External Tiling (Subway)

[mattygodd]

Hi I work for a local autority in the North West and am commisioning work for the re tiling of 6 subways in my area. The problem is as a landscape Architect it is a little out of my specialism and am concerned that I may specify the wrong type of tile.

The subways in question are a mixture of 1950s tiling and reinforced concrete and are in need of a bit of an overhaul. I need to use quite a big tile to ensure it does not resemble a toilet......

So far I have got:

-Ensure substrate is clear of any mould, solid & secured; degrease, clean and mechanically roughen substrate surfaces before applying adhesive

-Apply fast setting cementitious adhesive to substrate; Granirapid, Mapei or similar approved; application as per manufacturers recommendations

-Supply and lay quartz porcelain tiles; 300x300mm; directly onto adhesive; allow for expansion joint every 3000mm

-Supply and Grout; tiles; 3mm; Mapei Ultracolour Plus; Colour : Black

Cheers
Matt

 

[DHTiling]

Tile choice looks ok to me...but i would recommend using a flexible adhesive and grout due to thermal changes in air temp and substrate....you dont say whether the floor is to do but if it is maybe you could consider using a pourable thick bed adhesive.......dave...

p.s.......dont forget to include priming substrates aswell....

 

[enduro]

Wont the contractor give you a spec of what tiles etc, sounds a bit strange they havent?

 

[mattygodd]

Thanks for the advice, I have amended my spec to take your points into account.

As for the contractor supplying this information, this could only be done under a design and build contract which my Local Authority wont use, instead I have to design, specify and quantify all items of the work to put out to tender so that there is some sort of standardisation between competeing contractors. Other wise if you leave it up to the contractor to choose the tile/construction method you:
1. May not get the desired effect/design the client requires
2. Push the contractor to use the cheapest tile/construction method possible to ensure that he submits the lowest tender price (ie that may not be the best specification). Hope that makes some sort of sense.

So on to question two which is:
Where would I be able to find a supplier of tiles to meet this specification (large porcelain) and are slightly more for industrial rather than domestic use? Are ther a big choice? Ive had a look at Topps Tiles and they seem to cater more for the domestic market (understandably)
Cheers
Matt

 

[enduro]

I personally would steer clear of a job like that, sounds alot of hastle, loads of running around for very little money.

 

[DHTiling]

HI MATT. CTD wil be able to supply the type of tile you need.....dave...

 

[Dave-T]

personally i would stick with bal for a job like that. I know some other companies claim to offer a similar 10 year guarantee, but bal actually honour theyres.
If its a big area then i'd chuck down big 60 x 60 porcelain tiles. They look stunning and wear very well being porcelain. 30 x 30s look ok, we still sell millions of the things, but the big tiles are beginning to take a real piece of the market share.
If you need a supplier, then give me a shout, i can allways sort out a good deal

 

[Dan]

I think you need to make note of expansion gaps. And if there's heavy traffic flowing above I'd consider flexi-adhesive just from a vibration point of view.