A NOVICE’S GUIDE TO TILING YOUR BATHROOM

Did you recognize that about 70% of the typical bathroom renovation cost is spent on labour expenses for the professionals fitting your bathroom? With this being claimed, bathroom DIY is progressively enhancing. As gruelling as trying tiling on your own appears, it can conserve you a great deal of money, along with provide you timeless bragging rights amongst your household. With this step by step guide, even simple mortals can become tiling experts, just follow this quick as well as easy process.

1. Plan Areas

Do you desire to tile the floors or walls? Do you desire your bathroom to be fully or just half tiled?

Fully tiling your bathroom permits much less limitations with water while half tiling limits you to a specific splash zone. However, half tiling likewise permits you to be a lot more creative with the rest of your wall, for example you can explore paints or wall papers. Not to mention, much less tiles will require much less cash.

2. Plan Pattern

You ought to determine your layout as soon as you’ve chosen your tiles. You can really get creative with tiling in terms of layout patterns as well as there are numerous choices offered that aren’t simply a linear grid. The most preferred patterns for both traditional or modern bathrooms are diamond, brick bond, herringbone, arabesque and also hexagon. Our Bathroom Renovation Cheat Sheet checks out tiles even more.

3. Prepare the Surface

Before you start, make certain the surface you’re tiling is clean, dry as well as flat. So strip any wallpaper back to the plaster, wipe the walls down, remove any type of crumbling plaster as well as fill up any type of holes with plaster. Plaster may use up to two months to dry, so ensure this is succeeded beforehand depending on which plaster you’re making use of.

4. Measure

To work out the variety of tiles you’ll require, measure the length of the area you’re meaning to tile and also divide that number by the length of an individual tile. Do the very same with width. After that multiply the length and also width together to discover the varieties of tiles you’ll need. If you get to a decimal point, constantly round up to a number as well as add roughly 15% to permit cuts and also wastage.

5. Mark the wall

When tiling a vertical wall, it’s simpler to make your markings making use of a gauge rod, instead of needing to hold the tiles directly against the wall. A thin and also lengthy wooden batten is excellent for the gauge. On your floor lay out a row of tiles with tile spacers in-between them. These tile spacers will allow an equivalent distance in between each tile for grout.

Line your gauge rod up with the tiles and also mark the factors of each tile and gap on the rod with a pencil. Copy the markings from the rod onto the wall, begin from the middle of your wall as well as job in the direction of the edges. When noting your wall, ensure your utilizing a spirit level or laser level so your lines will be totally straight.

6. Cut Tiles

The tiles utilized around the sides will more than likely need to be trimmed down. Prior to you lay them, mark the point which will need to be cut and also cut with a high quality tile cutter. See to it you’re wearing gloves and also goggles for this to safeguard you from any type of flying sharp fragments. Use a tile scribe securely to score a straight line on the tile if a tile cutter is not readily available to you. Lay the tile over the edge of a surface as well as apply solid stress to the overhang to break the tile.

7. Apply Tiles

Before installing your tiles, apply your chosen adhesive to the instant location of wall about to be tiled. Attempt not to discuss one square metre each time, as the adhesive can begin setting prior to you apply the tiles. Guarantee you select an adhesive that’s water-proof if it remains in a splash zone and also put on your wall generously using a tiling trowel.

Place tile spacers into the angles in between the tiles and also adjust the tile positions when required. If adhesive splashes onto your tile surface areas throughout this process, wipe off with a moist sponge, as it’s hard to remove when it hardens.

8. Grout

After this, permit at least 24-hour for the adhesive to dry. Then to prepare your grout, placed some water in a clean container, add the grout little by little and also mix to a thick consistency. Leave this combination for five mins prior to applying to the wall.

Next fill in the rooms between your tiles utilizing this grout with a rubber edged squeegee held at a 45-degree angle. After each or more square meters of grouting stop as well as clean the tiles with a clean moist sponge. Finally, leave for roughly 30-60 mins to dry after that delicately polish your wall with a soft cloth to provide your tiles extra gleam.