How to lay tiles?
Question:laying out of floor and wall tiles
Answers:
With both wall and floor tiles,you should always start from the centre.
If tiling a floor,measure in both directions and draw lines that cross in the centre of the room,then lay your 1st four tiles there.
for wall tiles always always start approximately one tile up from the floor (draw a nice level horizontal line at this point) and work upwards, never start flush to the floor otherwise you'll find your tiles go wonky because either the floor isn't perfectly level or the wall is lower/higher in places.
for floor tiles do the same sort of thing but start approx. one tiles width away from a wall (the wall with the door in it is usally the best place to start) Draw the nice straight line again, parrallel to the wall with the door in it then work your way into the middle of the floor, and complete the room.
Always budget for needing extra tiles, and dont throw away broken ones cos they might come in handy for the corners.
Hope that helps
When laying out a room, take time to notice any odd areas that may impede your progress later. Most of the time you want your cuts at the walls to be the same. Measure your room in both directions. divide these by 2 to get your center. If your room is 12 X 14, then mark the floor at 6' and 7' respectively. With help, pop 2 chalk lines, splitting the room into 4 sections. With me so far? Now, apply your adhesive to one area at a time. Starting in the middle, work outward. Be VERY carful to keep with your lines, don't let it creep in or out. Keep your margins as perfect as possible. Any mistakes will grow dramatically. Complete your field tiles and cut in your edges as you go. Most wall tiles have a border to consider, somewhere. If so I will start at the border most of the time, and let the tile die into the corners. If you are in a kitchen, you may need to center your tiles at the window over a sink. If so, center and work outward. Back walls in showers are usually centered and work out to the edges. Hope this isn't to confusing of an explanation. Good luck!
For the floor, ascertain the centre point of the room and lay the first 4 tiles in a square at the centre (so that where the tiles join is the very centre) and work outwards from there. All cut tiles should be round the edges of the room, otherwise the "pattern" will look awful.
For walls, tack a strip of wood to the wall one tile high and level, and tile up from there. Keep cut tiles for the top of the wall. When finished, remove the wood and tile the remaining space. you may find that you need to cut tiles here too as the floors are rarely even.
Nikolai's got it spot on, start in the middle of the wall, one row up from the floor then work outwards, then upwards.
Bit of string question because it depends on the room and fixtures & fittings. Different tilers have different ideas.
Also, if you have a border tile, you should carry the cut around the corner or the border tile might look ****. So, for example, in a bathroom, you might start in the middle of the window but the other walls will depend on the border.
I tile for a living (and I think I'm pretty good) and I know other tilers that do a good job and we start and set out differently. It's a case of keeping things level, sqaure, spaced correctly, flat and as full tile as possible.
Prepare the wall or floor, make sure they are dry, clean and level.
Mark out subject to the size of the tile the area you want to tile by using the tile as a guidline and leaving the cuts of the tile in a non prominent position, remember the spacers inbetween the tile when marking, ie. in otherwords where the cut tiles are least likely to be seen. Usinging a level once you have worked out how many tiles to the area are needed and where to put your cuts,mark out a vertical line to the walls near cornors as no cornor is 90 degrees and if needed a horizontal line.If on the floor same procedure but using marked areas of previous setting out of tiles and cuts to edges if possible in a non prominent position.Once you have marked your area check the tile size and how many tiles you are using in that area, account for spacers.
Cement the back of the tile and follow the straightedge of your marks starting at the bottom of the wall first and working your way up. Once the first row of wall tiles is complete and spacers are inbetween the tiles , check with a level. After this you should find the rest easy going. Edge of walls and ceilings are for cut tiles.
With the floor use a recommended floor tile cement full tiles where they are prominent and cuts where it looks least prominent next to walls.When tiles have gone off 24hrs grout with anti mould, waterproof grout using a rubber applicator and clear excess on tile. Using your finger helps to finish off the grouting or if you dont't want to do this use a grouting tool. Let it nearly go off and clean up the tile. Work in manageable areas only, try not to do too much too soon or the grout will go off on the tile and then it is hard work getting it off. Once grouted leave to dry a day, then clean of complete tiles with a damp sponge and polish up dry with a cotton cloth.
More Related Questions & Answers...