Advice to speed things up??

[icctiling]

Hi all
been trying to think things through and help myself speed up when doing jobs......hoping someone can offer some good advice
after setting out and when you start to lay the tiles;
do you lay all the full tiles first then do the cuts?
On smaller jobs do you try to get the tiles down and grouted all within one day?
how long do you allow the tiles to set before grouting?
im a big guy and hate to disturb the tiles by walking on them and grouting before they've truly set.
on larger jobs throughout different rooms, do you tile and grout the full rooms one by one or lay all tiles then grout the full job.

Just want to get a feel for everyone's method of planning out a job, or maybe it's whatever works for each of us

Thanks everyone in advance

 

[Mr Tiler]

il kick things off lol.... I personally do one course at a time... I just keep the cutter as close as possible so im basically just kneeling down to make my cuts... work as cleanly as you can so when it does come to grouting you don't have to hunt the adhesive that is bleeding through the joints and on the face of he tiles.

 

[Andy Allen]

Why you starting another thread about the same thing. .?

 

[icctiling]

Why you starting another thread about the same thing. .?

thought I'd be a little more specific with my questions andy

been trying to analyse my work practices to see if there is anything I can do to speed up but not compromise my quality

 

[Simons70]

Personally I like to start from bottom.One line,go in the top.Never let the cut pieces after,lost more time.Start with the wall in front of the door.Finish one wall and start the next.Grout all you do next day if is possible,not let to grout more rooms,is more dirty when you finish the whole job.Keep clean your tools,your hands and put the rubbish in one adhesive bags.Anyway is too much to discuss,the speed arrived in time,try just to be there!

 

[Stef]

Sometimes it can be quicker working up from a batten on the second row of tiling, each job is different.
I wouldn't worry about speed too much, as long as your busy & have work & you are making a wage then be happy, speed will come.
You will never get put off of a job for clean & tidy work..

 

[Andy Allen]

thought I'd be a little more specific with my questions andy

been trying to analyse my work practices to see if there is anything I can do to speed up but not compromise my quality

Fair nuff..
I do cuts as im going......small jobs ...15 m2 and below grout same day....muti rooms...do all the tiling then grout..

 

[Taylormade]

Floors I do all cuts at the end lay them dry and then get a big mix on to get them all down. A big floor I will cut as I go. Walls I always say cut as I go. Always try to grout next day unless it's a very small job, especially in winter.

 

[charlie1]

It's not about speed, it's efficiency! There are no doubt some real speed merchants on here who could easily tile a 20m2 bathroom in one day and you would think it's not possible. In reality you can easily tile a standard bathroom in one day quite easily. 1, do the right prep and know exactly what your tiling on to in terms of flatness, building tiles out will cost you time. 2, make all your walls plumb! You would think this will cost you time but it will actually save you time. 3, work clean and enjoy your work... The list goes on

 

[Just Rizzle]

if you want to be quick you need to be able to use rapid set adhesives. also know your strengths and weaknesses. look at modern ways of fixing. to day we tiled and grouted a 17 mtr sq floor using 600 by 600 porceline on a decoupling membrain we were able to do this by using weber spf rapid and by using the lash leveling system. and leveled a 20 mtr sq floor were doing tomorrow. started at 9 finished at 4

 

[CJ]

Work to live.........not live to work.

Why rush.

Jeez.........I should have been born a Rastafarian.

 

[RDTiling]

If you take on the suggestions given here and try them out you will soon find which method(s) is/are the most efficient for you, depedning on your room size.

For floors, I personally dry lay (including my cuts) either half (or the whole floor depending on size) and mix up a bigger adhesive mix and get tiling. I know of other more experienced tilers who are happy to have an adheive mix made up and cut as they go.

I saw from your other thread that you would take about 4 days to tile a bathroom. IMO there is nothing wrong with this, provided you are charging a square metre rate and not a day rate for the job. That way the customer isn't getting overcharged.

As others have said, the speed comes with experience, but it always has to be quality first.

 

[Andy Allen]

If you take on the suggestions given here and try them out you will soon find which method(s) is/are the most efficient for you, depedning on your room size.

For floors, I personally dry lay (including my cuts) either half (or the whole floor depending on size) and mix up a bigger adhesive mix and get tiling. I know of other more experienced tilers who are happy to have an adheive mix made up and cut as they go.

I saw from your other thread that you would take about 4 days to tile a bathroom. IMO there is nothing wrong with this, provided you are charging a square metre rate and not a day rate for the job. That way the customer isn't getting overcharged.

As others have said, the speed comes with experience, but it always has to be quality first.

I would say its up to the customer to decide if he's overcharging. ....if he takes 4 days to do a quality job then charge for that....you never know you might charge the same and take 2 days.....dose that mean your overcharging. .? Imo its up to the client to do there homework and choose the best tiler for there project.....thats within there budget..

 

[charlie1]

Most people want a good decent job done, this should in time not take you long if you work more methodically and efficient. You will slow down drastically when you start fussing about minimal tolerances that only a tiler would notice. Most people would not really know the difference between a good job and a near perfect job but to make a job near perfect takes so much more time. Especially if you would like to work for bathroom companies, they will be turning over a bathroom in a week generally giving the tiler a window of opportunity of 1-2 days, this is what IMO you should be aiming for. I'd say your speed is on the slow side for this type of work but I bet there loads of ways I could make you quicker if I was to come and watch you so don't worry. I will say again though, if you enjoy your work then who cares how long it takes, as long as it's a meter rate.

 

[thompsonbrown]

1st I would make sure that your finished job, is worthy of you needing to find ways you can improve your speed on tiling. When you find this you will know yourself where time can be found. Sorry if this sounds blunt, but there are no quick fixes to good tiling.

 

[RDTiling]

I would say its up to the customer to decide if he's overcharging. ....if he takes 4 days to do a quality job then charge for that....you never know you might charge the same and take 2 days.....dose that mean your overcharging. .? Imo its up to the client to do there homework and choose the best tiler for there project.....thats within there budget..

When you put it like that.......!

Seriously though, I see where you are coming from. I'm honest with my customers and admit that I am newer to the tiling trade and as such jobs will take me longer than a more experienced tiler would take. So far its not caused any problems and the more I tile the quicker I get so hopefuly that won't be a factor for me much longer.

 

[icctiling]

Thanks to you all you guys......some genuine and honest advice.
now I don't know whether I'm slow or just plain fussy lol
Much appreciated
will definitely be back for more advice in future

 

[Taylormade]

20 to 40 works all day without a break but can make a mistake! 40 to 60 can be a bit slow but knows how to go! 60 plus won't make a fuss. We are always learning! :lol: