Last Checklist before I start work tomorrow. Is it ok?

[dagger]

it will do, but you can only pour 10mm deep in one go!!

should be enough for your situation, make sure the ply is a level as possible!

 

[DHTiling]

It's fast setting as well the latex plan...

 

[TiredGill]

Aaarrgghhh! He's also got 2 different batch numbers for the floor tiles. Hopefully there will be enough of one number to do the floor and the other number can go on the bath panel and it wont be noticeable.

What's that saying about if you want something done, do it yourself?!

I may delay starting until tomorrow, today can be reserved for pulling my hair out. :mad2:

 

[diamondtiling]

Hi Gill, two different batch numbers can give you different shades/sizes, if you are keeping them (to be honest, the tile shop should have supplied the same batch) you may have to open/close up your grout lines in places to keep everything in sync, allowing one line to run out will cause you more problems as you progress through the job. Can you not get matching numbers?

 

[DHTiling]

Yep as above....Do not accept mixed batches...

 

[TiredGill]

Too late, he's halfway back up the A9 with them.

The Tile Giant in Falkirk didn't have them but arranged for us to pick them up at Stirling and it was Stirling that gave him 2 different batch numbers. It's only 3 boxes 2 are one batch, 1 is the other and there are 2 loose tiles so lord knows what batch they are. Will wait and see what kind of difference there is between them and decide then what to do. Looks like another delay.

Also can't get floor membrane sorted out yet, wet dec must be busy as he's yet to reply to the email I sent after speaking to him on the phone, so I looked for places to buy ditra just so I can get the order in....because we're in the Highlands of Scotland, it's a real pain as places round us just don't stock this kind of thing, and delivery times tend to be longer online so I need it ordered pronto. Will phone a couple of online sites to see how long they'd take to get it out to me.

This home improvement lark is hard work, lol.

 

[DHTiling]

This home improvement lark is hard work,

Try doing it for a living...:lol:

 

[TiredGill]

Guys, I've got 8 tiles that are a different colour to the rest. It's not a huge difference but it's there nonetheless, they are slightly browner than the rest which are more of a beige shade. I need 15 for my floor. Would I be able to blend it in more if I alternated the tiles.....would it look ok or am I just simply stuffed?

The store is over a hundred miles away from us so I can't just pop back. Any suggestions or ideas, I haven't got a clue what the best thing is to do about this?

I knew the batch numbers would be different to the last lot we bought last week but since this lot was for the floor I thought it wouldn't matter too much if there was a slight difference....I just didn't expect to get 2 different shades in the one purchase.

 

[DHTiling]

Well you have 2 options...

1 : lay the tiles and randomly insert the darker ones , so you have a blended mix.

2 : make the return trip and get all one shade...


Sorry guys at tile store but you should not have supplied mixed shades...:mad2:

 

[TiredGill]

I've just phoned them to explain the situation and am waiting on a call back. The store we bought from said they never normally give out a mixed batch unless that was all they had and the customer was happy to accept them and they're getting in touch with the store we had to pick up from to see why were were given a mixed lot.

OH says that when he arrived, the tiles were stacked on a trolley at the front door ready to go so he assumed they had given him the same batch.

I had hoped they would be very similar but they are darker. Bum! (Other more serious swearies are being said internally, lol.)

I'll wait to see what they say before deciding what to do.

 

[DHTiling]

Thanks for the update...it will be fine i'm sure..

 

[TiredGill]

Just thought I'd let you know, the lovely peeps at Falkirk are trying their best to find me a couple of boxes of the shade I'd prefer (to match the original tiles bought and that was part of the mixed batch purchase too). Since it's only 2 boxes, hopefully some branch somewhere might just have a few of that particular shade left. If not, they can change the mixed batch for a matching batch.

Despite the bit of a mix up, I'd still go back to the Falkirk branch to buy my next lot of tiles so I hope my posts haven't put anyone off from buying there, they are genuinely nice people who do try their best to help you and make sure you're happy with your purchases.

Edit: Btw, I got my numbers wrong when I last posted ...I have 16 tiles that were a different batch, not 8 and the amount I needed was wrong too. I don't know where my head was when I was writing, too many things to think about, lol. :dunce2:

 

[DHTiling]

Thanks for the update...i am very sure they will look after you and mistakes do happen with all tile stores...But sorted in the end that is what counts and great customer service i see...

 

[TiredGill]

Need help again please guys.....had hold up after hold up, we had a wee wait until the tiles got exchanged but got them sorted and are all the same batch now happily. Then daughter was in hospital and son had an accident so nothing got done.

Anyway....back to it now and I'm worried. Got the floor sorted, noggins in, 25mm ply done, solid as a rock. Primed everything (floor and plasterboard walls) with Primer G then used the Dunlop Tanking Kit to cover the green moisture resistant plasterboard walls around the bath area. There was a waterproofing primer, tape for the wall corners etc and then the tanking compound itself...a thick, gluey kind of stuff. Followed instructions on the tub but 2 days later and the walls feel weird, I'm not sure how to describe it, they just don't feel hard as I thought they would. I think the stuff is dry ok but I sometimes think they might feel very very slightly tacky. Have I got a problem or is it just the rubberised compound I'm feeling?

I also phoned Mapei technical helpline to query if I needed to prime over the tanking but I dont, I just tile over it. Please tell me the tanking stuf isn't about to peel off the wall in big swathes and it's supposed to feel like this? :sick:

I'm also about to use the slc tonight....wish me luck...anything in particular I need to worry about?

 

[White Room]

The tanking may have taken a bit longer to dry because of the moisture resistant board, slc follow intructions on the bag

 

[dagger]

Need help again please guys.....had hold up after hold up, we had a wee wait until the tiles got exchanged but got them sorted and are all the same batch now happily. Then daughter was in hospital and son had an accident so nothing got done.

Anyway....back to it now and I'm worried. Got the floor sorted, noggins in, 25mm ply done, solid as a rock. Primed everything (floor and plasterboard walls) with Primer G then used the Dunlop Tanking Kit to cover the green moisture resistant plasterboard walls around the bath area. There was a waterproofing primer, tape for the wall corners etc and then the tanking compound itself...a thick, gluey kind of stuff. Followed instructions on the tub but 2 days later and the walls feel weird, I'm not sure how to describe it, they just don't feel hard as I thought they would. I think the stuff is dry ok but I sometimes think they might feel very very slightly tacky. Have I got a problem or is it just the rubberised compound I'm feeling?

I also phoned Mapei technical helpline to query if I needed to prime over the tanking but I dont, I just tile over it. Please tell me the tanking stuf isn't about to peel off the wall in big swathes and it's supposed to feel like this? :sick:

I'm also about to use the slc tonight....wish me luck...anything in particular I need to worry about?

it could be you put it on too thick!!! or painted coats too quick,
it should have been two coats.. so was the first coat dry and hard?

if you paint on the second coat too quickly the lower coat will never dry!!!

tanking when ready to tile on should feel hard and a little rough!

 

[TiredGill]

I painted the coating on the walls then watched a you tube video and saw that the tiler put the stuff on vertically first and then straightaway went back to the start to second coat it but went horizontally this time. So I quickly went back to paint over it again. It felt dry when I recoated it, but there wasn't a great deal of time between the coats. The bloke in the video was slathering it on thickly so I put more on the second time. :sick: If it still feels the same in a couple of days ...will I need to scrape it off and start again? It does feel different on the wall with the green p/b compared to the wall with the ordinary grey p/b.

I've done the ufh and the slc tonight, I've just finished. I mixed one bag/carton but ran out so had to quickly mix another. There seems to be a dividing line between the 2 loads, will that blend in? The first load was only down 5-10 minutes before I poured the 2nd load, so was still wet. I poured it onto the floor in a corner and then tried to spread it a bit with a trowel, then poured more and did the same etc etc. I wasn't sure how much to try to spread it though...what happens if it's too thick...will it crack?

 

[White Room]

Just leave the tanking a bit longer on the mr boards, may need a bit more drying out.

The slc, how thick and what brand you used

 

[dagger]

I painted the coating on the walls then watched a you tube video and saw that the tiler put the stuff on vertically first and then straightaway went back to the start to second coat it but went horizontally this time. So I quickly went back to paint over it again. It felt dry when I recoated it, but there wasn't a great deal of time between the coats. The bloke in the video was slathering it on thickly so I put more on the second time. :sick: If it still feels the same in a couple of days ...will I need to scrape it off and start again? It does feel different on the wall with the green p/b compared to the wall with the ordinary grey p/b.

I've done the ufh and the slc tonight, I've just finished. I mixed one bag/carton but ran out so had to quickly mix another. There seems to be a dividing line between the 2 loads, will that blend in? The first load was only down 5-10 minutes before I poured the 2nd load, so was still wet. I poured it onto the floor in a corner and then tried to spread it a bit with a trowel, then poured more and did the same etc etc. I wasn't sure how much to try to spread it though...what happens if it's too thick...will it crack?

you may have to scrape off your tanking paint, if you can tear it with you finger nails you got a problem, you do paint it on left to right then top to bottom (helps ensure coverage), but you need to allow 3/4 hours between coats 2hrs as a minimum!

as for the slc if it can handle depths of up to 50mm then it wont crack, it proberbly will bubble up though! air trapped under the slc will pop up on the surface, its not a major problem, but it is why us tilers have spiked rollers!

ask more questions, do less work... we will get you there in the end!

sometimes people it is just better, simpler and cheaper to get a "proper" tiler in.

let this be a lesson!:dizzy2:

all the best and good luck tiredgill!

 

[TiredGill]

Thanks again. Just for the record, I would have preferred to get a professional tiler in but couldn't get a good one this side of Christmas. Everyone that was recommended, was booked up months in advance and I needed it done now unfortunately. I've had more than my fair share of shoddy work done by poor tradesmen so was worried about picking someone out of the yellow pages. It's all a learning curve.

Will check the tanking this morning.

The slc was Mapei Latex Plan.....ok for up to 10mm depth apparently. Most of the floor is just enough to cover the ufh but near the door is about 12 mm. Checked it with a level this morning and it's perfectly straight...it's just a wee bit deeper in places than it's supposed to be.

Do you think it wll be ok or might I have a problem there too?

 

[TiredGill]

Looks like I may have been worrying needlessly with regards to the slc. I've phoned Mapei technical (again!...very patient, helpful, peeps there) and chap reckons it will be fine and that if it was going to slump in the deeper places, it would have done so whilst drying.

As the floor seems fine 12 hours later with no hollows or dips, I think it's ok.

On to the matting now..........

 

[Bolter]

Looks like I may have been worrying needlessly with regards to the slc. I've phoned Mapei technical (again!...very patient, helpful, peeps there) and chap reckons it will be fine and that if it was going to slump in the deeper places, it would have done so whilst drying.

As the floor seems fine 12 hours later with no hollows or dips, I think it's ok.

On to the matting now..........

you mean Ditra matting? Get a small notch trowel, and use flexible floor adhesive to stick it down (once its cut to fit of course). The neater the notches, the better. Make sure after fixing you roll over the matting to make sure it fixes properly. You can see the matting turn darker where it sticks. You could even weigh it down with the boxes of tiles

 

[TiredGill]

Just done one bit of it and I'm worried. There are darker bits but also loads of light bits. How do I know if it's going to stick ok...I'm contemplating taking it up and scraping the floor and not bothering with it. If it's not stuck down properly, that's a real problem isn't it? It would have to be stuck 100% all over?

Done with Keraquick and a 4mm notched trowel btw.

 

[Bolter]

Just done one bit of it and I'm worried. There are darker bits but also loads of light bits. How do I know if it's going to stick ok...I'm contemplating taking it up and scraping the floor and not bothering with it. If it's not stuck down properly, that's a real problem isn't it? It would have to be stuck 100% all over?

Done with Keraquick and a 4mm notched trowel btw.

Do you have a grout float? You could go over it with the float, and try to push the matting into the adhesive. If not, the flat side of the trowel, carefully. Shouldnt be a problem.

How much % wise is darker and stuck?

 

[TiredGill]

Half and half maybe. I think the darker bits are where the Keraquick was a little thicker so I dont know if the light bits are already dry or if they're not stuck at all. I'm thinking it might not be worth the risk to leave it?

I rubbed over it with a bit of 3" x 2".