Has anyone successfully put in a tub surround over ceramic tile? I'm
concerned with a couple things.

First of all, the surround manufacturer doesn't recommend it because the
adhesive might cause the surround to soften or melt. They depend on a
porous surface, like wallboard, to let the solvents dissipate. But I
wonder about using Liquid Nail for tub surrounds. Their instructions on
the tube say it's OK for ceramic tile. Do they have a different formula?

The other thing is adhesion. Just because the tube says it's OK, they also
say to roughen up glossy paint. Tiles are pretty glossy, but sandpaper
won't roughen that up at all.

So any thoughts would be most appreciated.

--Marc

"marc" wrote in message
First of all, the surround manufacturer doesn't recommend it

Seems like a pretty good reason not to. It's your money so do as you
please.

Edwin Pawlowski wrote:
"marc" wrote in message
First of all, the surround manufacturer doesn't recommend it

Seems like a pretty good reason not to. ...

And how hard could it be to rip some tile off the wall????

marc,

100% silicone adhesive grips like crazy. I know because I've tried
to pull many things off of tile like glass door enclosures, tub
surrounds,
cultured marble, tileboard etc, and those that are held onto tile by
pure silicone are near impossible to get off without major battle.

Somehow you need to hold the surround tight to the tile while
it dries, since the silicone caulk adhesive has poor "initial grab"
strength.

None of this will work if the tiles aren't perfectly clean. In
certain
circumstances I tile over tile, but first grind down the surface of the
tile slightly with a 'dry' diamond blade in a grinder.

If you can get the tiles perfectly clean, you won't need to etch them
to stick to them.

thetiler

marc wrote:
Has anyone successfully put in a tub surround over ceramic tile? I'm
concerned with a couple things.

First of all, the surround manufacturer doesn't recommend it because the
adhesive might cause the surround to soften or melt. They depend on a
porous surface, like wallboard, to let the solvents dissipate. But I
wonder about using Liquid Nail for tub surrounds. Their instructions on
the tube say it's OK for ceramic tile. Do they have a different formula?

The other thing is adhesion. Just because the tube says it's OK, they also
say to roughen up glossy paint. Tiles are pretty glossy, but sandpaper
won't roughen that up at all.

So any thoughts would be most appreciated.

--Marc

On Tue, 26 Dec 2006 21:06:11 -0800, thetiler wrote:

Thanks for that info. That also verifies why it won't work. I made it
through, by phone, to the surround manufacturer. She gave another reason
why it wasn't recommended. The surround material is fairly fragile. If
it's stuck to a rigid material like ceramic tile, heat expansion or
contraction will cause the surround to change size differently than the
tile. Since the tile won't give, the surround may crack. It might only
take a couple months.

It seems to me that cement board or wallboard are just as inflexible, but
those are the recommended surfaces. However, I'm not going to take the
chance.

My main reason for a new surround was I was tired of the grout sealer
failing after a few months. While it's not a big deal to re-seal, I
usually find out it needs it after I wreck what's in the closet below.
The surround was easier (so I thought) than re-grouting with a water
resistant grout. I'm going to re-grout, as the tile looks better than most
surrounds.

Again, thanks for the reply and good info.

--Marc


marc,

100% silicone adhesive grips like crazy. I know because I've tried
to pull many things off of tile like glass door enclosures, tub
surrounds,
cultured marble, tileboard etc, and those that are held onto tile by
pure silicone are near impossible to get off without major battle.

Somehow you need to hold the surround tight to the tile while
it dries, since the silicone caulk adhesive has poor "initial grab"
strength.

None of this will work if the tiles aren't perfectly clean. In
certain
circumstances I tile over tile, but first grind down the surface of the
tile slightly with a 'dry' diamond blade in a grinder.

If you can get the tiles perfectly clean, you won't need to etch them
to stick to them.

thetiler

marc wrote:
Has anyone successfully put in a tub surround over ceramic tile? I'm
concerned with a couple things.

First of all, the surround manufacturer doesn't recommend it because the
adhesive might cause the surround to soften or melt. They depend on a
porous surface, like wallboard, to let the solvents dissipate. But I
wonder about using Liquid Nail for tub surrounds. Their instructions on
the tube say it's OK for ceramic tile. Do they have a different formula?

The other thing is adhesion. Just because the tube says it's OK, they also
say to roughen up glossy paint. Tiles are pretty glossy, but sandpaper
won't roughen that up at all.

So any thoughts would be most appreciated.

--Marc

liquid nail makes a "tub surround" formula that works great over tile and
the liquid nail does not leave any visible lines bleeding through like the
reg. liquid nail would
did this 5 years ago and everything is still in tact (still looks like new)



"marc" wrote in message
news
On Tue, 26 Dec 2006 21:06:11 -0800, thetiler wrote:

Thanks for that info. That also verifies why it won't work. I made it
through, by phone, to the surround manufacturer. She gave another reason
why it wasn't recommended. The surround material is fairly fragile. If
it's stuck to a rigid material like ceramic tile, heat expansion or
contraction will cause the surround to change size differently than the
tile. Since the tile won't give, the surround may crack. It might only
take a couple months.

It seems to me that cement board or wallboard are just as inflexible, but
those are the recommended surfaces. However, I'm not going to take the
chance.

My main reason for a new surround was I was tired of the grout sealer
failing after a few months. While it's not a big deal to re-seal, I
usually find out it needs it after I wreck what's in the closet below.
The surround was easier (so I thought) than re-grouting with a water
resistant grout. I'm going to re-grout, as the tile looks better than most
surrounds.

Again, thanks for the reply and good info.

--Marc


marc,

100% silicone adhesive grips like crazy. I know because I've tried
to pull many things off of tile like glass door enclosures, tub
surrounds,
cultured marble, tileboard etc, and those that are held onto tile by
pure silicone are near impossible to get off without major battle.

Somehow you need to hold the surround tight to the tile while
it dries, since the silicone caulk adhesive has poor "initial grab"
strength.

None of this will work if the tiles aren't perfectly clean. In
certain
circumstances I tile over tile, but first grind down the surface of the
tile slightly with a 'dry' diamond blade in a grinder.

If you can get the tiles perfectly clean, you won't need to etch them
to stick to them.

thetiler

marc wrote:
Has anyone successfully put in a tub surround over ceramic tile? I'm
concerned with a couple things.

First of all, the surround manufacturer doesn't recommend it because the
adhesive might cause the surround to soften or melt. They depend on a
porous surface, like wallboard, to let the solvents dissipate. But I
wonder about using Liquid Nail for tub surrounds. Their instructions on
the tube say it's OK for ceramic tile. Do they have a different formula?

The other thing is adhesion. Just because the tube says it's OK, they
also
say to roughen up glossy paint. Tiles are pretty glossy, but sandpaper
won't roughen that up at all.

So any thoughts would be most appreciated.

--Marc