What tips have saved you time or money?

[Andy Allen]

I have a mate who dose site work...for some reason they still use tubbed stuff for everything......he got loads of buckets .

 

[Italy]

dan good, good topic. Now I think 🙂

 

[Old Mod]

Here's an oldie but goodie.
When I was contract tiling and doing large areas of wall tiles,
We would purchase 2mm yarn used on yatchs.
Reason being was that it would not absorb moisture and swell like ordinary string.
Then we would use it as one continuous spacer!
So laying the first course to batons (always done that way then)
Then pin one end of the yarn with the first tile of the next course at one end, then pin the yarn the other end with another tile, and maybe one or two in the middle, depending on length of the wall.
Sometimes they'd be 30,40,50m long (that's a lot of spacers) once pinned in to place, away you go.
Repeat the same every course leaving a little loop each end.
Use periodic vertical lines chalked on the wall to keep the tiles plumb.
Sorted, 60,80, 100m2 walls all done with one spacer.
Next day, piece of baton, and wind all the yarn back in.
No spacers in tiling, (shouldn't be left in anyway) as you retrieved the yarn it also cleaned the joints of excess adhesive, simple but effective.
Just don't let it slip behind the corner of a tile at the ends, otherwise the entire corner courses can be pulled off! Haha
Saved masses of time over using spacers.

 

[Time's Ran Out]

Over the years of coming on this forum I have read loads of tips that have saved time and money, some old tricks and some new ones, some I had tried before and some I had never herd of. Things like the dog tooth and using ditra to pack out mosaics but the best one for me was when TJ explained to someone how to actually put the 345 method in to practice.

Thank you!
I appreciate that.
Glad to see your still in the land of the living.
I have a Dewalt floor laser now.

 

[LM]

The best tip for me was a Ragni 10mm trowel for collapsing notches under large format tiles, a lot quicker than a good old half moon and for ever readjusting

 

[hmtiling]

Here's an oldie but goodie.
When I was contract tiling and doing large areas of wall tiles,
We would purchase 2mm yarn used on yatchs.
Reason being was that it would not absorb moisture and swell like ordinary string.
Then we would use it as one continuous spacer!
So laying the first course to batons (always done that way then)
Then pin one end of the yarn with the first tile of the next course at one end, then pin the yarn the other end with another tile, and maybe one or two in the middle, depending on length of the wall.
Sometimes they'd be 30,40,50m long (that's a lot of spacers) once pinned in to place, away you go.
Repeat the same every course leaving a little loop each end.
Use periodic vertical lines chalked on the wall to keep the tiles plumb.
Sorted, 60,80, 100m2 walls all done with one spacer.
Next day, piece of baton, and wind all the yarn back in.
No spacers in tiling, (shouldn't be left in anyway) as you retrieved the yarn it also cleaned the joints of excess adhesive, simple but effective.
Just don't let it slip behind the corner of a tile at the ends, otherwise the entire corner courses can be pulled off! Haha
Saved masses of time over using spacers.

a guy i work with on occasion uses this method. i'd never seen it before a couple of years ago

 

[Kyle Knowles]

One of the best tips I ever got was about tools and it go's "buy cheap buy twice "

 

[kevsalt]

cross line laser...dont know how i managed without one before..briil tool...chalk line another great bit off kit ...****...coffee,,,site radio...great job tiling

 

[Joseph Kover]

Clean your buckets out before you leave. Buckets are gold dust in the tiling industry.

Plastering bucket easy to clean, even if you forgot to do it in advance 🙂

 

[Italy]

I do not know what to say......
from October, I learned many things, the first thing I learned was to raise prices. hahaha
misstiler, introduced me to vinegar for Epoxy. other small things, I have stolen, here and there. I do not remember .....
marc administrator (the Samaritan) ....... I thank you .... if there was no marc, I do not think that I'm still here.
So, for a few months, you have to endure. haha