP1 Tanking kit, the APD Primer is included. You may need some extra tape as you also need to cover the joints of the boards.

Plasterboard - Doesn't need priming unless you are tanking it. But from what you have described, tanking that if its not in direct contact with water is a little overkill IMO.

Plywood - If you aren't using a shower tray, so that the drain is built into the floor, prime and tank is essential. If you do have a shower tray and if you are using the correct ply (15-18mm moisture resistant WPB Ply) its recommended that you seal the backs and sides with BAL Bond SBR, but not the face that you are tiling onto. This prevents it from being affected by the atmospheric conditions in hot and steamy rooms.......... Yes I'm still talking about bathrooms

Hope this helps but gis'a shout if there is anything you are unsure of.

 

[DeadBeat]

the room will have a p shaped bath shower with screen (should have mentioned it before) but im worried if i dont tank or treat the face of the plywood floor, it could become damaged over time with water leaking through the tiles, the mrs has an art of getting more water on the floor outside the bath than on her hair!

 

[Paul C.]

Water splashes will be fine. The tiles are waterproof and despite the grout only being water resistant, most splashes will evaporate before it has a chance to get through the grout and the adhesive below. Like I said if you use the recommended ply, moisture resistant etc...... you will be ok.

A good grout you could go for is Mapei Ultracolour. It has a repellent built in that will stop most water getting in. You could also seal the grout with LTP Grout and Tile Protector.

You could even use epoxy grout which I have heard is even resistant to nuclear blasts it the most waterproof grout ever. But Tanking would be the absolute belts and braces, as with the plaster board, a bit overkill if you're already using the correct ply. Another brilliant solution would be a layer of Ditra Matting. Its a de-coupling membrane that a) prevents cracking from lateral movement and expansion (which shouldn't happen if the floor is correctly braced), and b) is completely waterproof. Just to confuse you further