Tile shower

[Torched S197]

I'm getting ready to start on the shower in the master bathroom and want to do a tile one. This being the first shower I've done I could use some tips on how to make it easier. The shower is going to look like this except flush and on the backside I'm going to build a cabinet. Any help and tips are appreciated

 

[Premium08]

Im in for this, i wanna tile my bathroom floors and tile above where the top of the molded tub/shower is

 

[Wicked GT]

We just built a house and did our own tilework... you certainly didn't pick an easy task. That being said the job won't be that difficult but make sure you have some nails handy just in case the tiles are too heavy to just stick to the wall. We had 12"x24" tiles and they were so heavy they would slide down and fall off the wall. We had to put nails under each one and then tape them all together. Looks like your tiles will be smaller but as a precaution watch them close.

 

[Gabe]

The good thing with larger tiles is you need fewer to cover the same area

I'm gonna be tiling the walls above my tub soon, just hanging the walls / cement boards now ...

 

[Wicked GT]

True, you will use less quantity but they are typically more expensive for the big ones and as mentioned much heavier. If I had to do it again I would have veto'd the wife and gone with a smaller tile... much easier to install.

 

[mikeyfitz]

I hate tiling lol.. Did plenty of that for other people..

When I bought this house, came pretiled and I am happy with it!

 

[Gabe]

So, quick question for any tilers/plumbers that might be reading this thread, or anybody else with know-how about this:

This is the way I currently have my new valve and wall, with the orange plastic insert on there, should it stay on or does it go away before I secure the wall and start tiling?

 

[Premium08]

^^^ looks like you got the same size bathroom as me, which is small as shit, lol. I hate the toilet being so close to the shower.

 

[Gabe]

^^^ looks like you got the same size bathroom as me, which is small as shit, lol. I hate the toilet being so close to the shower.

Well, it's the spare bathroom.
The whole project in there started as a tub replacement since the original 30-yr old tub was rusted, ended up as a complete re-paint, re-tile, new walls above the tub, new vanity/top/sink (which are on order)

 

[Torched S197]

I plan on cutting 12x12 tiles in half and then laying them a couple rows at a time. As for laying tile I've layed plenty of floor tile but never layed it on a wall so that's going to be the learning experience

 

[Greg Hazlett]

Not that what I am going to say has anything to do with the laying of the tile but I have had horrible luck keeping the grout clean/mold free in my shower; we run the exhaust fan/clean the shower but the grout got so bad I had to hire someone to come in and acid wash/dremel the old grout out and re-do the grout to get rid of the mold; I was told to use a squeegee on the walls/floors after every shower and to leave the door cracked to let air circulate to try and reduce the mold growth....just something to think about....

 

[Gabe]

Not that what I am going to say has anything to do with the laying of the tile but I have had horrible luck keeping the grout clean/mold free in my shower; we run the exhaust fan/clean the shower but the grout got so bad I had to hire someone to come in and acid wash/dremel the old grout out and re-do the grout to get rid of the mold; I was told to use a squeegee on the walls/floors after every shower and to leave the door cracked to let air circulate to try and reduce the mold growth....just something to think about....

They have fancy grout these days that supposedly won't get dirty/moldy

 

[Greg Hazlett]

I talked to the guy who did the work and he said it was more of a advertising gimmick then something that actually worked....sigh.

 

[Wicked GT]

Greg, is your grout "Sealed"? Sounds like it was never sealed as once it is it should stay much cleaner and more mold resistant.

 

[Torched S197]

We have tile above the tub and never had a problem with it. The only thing is it gets dirty because its black. The tile doesn't get water on it like a shower but enough splashes on it where if mold wanted to grow it would

 

[Gabe]

I'm getting closer to actually needing to buy some tile ... lol

As of a few minutes ago:

 

[nitrobob]

Did you install membrane(roofing paper) on studs then durock on top of that? Are you planning on taping your joints and corners? Also make sure to not set tiles directly on top of tub, give yourself about a 1/4 inch gap. Do not grout that gap but rather fill with a waterproof caulk in a color that matches your grout.I have done numerous shower surrounds and the easiest way I have found is to start your first course on top of tub and let it dry for 24hrs. Then you have a good base for the stacked weight of the other tiles and blue painters tape is a must to keep everything in place.

Good Luck

 

[Gabe]

Did you install membrane(roofing paper) on studs then durock on top of that? Are you planning on taping your joints and corners? Also make sure to not set tiles directly on top of tub, give yourself about a 1/4 inch gap. Do not grout that gap but rather fill with a waterproof caulk in a color that matches your grout.I have done numerous shower surrounds and the easiest way I have found is to start your first course on top of tub and let it dry for 24hrs. Then you have a good base for the stacked weight of the other tiles and blue painters tape is a must to keep everything in place.

Good Luck

The backer boards went right onto the metal studs.
I plan on applying "board seam tape" onto the seams, then was thinking of some mortar onto that area, filling in whatever little gaps may be, then gonna cover everything with "Redgard waterproofing and crack prevention membrane" before I start putting the tiles on.

A friend of mine used this Redgard stuff and I was amazed at how good everything looked when he was done. He said he saw a demo of it where the guy at the store applied it to the inside of a cardboard box and it was completely water tight when they were done, no leaks out of there

 

[Gabe]

Quick question:

The bottom row of tile ... is it supposed to basically sit on the tub material or should I be using spacers to lift the tile up a little?


.

 

[nitrobob]

Lift it up with spacers then caulk when finished