Trying to learn from my mistakes here......

[cornish_crofter]

The adhesive oozes out because there is more adhesive than there is space for it underneath the tile. If I mixed the adhesive thicker surely it would just be stiffer and the tile wouldn't press down to its required height?

 

[kilty55]

mix the adhesive thicker,lay tile butted up to front row your working off and drag tile back and press if you push it towards the row of tiles it will squeeze out the joints

hope this makes sense

 

[Saltire69]

If it oozes out of the joints, push the 2 tiles together and wipe it away then space them out and clean joints with a sponge. If you need to build the tiles up go up a trowel size.

 

[cornish_crofter]

Thanks for the last two replies Kilty and Saltire.

I guess what you're saying Kilty is that by laying the adhesive thicker your method will ensure that the excess adhesive is pushed away from the tiles you're working on, rather than all over the joists.

I'm mixing the adhesive as thick as I dare. It's a solid creamy consistancy. Any thicker and it'll have no give at all.

I don't see myself going up a trowel size as I'm already using the 10mm curved (wavey) notched trowel. I don't have any bigger.

I am wiping the adhesive as I go. 1st wipe with a sponge to remove it from the joint, then a rake out with a tile spacer to give me a joint for grouting.

I'll try these suggestions tomorrow. Thanks

 

[kilty55]

hi cornish,dont make it too thick just to the right consistency but when you go to lay it lay the tile tight to the one previously laidand drag back towardsa you,this will drag the edge adhesive away from the joint you are workin gon and stop thr addy squeezing through

 

[vosnack]

mix the adhesive thicker,lay tile butted up to front row your working off and drag tile back and press if you push it towards the row of tiles it will squeeze out the joints

hope this makes sense

That's exactly what I was about to write. That's the best way to do this. I sometimes simply use bucket trowel to spread adhesive if it's no use with the tile trowel.

 

[cornish_crofter]

hi cornish,dont make it too thick just to the right consistency but when you go to lay it lay the tile tight to the one previously laidand drag back towardsa you,this will drag the edge adhesive away from the joint you are workin gon and stop thr addy squeezing through

That's what I was thinking from your last post, so if/when I apply a little too much adhesive, the excess is pulled away from the edges rather than pushed onto them.

It just gets difficult when you do the last tiles around the edges. I always do the cuts last (apart from those on the former), and they're usually around the room.

 

[mikethetile]

persevere Hugo

youve learnt about the prep now and wont make the same error again, its a learning curve so dont beat yourself up about this

we all learn the hard way but come right in the end

 

[Ken Bruty]

Hi Cornish, we've all been there in the early days, don't worry it becomes second nature, you have to invest in yourself to start with (i.e. the jobs always seem to take longer than you imagine), but it's all part of learning the trade, quality first, speed later mate. I find if I'm building adhesive up, firstly trowel the floor, then trowel the ribs the same way on the back of your tile, this should bring your adhesive up 6-8mm depending on your trowel, then, when you press the tile down you have more control of the adhesive spreading evenly underneath, and you get more opportunity to adjust it if necessary up or down without losing coverage, then as kilty says, butt the tile up against the last and move away as you're bedding so that the movement sucks the adhesive away from the joint, these small details work for me every time. I find a quick way to build the adhesive up thicker than this (providing the manufacturer allows this in the adhesive spec!) is to spread adhesive on the floor with the flat part of your trowel or using the flat edge on your bucket trowel to the same level as the bottom of the previous tiles around and pull the trowel flat away from them, therefore creating a flat bed, then trowel the ribs straight on the back of your tile to be laid and press on to the bed you just created, clean job done! Also a tip for you, if you don't already know, is to always trowel out your adhesive in straight ribs when fixing as this allows any air to be squashed out from under the tile, therefore preventing lippage and tile corners being sucked down as the adhesive sets. Hope that helps mate and don't give up, it takes a lot of practice.:smilewinkgrin:

 

[heavytrevy]

Laying onto screed I use a 12mm min or a 15mm if its rough , it will save u alot of time.
I do loads of wetroom floors and it all comes down to experience, you need to get your eye in .