Newbie!! looking to pick slate and tile kitchen

[Shogun1011]

Hey all,

I'm a newbie to tiling, and figured i'd head to the forums for advice before i make some poor decisions.

My goal: To pick natural slate from nearby woods/mountains, and tile my kitchen floor with it.

The slate will be all different shapes and sizes. I was wondering if anyone has any suggestions regarding laying the tile and what materials to use for this type of task?

Since the tile is going to be of different thickness and shapes, I am wondering if there is some sort of "mud" or thick adhesive i could use under the tiles so that i can line the thicker peices up with the thinner peices to make a somewhat smooth/level surface?

I'm probably going to get a lot of criticism for not knowing anything about this...but figured i might as well ask the stupid questions anyway.

I'm a do-it-yourself kinda guy, and would rather not buy tile from a store.

Thanks for any help you can give!!
Sincerely,
Shamus

 

[DHTiling]

hello shamus and welcome to forums....you could use bal pourable thick bed adhesive.............dave......

 

[grumpygrouter]

Interesting idea. Don't think it would be something I would do myself though. Proper slate tiles can be difficult enough to work with, random stuff fresh from a mountain side - make sure you have a supply of valium to hand.

In all seriousness, there are products available that would go some way towards helping do what you are trying to do, the more experienced guys will, I'm sure, give you their thoughts.

Good luck.

Grumpy
----
...........and DH again has beaten everyone to it.:wink_smile:

 

[GazTech]

My goal: To pick natural slate from nearby woods/mountains, and tile my kitchen floor with it...................Is that legal ?

 

[Shogun1011]

Wow...thanks for the quick reply!!

I just checked the bal pourable thick bed adhesive out online, and that stuff looks like it'd be perfect for my application. My kitchen floor (under the linoleum) is wood. Should i lay some sort of board down over the wood before laying the bed adhesive down?

A couple more questions...

1) when they say the bed adhesive is "quick drying"...how quick is quick? I"m wondering how much time i have to complete the task.

2) Is there any special type of grout that should be used with Slate tiles?


Thanks again for all your help!! I tried to find info on Google, but only came up with steps for store bought, even/flat tile.

You're a huge help to me!!
Sincerely,
Shamus

 

[DHTiling]

You will need to use bal pourable thick bed flexi..........dave..

PTB Flexible

 

[Shogun1011]

My goal: To pick natural slate from nearby woods/mountains, and tile my kitchen floor with it...................Is that legal ?

Well, can't imagine anyone will really care or notice. I'm surrounded by mountains and woods...and my kitchen is not large at all.

probably not legal...but i'm not worried.

 

[GazTech]

Well, can't imagine anyone will really care or notice. I'm surrounded by mountains and woods...and my kitchen is not large at all.

probably not legal...but i'm not worried.

Brilliant...love it ! make sure to clean all slate with heavy duty sanders,then apply some of this ...2 coats before fixing down or grouting...please please post some pictures of the project...selection of slate....cleaning...tiling..and grouting....you will also have to board out in backer boards(cement based)flexi adhesive and grout....Gaz.

 

[Shogun1011]

Brilliant...love it ! make sure to clean all slate with heavy duty sanders,then apply some of this ...2 coats before fixing down or grouting...please please post some pictures of the project...selection of slate....cleaning...tiling..and grouting....you will also have to board out in backer boards(cement based)flexi adhesive and grout....Gaz.

Thanks Gaz!!
I'm going to start picking the slate tonight after work. I'll be sure to get some pics of the process and post em up.

Thanks for your help 🙂

~Shamus

 

[DHTiling]

Good luck shamus...watch out for them trolls in the woods..lol lol......dave..