Mosaic tiles - cheap and easy?
 

I've just had the kitchen skimmed, so a reasonable surface for tiles. My
past efforts have been pretty poor though - just looks like it's been
done by somebody not very good at tiling. I don't seem to have the
eye/hand for it.

Might these be a better bet:

http://www.wickes.co.uk/decorative-t...t/mosiactiles/

--
Cheers, Rob

Mosaic tiles - cheap and easy?
 

RJH wrote:

I've just had the kitchen skimmed, so a reasonable surface for tiles. My
past efforts have been pretty poor though - just looks like it's been
done by somebody not very good at tiling. I don't seem to have the
eye/hand for it.
Might these be a better bet:
http://www.wickes.co.uk/decorative-t...t/mosiactiles/

A better bet for what - staying level with a uniform gap?
Then no. Unless they are very lightweight, they will still slip when on
the wall.
The key is to put a thin skim of tile cement on the back of the mosaic
sheet the day before, let it set, then they will stay in line. You'll
still need to space them at the bottom, but the lines between should be
fixed.

--
Signature file not found

Mosaic tiles - cheap and easy?
 

On Sunday, November 10, 2013 8:40:58 AM UTC, RJH wrote:
I've just had the kitchen skimmed, so a reasonable surface for tiles. My
past efforts have been pretty poor though - just looks like it's been
done by somebody not very good at tiling. I don't seem to have the
eye/hand for it.
Might these be a better bet:
http://www.wickes.co.uk/decorative-t...t/mosiactiles/

£111 a square metre. Ouch.


NT

Mosaic tiles - cheap and easy?
 

On Sunday, November 10, 2013 9:11:27 AM UTC, wrote:
£111 a square metre. Ouch.

I think that's about what my flat is worth!

Owain

Mosaic tiles - cheap and easy?
 

On 10/11/2013 08:40, RJH wrote:
I've just had the kitchen skimmed, so a reasonable surface for tiles. My
past efforts have been pretty poor though - just looks like it's been
done by somebody not very good at tiling. I don't seem to have the
eye/hand for it.

Might these be a better bet:

http://www.wickes.co.uk/decorative-t...t/mosiactiles/

If you've already got a flat surface, surely it's easy enough to spread
adhesive with a toothed spreader and keep everything square with plastic
tile spacers. If you've had problems before, is it because you've been
tiling an uneven surface?

SteveW

Mosaic tiles - cheap and easy?
 

On 10/11/2013 08:40, RJH wrote:

I've just had the kitchen skimmed, so a reasonable surface for tiles. My
past efforts have been pretty poor though - just looks like it's been
done by somebody not very good at tiling. I don't seem to have the
eye/hand for it.

Might these be a better bet:

http://www.wickes.co.uk/decorative-t...t/mosiactiles/

Should not have thought so ;-)

If you have a decent flat surface, then "normal" tiles ought to be about
as easy as you will get.

What problems have you had in the past? Perhaps we can suggest some tips
for better results...


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

Mosaic tiles - cheap and easy?
 

On 11/11/2013 02:58, John Rumm wrote:
On 10/11/2013 08:40, RJH wrote:

I've just had the kitchen skimmed, so a reasonable surface for tiles. My
past efforts have been pretty poor though - just looks like it's been
done by somebody not very good at tiling. I don't seem to have the
eye/hand for it.

Might these be a better bet:

http://www.wickes.co.uk/decorative-t...t/mosiactiles/

Should not have thought so ;-)

If you have a decent flat surface, then "normal" tiles ought to be about
as easy as you will get.

What problems have you had in the past? Perhaps we can suggest some tips
for better results...


Thanks all - think i'll give the mosaics a wide berth then. My 'cheap'
thinking was that it would either save me time.

Anyways, I'll get some plain 15cm ceramic tiles. And actually yes, the
last time I tried, bath to ceiling, the wall was very poor. While I did
make a horlicks of it, they did stay up for the 15 year I was there, and
remained watertight.

Any guides or pointers welcomed, especially for finishing, and the
worktop-meets-tile part.


--
Cheers, Rob

Mosaic tiles - cheap and easy?
 

On Monday, November 11, 2013 7:49:55 AM UTC, RJH wrote:
On 11/11/2013 02:58, John Rumm wrote:
On 10/11/2013 08:40, RJH wrote:

I've just had the kitchen skimmed, so a reasonable surface for tiles. My
past efforts have been pretty poor though - just looks like it's been
done by somebody not very good at tiling. I don't seem to have the
eye/hand for it.

Might these be a better bet:

http://www.wickes.co.uk/decorative-t...t/mosiactiles/

Should not have thought so ;-)

If you have a decent flat surface, then "normal" tiles ought to be about
as easy as you will get.

What problems have you had in the past? Perhaps we can suggest some tips
for better results...

Thanks all - think i'll give the mosaics a wide berth then. My 'cheap'
thinking was that it would either save me time.

Mosaic is cheap, but very time consuming. Mosaic on net is quick, but very expensive!

Anyways, I'll get some plain 15cm ceramic tiles. And actually yes, the
last time I tried, bath to ceiling, the wall was very poor. While I did
make a horlicks of it, they did stay up for the 15 year I was there, and
remained watertight.
Any guides or pointers welcomed, especially for finishing, and the
worktop-meets-tile part.

Silicone or rubbery edged plastic strip.

To finish grout, a rubber edged spreader wiped over at 45 degrees to the grout lines.

http://wiki.diyfaq.org.uk/index.php?title=Tiling_FAQ


NT

Mosaic tiles - cheap and easy?
 

On 11/11/2013 10:39, wrote:
On Monday, November 11, 2013 7:49:55 AM UTC, RJH wrote:
On 11/11/2013 02:58, John Rumm wrote:
On 10/11/2013 08:40, RJH wrote:

I've just had the kitchen skimmed, so a reasonable surface for tiles. My
past efforts have been pretty poor though - just looks like it's been
done by somebody not very good at tiling. I don't seem to have the
eye/hand for it.

Might these be a better bet:

http://www.wickes.co.uk/decorative-t...t/mosiactiles/

Should not have thought so ;-)

If you have a decent flat surface, then "normal" tiles ought to be about
as easy as you will get.

What problems have you had in the past? Perhaps we can suggest some tips
for better results...

Thanks all - think i'll give the mosaics a wide berth then. My 'cheap'
thinking was that it would either save me time.

Mosaic is cheap, but very time consuming. Mosaic on net is quick, but very expensive!

Anyways, I'll get some plain 15cm ceramic tiles. And actually yes, the
last time I tried, bath to ceiling, the wall was very poor. While I did
make a horlicks of it, they did stay up for the 15 year I was there, and
remained watertight.
Any guides or pointers welcomed, especially for finishing, and the
worktop-meets-tile part.

Silicone or rubbery edged plastic strip.

To finish grout, a rubber edged spreader wiped over at 45 degrees to the grout lines.

http://wiki.diyfaq.org.uk/index.php?title=Tiling_FAQ


Grand, thanks.


--
Cheers, Rob

Mosaic tiles - cheap and easy?
 

On 11/11/2013 07:49, RJH wrote:
On 11/11/2013 02:58, John Rumm wrote:

What problems have you had in the past? Perhaps we can suggest some tips
for better results...

Thanks all - think i'll give the mosaics a wide berth then. My 'cheap'
thinking was that it would either save me time.

Anyways, I'll get some plain 15cm ceramic tiles. And actually yes, the
last time I tried, bath to ceiling, the wall was very poor. While I did
make a horlicks of it, they did stay up for the 15 year I was there, and
remained watertight.

Any guides or pointers welcomed, especially for finishing, and the
worktop-meets-tile part.

My top tiling tips (and other alliterations) would be:

Tools:

Good quality score ans snap cutter, plus small plasplugs lekky wheel
cutter for awkward cutouts etc.

Decent notched trowel for glue spreading, not the plastic toy that comes
with the glue

Rubber faced grout float

Decent quality sponge (latex if possible) for finishing.

Bucket, and tub for mixing grout.


Materials:

Proper non slip tile glue *NOT* Tile 'n' Grout
(something that grouts like glue and sticks like grout)

Quality powdered self mix grout.

1) Layout. Plan carefully first, layout so that it looks right - don't
try to layout so you have to make the fewest cuts! Its much better to
have a 3/4 tile at both ends, then a full tile at one, and a half at the
other.

If the walls are not very square, avoid narrow rips of tiles near the
corner. (much easier to eye up)

When cutting for corners it often looks best it it appears that the
remainder of the tile "carries on" round the corner.

2) Fix a level batten to the wall at the bottom to work from - allow
space so that you fit the bottom row of tiles after. Don't assume the
floor is level - so aiming for approx 3/4 of a tile height at the bottom
will allow you to cut in to match a varying floor height. Spinning laser
levels are handy for getting a line round a room, and that's good for
making them all meet up at the corners.

3) With level walls, glue up a section of wall with ribbed trowel. Tile
first row with spacers - don't bother trying to place the "X" inthe
corner - just poke a leg into the gap, so that you can pull it free later.

As you do subsequent rows you can tweak the tile ends up and down a
fraction to stay level by rotating the spacers - they give a slightly
larger gap standing up rather than flat. (and two together flat gives an
increment on one on edge). Some tiles may vary a small amount in size -
so this lets you accommodate that.


4) Grouting: work grout into gaps with rubber float, and use it to
squeegee most of the excess off. Allow it to go off for a bit before
sponging off with the flat of a damp (not wet). Working it in circular
motions will clean the surface but not pull the grout out of the gaps.
Try to leave the grout smooth without any nicks or holes.

5) Once mostly dry sponge off residue and leave to dry completely. That
will leave a white film on the tiles. Polish this off with a *dry* cloth
or paper towels (if you try washing it off, it will dry with a white
film again!)

--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/