More dot n dab Travertine

[sibs]

Hi gang
Firstly am I right in my selection of a 10mm round notched trowel for large format travertine? Say of they were in region of 600 by 300? If that is correct am I right in thinking a bag of white spf will give me a coverage of 4 - 5 sqm?

Secondly I have been asked to finish off someone elses handy work... not a particularly good job... the guy who started it... a stone mason by trade dot n dabbed the travertine on the walls including the shower area which has been tanked. I'm a little confused though because the guy said that sand had been put over the tanking to give a key for the adhesive to stick to :huh2: anyone heard of this method?

On the floor by the shower cubicle the previous guy has left an inch and a half gap between the first tile and the edge of the cubical :mad2:
He simply never came back so I have been asked to finish off which consists of a row of tiles around the top (room is half tile) including a window reveal, the rest of the floor which is all cuts because he only put the full tiles down and the ply base of the shower cubicle (more cuts). The tiles are a very wierd size... 405 by around 600 ish brick bond
I was thinking of charging £200 plus mats for the sheer hastle of finishing someone's very poor job. What do you guys think of the price?

Btw he told me that the floor had been tanked but the tiler had plyed over it:whatchutalkingabout

 

[Gazzer]

I doubt you will get anywhere near that coverage, dont forget you will need to back butter the travertine to fill any voids.
Personally i would explain to the customer your concerns and get it in writing that you take no responsibilty for any failures relating to the other tilers work.

Never heard of sand on membrane either :whatchutalkingabout

 

[sibs]

I wonder if thats why he dot n dabbed... white spf is around £30 per bag so how many bags do you think I'll need to cover 14 sqm of walls and 5 1/2 sqm of floor?
And thanks for the advice Sir about the other guys work

 

[Alberta Stone]

Posting a few pics really helps us decipher what people are talking about as words often fail to convey the important details.

Sounds like you are finishing off a bit of a mess.
I agree with sir ramic that you need to be very clear with the client as to no liability on you for failure of the other guys work.
I usually avoid those jobs.
But just make certain you do a great job at your part and take some pics as you go for future reference which show what was done and what you did and put them on a disc as backup which you hopefully will never need.

I also have no idea what the guy was talking about unless he means he put a scratch coat up over the tanking.

 

[sibs]

Thanks Alberta I couldn't understand what he was going on about with the sand either but he seemed to think it was a pretty standard practice :whatchutalkingabout Ah well!
I can't find my digital camera anywhere!
Should I seal the travertine before and after I grout?

 

[charlie1]

Really depends on the flatness of the subsrtaight, I would use a 13mm trowel and that would give you about 3m2 per bag and as ramic says back butter to fill any voids.

 

[The D]

Bloody stonemasons they should stick to chipping stones and leave the tiling to the tilers :lol:

 

[DHTiling]

Hi tina..you will be ok to seal the tiles afterwards....before fixing use the flat edge of your trowel and skim the back of the tiles with adhesive....this will

1. provides a good key for the tiles and adhesive bed.
2. Fills in voids etc
3. prevents shadowing from adhesive ribs when using light coloured tiles..

 

[MICK the Tiler]

The sand thrown onto the waterproofing could mean it's fibreglass. Common practice down here when using fibreglass as a membrane.

 

[sibs]

Oh right Mick thanks for that...who knows... but that could explain it! The guy is a designer... got a lovely house!
Thanks Dave if I get the job I will make sure I back butter the tiles :yes:

 

[MICK the Tiler]

Don't ya just hate fixing other peoples stuff-ups Sibs? :mad2:

 

[sibs]

Don't ya just hate fixing other peoples stuff-ups Sibs? :mad2:

Well Mick I'm gonna charge him hansomly for that privalage. I doubt if there are many who will be keen on finishing off another tilers work... he said he was trying to get it done as cheaply as possible... he got the trav very cheap... £15/ sqm but the tiler came recommended:whatchutalkingabout
he must've saved a fortune on adhesive because there's no back buttering been going on... very shoddy job even down to how the ply has been layed.
I told him about this web site because he wants a big slab of marble for his fireplace

 

[DHTiling]

Oh right Mick thanks for that...who knows... but that could explain it! The guy is a designer... got a lovely house!
Thanks Dave if I get the job I will make sure I back butter the tiles

Back skimming is the terminolgy tina......very thin skim of adhesive....backbuttering is adding extra adhesive for bedding tiles...

 

[sibs]

oh I see... I thought they were one and the same... addy on the back of the tile in one form or another. :stupid: Cheers Dave lol