For questions generally relating to stone or ceramic tile, including selection, preparation, installation, maintenance, cleaning, and removal.
4
votes
1answer
1k views
How do I properly seal slate tile?
We recently installed slate tile in our renovated bathroom. We have sealed it with a penetrating water-based sealant. Water still seams to soak in to the tile and little water spots on the tile are ...
4
votes
3answers
685 views
What is a good barrier between grout and wood?
A side of a tile flooring project abuts a strip of wood. How should I handle the side where the tile meets the wood so the wood won't absorb all the water from the grout?
2
votes
2answers
4k views
Is luxury vinyl tile cost effective?
I am about to tile my bathroom floor, and a friend pointed me to this Luxury Vinyl Tile
Basically, I'm wondering if the money savings, and ease of installation will hurt me in the long run when I go ...
4
votes
2answers
424 views
What kind of material do I need above the tile line in my shower?
I have a shower with original, 100-year-old tile.
The tile and the drywall-like material above the tile line has survived well, but we're planning to replace it in the entire bathroom due to ...
0
votes
2answers
3k views
How do I remove a thick layer of paint from tiles?
One of the previous owners of our new flat thought it'd be a good idea to paint the tiles in the toilet -- twice!
We've been using a paint scratcher to remove the paint
The problem: This takes too ...
8
votes
1answer
290 views
Which is least likely to crack due to high traffic, large or small tile?
Consider a kitchen on pier-beam flooring with two doors allowing traffic to flow through it.
The floor is 10x10 feet. I plan to tile and would like to minimize risk of cracking. Which size tile would ...
1
vote
1answer
295 views
Do I need to do more prep work on this cement floor before putting in new tile?
In my basement i have a poured concrete floor, and we're re-doing the bathroom down there. It used to have Vinyl flooring, and we ripped it all up. The top vinyl part came up easily, but it left a bit ...
3
votes
2answers
850 views
Requirements for using Schluter Ditra
I'm preparing to do my first tile project in my house, and have recently been told conflicting statements about what I need to do to my floor as it exists now. I'm going to tile the floors in my ...
3
votes
2answers
2k views
Should unsanded grout become darker when wet?
Anyone who recognizes me at this point will know I've been working on remodeling our bathroom (Should we use a tub surround and Curing time for grout with GroutBoost).
We finally finished everything ...
8
votes
3answers
1k views
What kind of backing should I use for a glass mosaic backsplash?
I want to install a glass mosaic backsplash. These are a bunch of small square tiles of different colors on a mesh. Each meash measures 13 x 13. They are so thin, that I want to put some plywood or ...
3
votes
1answer
173 views
Basement Bath floor
I'm putting Platon drain board on the slab of my basement because I'm concerned with humidity and moisture. Then I top it with laminate. What should I do with the bathroom?
Can tile be put on top ...
8
votes
2answers
6k views
Why can't I lay tiles on an uneven floor?
My buddy and I have gotten into a bit of a dispute on facebook, here's what he asks:
I keep hearing tiling an unlevel floor will result in tiles coming up. This reason makes no sense to me. The ...
4
votes
1answer
206 views
Dealing with scratched floor tile
I have a kitchen with a tile floor. In one corner, there's been a pedestal style garbage bin. It seems that stepping on the foot pedal has caused the bin to shift slightly during each use, and over ...
4
votes
2answers
994 views
Mounting shower curtain rod to tile
In my new place my shower is tile and has a spring loaded shower curtain rod. I have my curved rod from a previous residence and would like to mount it. I can operate a drill, but I have never gone ...
5
votes
1answer
295 views
How should I re-caulk my butcher block counter top?
Last year I had my kitchen re-done. Everything thus far has held up well with the exception of the caulk between the counter top (butcher-block) and the back splash (tile).
What would be the best ...
1
vote
2answers
10k views
What type of tile should I install in a bath/shower surround?
I am about to remodel our bathroom. Currently the tub/shower is all tiled but the backing is not secure/stable so there is cracking in the grout and I know water is getting behind. I prefer the look ...
1
vote
1answer
130 views
Ceramic Stain: Removal (from hot water tank)
I was adjusting the hot water tank this afternoon and draining the tank just as part of maintenance since it hadn't been done in who knows how long. The tank looks fairly new (no more than 5 years ...
5
votes
4answers
5k views
How do cement boards and Kerdi boards for wall tile compare?
I came across an interesting product the other day, and thought it might be perfect for an upcoming project. I'm redoing the tile back splash in my kitchen and was planning on using cement board ...
2
votes
1answer
711 views
Screwing into the grout line between glass tiles
I'm about to mount some shelving brackets onto a wall of 1" square glass tiles. The entire wall is backed by 5/8" plywood, so I don't have to worry about hitting a stud. With that kind of ...
3
votes
1answer
800 views
Kitchen tile on pier & beam
We are remodeling our kitchen in our older pier & beam house. We were looking at tile today and they said we would need to remove the existing linoleum, then put some type of cement board over the ...
3
votes
3answers
5k views
How should I tile under kitchen cabinets?
I currently have tile on the floor of the kitchen that just butts up to my cabinets. I plan to change the floors and also change the cabinets. Is is best to rip out all the cabinets and tile, and ...
3
votes
1answer
592 views
What wall material should be used behind the Kerdi system in a tub/shower?
I know from my previous question that in most cases a cement board of some kind needs to be used. However, when the Kerdi membrane system is being used behind the tile, is it still necessary to use a ...
6
votes
2answers
3k views
What are the pros/cons of using porcelain over ceramic tile in a bathroom?
I'm planning on tiling a bathroom floor and a walk-in shower (including the ceiling). I haven't looked into pricing yet, but I've heard that porcelain would be a better, yet more expensive material to ...
3
votes
2answers
4k views
How do I treat / maintain IKEA Platta wood patio tiles?
Over a year ago we put a good sized set of IKEA Platta deck tiles on our patio. After exposure to the elements, they are now dis-coloring and becoming a bit 'rough'.
What exactly do I need to do to ...
1
vote
1answer
788 views
What precautions should I take installing tile on a backerboard in an area surrounded by cement?
I had to have my old three-handle tub faucet replaced by a plumber, because the valves in the handles were rotted into the handle bodies. When the tile came off, we found that the wall behind the ...
6
votes
4answers
1k views
How can I seal the grout on kitchen wall tiles to give lasting stain and mould protection?
I have 1.5mm of white grout between rectified white tiles on my kitchen walls as a splashback (or backsplash in North America*) behind the sink and cooktop and I'm concerned about stains from food and ...
5
votes
1answer
191 views
How to repair fallen tile near kitchen floor?
One of the tiles adjacent to my kitchen floor fell down.
The tile itself is still in good condition but I'm not sure how to properly reattach it. I'm guessing it would be something like:
...
5
votes
2answers
7k views
How do I make where my carpet meets tile look nice?
We've recently replaced our kitchen tiles. I pretty happy with the results but have no idea what to do with the edge. How do I clean this edge up so that it looks more appealing?
3
votes
1answer
835 views
How do I remove the white residue on fresh tile grout?
The day after grouting my tile, a white residue formed on top of the (grey) grout. Moistening the grout makes the residue go away until it dries again. I've been told the problem is because I had ...
6
votes
2answers
1k views
Should my toilet flange sit on top of the backer board or the tile of the floor?
The bathroom model saga continues. The old toilet flange was rusting, and the subfloor was rotting, so I pulled up the subfloor around the toilet, and replaced the drain pipe with ABS, and an elbow. ...
4
votes
1answer
2k views
In a brick layout for tile, how do I handle exposed cut edges?
My second in the line of "redoing a bathroom" questions. For our tub surround, my wife and I have picked out some very nice 16"x4" subway tiles, that we would like to arrange in a brick pattern. To ...
8
votes
2answers
8k views
Where should I start tiling my bathroom wall?
The bathroom I'm about to tile has a complex layout, and I've never put tile on a wall before. Let me see if I can paint a verbal picture...
The room is approx. 6'("short side") by 10'("long side"). ...
4
votes
1answer
243 views
Crack spanning several tiles
I've got several tiles in my dining room that have a diagonal crack running across them. Since it's a pretty straight line across several tiles, I'm guessing it's a foundation issue. The room is at ...
8
votes
2answers
1k views
What is the practical difference between cement board and greenboard?
When installing tubs I've mostly used cementboard. I find it a bear to work with though.
A guy I know uses the water resistant greenboard; he claims that for home applications it is entirely ...
