DIY Tiler - 90 sq m of large format porcelaine tiling making me nervous!

[PJPro]

Thanks Brian. Any views on the tile spacing or size of the notches in the trowel?

 

[doug boardley]

10mm round notch trowel (solid bed trowel) will be needed for your floors.

 

[Ian]

3mm spacers are a nice average if you want the grout lines to be the same on the wall and the floor, I usually use 2mm on walls and 4mm on floors. Using a 10mm trowel is what i would use on the floor but a 6mm trowel for the walls is fine (both square not rounded notch) with a 6mm trowel you will get about 8m2 of tiling done per 20kg bag with a 10mm only 5m2. Maybe due to the size of the tile use the 10mm all over, but not necessary imo.

 

[doug boardley]

3mm spacers are a nice average if you want the grout lines to be the same on the wall and the floor, I usually use 2mm on walls and 4mm on floors. Using a 10mm trowel is what i would use on the floor but a 6mm trowel for the walls is fine (both square not rounded notch) with a 6mm trowel you will get about 8m2 of tiling done per 20kg bag with a 10mm only 5m2. Maybe due to the size of the tile use the 10mm all over, but not necessary imo.

why would you not use a solid bed trowel on a floor Brian??

 

[Ian]

why would you not use a solid bed trowel on a floor Brian??

Its not that I wouldn't use one doug, just that i don't! Sorry should have made that clearer 🙂

 

[PJPro]

So it looks like a round notched 10mm is OK for the floors. Is something smaller more appropriate for the walls? I believe I read somewhere that the notch size should reflect the thickness of the tile.

 

[Ian]

Your walls are brand new and should be straight and true, I only use a 10mm on the walls if ther are alot of ups and downs. The main aim is to get maximum coverage on the rear of the tile, no voids etc. Only my opinion though and like i said earlier due to the size of the tile a 10mm is a safe bet

 

[White Room]

I allways back skim the porcelain tiles to fill the profile on the back of the tile

 

[Sean fsy]

Maybe worth while putting a couple of expansion joints downstairs if you are going in and out of a few rooms.

 

[Alan.P]

Are you sure you want a rapid set adhesive ? you may be better with a standard set flexible, longer working pot life but obviously it will take longer to set, next day as a rule of thumb, 10mm minimum on the floor and back skim the back of the tile with the flat edge of the trowel, I would also use 10mm on the walls with your tiles, but that's personal choice, 8mm minimum in my humble opinion.