DIY Diary

[jimbob]

Friday
Last day of laying today, and looking forward to getting it all done!

Not much to say about today, other than it went pretty much without a hitch, although I'm not getting any quicker at laying!

As you can see from the pic, the only really dodgy cut I have is right behind where the cooker is going so it will never be seen.

Saturday
Gave the floor a clean with a cloth and water, ready for grouting, pencilled in for Sunday. I'll leave that for tomorrow though, along with the finished pics

 

[Diamond Pool Finishers]

is it grouted and finished yet jimbob m8 looks great to me!!! :lol:

 

[jimbob]

is it grouted and finished yet jimbob m8 looks great to me!!! :lol:

It was grouted last weekend, but i'll leave the final pics till tomorrow - give me something to do while I'm at work :smilewinkgrin:

 

[jimbob]

Sunday
Grouting time. I did a bit on the Saturday actually, where the cooker was going and in a little closet off the hallway which I had tiled. Wanted to have a go in a couple of areas which weren't to be seen, as I was using Mapei Ultracolour plus and heard that it could be temperamental.

113 - Cement grey, was the colour.

Did the kitchen first (after moving the cooker back into its place), and started off by measuring out the bag into 1kg batches using some kitchen scales. Between 200 and 250ml water in each batch, and mixed as per instructions. Wiped the excess off the tiles after batch was used with a damp sponge and emulsified the joints, then waited 20 mins or so before a final washdown with washboy.

By the end of the kitchen I was confident enough to up my batch sizes, and did the hallway in 2kg sizes, and finished it in half the time of the kitchen.

Gave it a final wash down after a couple of days and went over the grout joints with Seal Guard to prevent any future staining.

Finished article - see pics (new skirting yet to be put on, along with kitchen unit kickboards and end panels, obviously).

Conclusion
Its tough work, floor tiling, and by the end my joints were in tatters. God knows how you guys do it day in day out. I'm pleased with the final result - took me much longer than a pro and the result is doubtless not as good as a pro could achieve, but I've learned a lot, and if I was to do another floor next week, I'm confident I'd be able to improve on little bits here and there.

For any DIYers thinking of doing it, one word of warning: it may well cost you just as much as getting a pro in, along with more stress etc, so only do it if you want a new skill set as well for the future. Most DIYers (myself included) do not consider the cost of the tools needed to do the job properly when deciding whether to get a pro in, so give it some thought!

Thanks to all on this forum for the info and expert advice, as well as Darren at NETT. On to the kitchen splashie now....

Jimbob, over and out.

 

[DHTiling]

Well....Looking at those pics..i would say....Be proud!! that is one good looking floor and a BIG thanks for sharing the job with us and those great pics..

 

[lcjohno]

looks quality mate, really enjoyed reading the posts. you must be well chuffed!!!

 

[jay]

good reading nice work

 

[curlycan]

Well done Jimbob:hurray:
So apart from the kitchen splash back what else does the wife want tiling because in my experience as soon as you show them you can do something well they come come up with loads of other jobs :incazzato:.

Has it been long enough to turn the heating on or is it too soon. Need to do similar to my kitchen and now maybe extend to hall way:incazzato:.
Once again well done, the achy bones are worth it.

 

[jimbob]

Well done Jimbob:hurray:
So apart from the kitchen splash back what else does the wife want tiling because in my experience as soon as you show them you can do something well they come come up with loads of other jobs :incazzato:.

Has it been long enough to turn the heating on or is it too soon. Need to do similar to my kitchen and now maybe extend to hall way:incazzato:.
Once again well done, the achy bones are worth it.

There is a small splashback area in the bathroom I've also got pencilled in, but that should be it (I hope!)

Not even had the UFH connected yet - will leave it about another fortnight and then get a sparky in and get it brought up to temp. The resistance readings are showing within manufacturers parameters so all should be ok. Just hope it works after all this!

 

[manghan]

nice work mate, great pics too :hurray: