Shower Room Adhesive

[DavieA]

Hi all,

Was wondering what the best type of ady was for use in a shower room, The walls are green board and have had a skim coat of plaster, Is the tubbed TECHNIK SHOWER FIX good gear for inside the shower cubicle with a solid bed trowel or should i be using cement based ady bearing in mind im tiling onto a skim coat if that makes any difference in the ady i need to use ?

Any advice on Grout would be appreciated too, was thinking of using TECHNIK PQ PLUS grout but have never tiled on a skim coat so all advice is welcome on how to go about it.:huh2:

Thanks .

 

[grumpygrouter]

Not familier with your chosen materials Davie. You don't say what type/size of tiles you are fixing. Ideally you should consider tanking in the shower cubicle but if that is out of the question and you are fixing normal ceramic tile up to about 200x200mm then I would be using something like BAL white star or rapidset flexy. If you go with powder stuff, you will need to prime the walls first (if you don't tank). For grout I would use something like Ardex F4 or BAL Microflex.

 

[Fekin]

First of all I have never used this TECHNIK brand so I couldn't comment on that.

Depending on the tile size and type, if they are small to medium ceramic tiles no bigger than say 300 x 200 then a tubbed adhesive like Bal Whitestar is a very good adhesive to use for shower areas.
Grout wise you want to use a good anti bacterial microban grout, Bal also make this.
If the shower area is having a power shower and is going to be in high use then you may want to consider tanking the walls before tiling them to add extra water protection, as no adhesive or grout is fully water proof.

If the tiles you are using are porcelain or natural stone then you have to use a cement based powdered adhesive that you mix up yourself, but since the walls have a plaster skim on them then you will need to prime the walls before tiling them with a good acrylic primer, Bal also make this "Bal Prime" water down to the correct ratio with water and paint onto the walls.
This stops a chemical reaction that you get when cement based adhesives are used on plaster.

If you tell us what the tiles are and what size then I can give you a better answer mate


Pah!!!

The grumps beat me to it :lol:

 

[grumpygrouter]

First of all I have never used this TECHNIK brand so I couldn't comment on that.

Depending on the tile size and type, if they are small to medium ceramic tiles no bigger than say 300 x 200 then a tubbed adhesive like Bal Whitestar is a very good adhesive to use for shower areas.
Grout wise you want to use a good anti bacterial microban grout, Bal also make this.
If the shower area is having a power shower and is going to be in high use then you may want to consider tanking the walls before tiling them to add extra water protection, as no adhesive or grout is fully water proof.

If the tiles you are using are porcelain or natural stone then you have to use a cement based powdered adhesive that you mix up yourself, but since the walls have a plaster skim on them then you will need to prime the walls before tiling them with a good acrylic primer, Bal also make this "Bal Prime" water down to the correct ratio with water and paint onto the walls.
This stops a chemical reaction that you get when cement based adhesives are used on plaster.

If you tell us what the tiles are and what size then I can give you a better answer mate


Pah!!!

The grumps beat me to it :lol:

Sorry Feks, at least we both said the same thing.:lol:

 

[DavieA]

Hi Guys, Cheers for the quick reply! Not sure of the tile size as i havent saw them yet but dont think there large format so around the 200/300mm mark possibly.

Tanking isnt an option as they dont want the expense.

So tubbed gear is ok for the shower cubicle and cement on the other 3 walls or cement for the lot as im not bothered about having to prime just wanting to do whats best you know??

Just out of curiosity whats best value for money give best results bagged or tubbed?

 

[Fekin]

Aye

I see your an Ardex fan, is that through choice or are you fairly limited to brands where you are ?

I have only ever used ardex mosaic fix once, decent enough adhesive, but no other experiance of it.
----

Hi Guys, Cheers for the quick reply! Not sure of the tile size as i havent saw them yet but dont think there large format so around the 200/300mm mark possibly.

Tanking isnt an option as they dont want the expense.

So tubbed gear is ok for the shower cubicle and cement on the other 3 walls or cement for the lot as im not bothered about having to prime just wanting to do whats best you know??

Just out of curiosity whats best value for money give best results bagged or tubbed?

I would happily do a full bathroom with Tubbed Whitestar, cracking adhesive in opinion, but bagged can work out a good bit cheaper, depending on where you buy your gear from and what discount you get.

 

[grumpygrouter]

Tubbed is generally more convenient but you may find that cement based is a bit easier to trowel on to the wall. Add in the fact that if you use rapid set of some sort, you will need to be cleaning an mixing frequently. If you use normal cement based (not rapid) then it is less "busy" if you like, as you have normally around 5hrs in the bucket before it goes off. A lot depends how quick you want to finish the job.

You could use either tubbed or cement on all walls, no need to chop and change.
----

Aye

I see your an Ardex fan, is that through choice or are you fairly limited to brands where you are ?

I have only ever used ardex mosaic fix once, decent enough adhesive, but no other experiance of it.

I was trained with some ardex products and was told that they are some of the best available so things like that tend to stick ('scuse the pun!) Don't know about mosaic fix though, I think maybe you are confusing it with BAL. BAL Mosaic fix is brilliant stuff, seems to stick anything to anything!

Sadly, my supplier of Ardex is no longer stocking it so any stuff I want to use now will be mail order I am afraid.

 

[DavieA]

Ahh just had a wee look at whitestar and it looks like good stuff but do u guys only use a 3mm bed with 200/300mm tiles on a skimmed wall (solid in wet area) just thats the depth on the bal website? and what do u get the whitestar for price wise? How long does an open tub last ?

 

[grumpygrouter]

A 3mm bed is after the adhesive has been squeezed by the tile being set. Use a 6mm notched trowel and you should achieve this without a problem. BAL make a specific Thin bed/Solid Bed trowel as well which is designed to give 100% coverage but if the walls are flat enough and you set the tiles correctly you should be ok with a 6mm notch.

I can get White Star for £14.82 inc vat. If you refit the lid firmly after each use it will last weeks. Good tip - keep the rim of the bucket clean otherwise when you try to remove the lid after you have used the tub, you may find it a touch difficult!

 

[Fekin]

Don't know about mosaic fix though, I think maybe you are confusing it with BAL. BAL Mosaic fix is brilliant stuff, seems to stick anything to anything!

No im not confusing Ardex to Bal's mosaic fix, it was a shop re-fit I was on a year ago, mosaics everywhere and they supplied some bagged Ardex for mosaic fixing, just called it mosaic fix cos I didn't know the propper name of it.

And yeah, Bal's mosaic fix is very good gear, love the stuff

 

[DavieA]

Thanks again Guys more great advice !!

 

[Fekin]

Ahh just had a wee look at whitestar and it looks like good stuff but do u guys only use a 3mm bed with 200/300mm tiles on a skimmed wall (solid in wet area) just thats the depth on the bal website? and what do u get the whitestar for price wise? How long does an open tub last ?

Yeah, I just use a standard 6mm notched on decent walls.

I've had a tub last 6 weeks after being opened as long as you get an air tight seal again.

Wish I could get Whitey for that price :mad2:

 

[grumpygrouter]

Wish I could get Ardex and Mapei at any price!!:mad2:

 

[Fekin]

Oh I could sort you out with some Mapie, but I don't think you'd like the price :lol:

 

[White Room]

Think you may find the tecknic PQ is evostick or bostick, Used the grout once, With ceramic never ever again, Horrible stuff can't comment on the tub stuff.

 

[Fekin]

Think you may find the tecknic PQ is evostick or bostick, Used the grout once, With ceramic never ever again, Horrible stuff can't comment on the tub stuff.

Sounds good then :stupid: