whats best approach for bathroom walls??

Members online

Total: 248 (members: 6, guests: 242)

Share this page

Status
Not open for further replies.
F

fruitcake

New Member
I got a look at a bathroom 2mow and its back to brick on a couple of walls and its cracked and uneven on other walls..

Any advice on what i should recommend, eg moisture boards for the brick walls or sand and cement, .

or will i be alright using normal boards and bonding other walls, then skimming the lot?

thanks for help
 
Sand and cement any of the walls that will be in constant contact with water, for example the shower area ..... I have been on a few jobs recently where they have just used normal board and tiled straight onto it ...... dont like the idea of that really

Rich
 
sand and cement then - ok.

so can you just run down the ratios of each coat for me please.

also is bonding not allowed in bathrooms??

ta
 
i would just board them mate, bond them if u feel the need too.
i finished my own bathroom 12 months ago i boarded ceilling, bonded shower wall (old tiles left a bit of a mess) skimmed it all up then tiled. looks great, not had any problems.
 
id say if you were gonna tile it floor to ceiling your best bet is s/c with waterproofer and devil float and leave it at that.. skimming it just means you gotta seal it again before you tile...
always try and make the next trades job easier... gets you a good name..
tilers are looking for flatness first and ease of application second..
bonding is ok but if water gets in anywhere it'l be knackered in no time..
m.r. boards are good but forget skimming em.. let the tiler sort that out..
loads of technical info in the building trades publications over the last couple of years r.e. tiles debonding...
theyve got this aqua panel stuff these days which you can immerse in water with no damage whatsoever but by god is it expensive stuff...
 
one more thing i forgot.. get it DEAD plumb, specially in the corners.. and DEAD flat in the corners too.. think what the grout lines/tiles look like in corners that are out of plumb..
do all that and the tiler will think the sun shines out of your backside..
get it wrong and the bloke will not stop moaning about the '***%^%$^& plasterer' from start to finish..
tilers will pick holes in plastering work all day long..
 
And tilers wont tile over bonding ....

I wouldnt bond anywhere near wet areas anyway it sucks up water like a panty liner

Rich
 
Bigs is right sand and cement ruled of perfectly plumb and square for the tiler, be quite honest i cant think of any reason for using bonding these days other than for covering Artex it dont like moisture well actualy it does it seems to attract it.
Lucius.
 
4:1 sand cement with waterproofer plus plasticiser. Sand/cement best in bathrooms...because 40kg weight limit for tiles (will hold all tiles even heavy natural stone no probs) also does not degrade in contact with water. Must be flat and square for tiling. There are one coat renders available from bal that can be tiled on within 24hours. Sand/cement needs 2 weeks to dry before tile.

Other option hardibacker boards...cement based boards that are pretty much water proof...can be fixed with flexible cement based tile adhesive to walls need to be screwed also. Far as i know will hold most tiles. Available 6mm or 12mm.

Don't use plasterboard on walls anywhere that may come into contact with water...pref not at all in bathroom.

IMO sand/cement always best. ;D
 
hey up.

thanks for the all the info.

I was actually speaking to a tiler today that said round shower and bath areas should be tanked/waterproofed before tiling? What do you think - would it matter what the backing is if its gona be waterproofed.??

ta
 
thats a question id be askin your tiler..
youll be fine with strong s/c+waterproofer mate..
tanking usually goe direct on the bricks... its a hard mix mate, sticking it over old render is the wrong way to go about it..
just tell him your using a waterproofed strong render and he should be ine with it..
 
A decent tilers point of view is to tank all wet areas which is belt and braces but probably correct which means their should be no problem using plasterboard being old school i prefer S/C but if i were tiling a shower that i had not built or rendered or boarded i would tank it anyway just to cover my ass, Hardibacker is probably the best though.
Lucius.
 
yeh didnt think of that, theyve prolly got their own products for tanking, it just wont be a cementious mix like you paint onto bricks..
and if thats the case then all you gotta do is get it flat and let him tank it..
 
dont tiles just protect wet areas?........ive given loads of bathrooms a tight coat of bonding and skim in the past
p.s i'd dab it with moisture boards and skim mate
 
dont quote me on this but ive got a funny feeling grout isnt completely waterproof... maybe ok on walls in the kitchen but showers / swimming pools etc..
 
no need to tank a sand and cement wall - think if water gets behind the tile whats it going to do its not going to break down the sand and cement...it will dry out. No worries for any kind of shower. Only time i tank is if i've been asked to tile a bathroom where the substrate is plasterboard and power shower to be fitted. Eventually pboard will break down in contact with water...especially power showers/wetrooms. To be honest in most domestic situations tanking insn't required unless very powerful shower or wet room. Even then if tiling/grouting is good little water should get behind tile. Tanking is costly save the customer money by s/c the walls then they won't need the added expense of labour/material costs for tanking.
 
never tile directly to bonding plaster not strong enough...skim first...and prime with sbr or similar before using cement based adhesives...never PVA.

grout is porous...can seal it though if need be.
 
I think those moisture boards are pants .... they fall apart like any other board when wet, i really cant see the point.

Rich
 
its a system though aint it same as sand cement and alot less hassle so aslong as theres no permeable damp issues on the adjoining wall just dab the f**k**g wall man !
 
spunkybum said:
its a system though aint it same as sand cement and alot less hassle so aslong as theres no permeable damp issues on the adjoining wall just dab the STOP SWEARING! wall man !
Click to expand...

= pants
 
slate is porous.. some tiles are porous... grout, as mentioned before is porous.. even a little trickle, over a long period will destroy the substrate if it wont 'withstand' moisture..
yes some tiles are porous.. ever tried grouting natural stone without sealing em first? absolute nightmare to clean the grout off.. brick acid's about the only thing that'll touch it and it tends to turn the grout yellow..
i speak from experience..
:-[
 
on a serious note would you cart a cement mixer to the job or just dab the fooker?
 
Most tiles and grout are marketed as waterproof but nothing is 100% that is why any tiler worth his salt would tank first, bonding has no place in any wet area and skimming neither, their is a weight issue on what finish can take and with the modern trend of large format porcelane, limestone and other natural stones used in showers it is generaly not up to spec, you would not want a .600mm by .600mm natural stone tile falling on your child while they were having a shower.
Lucius.
 
thats the biggest load of shite of heard on here in ages ......then why in new buils that im involved with have i either a skimmed standard board
b dot and dabbed standard board
c all of the above with mr board
d tight coat of bonding on refurbs still site work ........why the fook are you going on about a tanking system its too stop serious penetrating damp not condensation issues and the odd splash of water thats what tiles are for ???
 
bigsegs said:
id say if you were gonna tile it floor to ceiling your best bet is s/c with waterproofer and devil float and leave it at that.. skimming it just means you gotta seal it again before you tile...
always try and make the next trades job easier... gets you a good name..
tilers are looking for flatness first and ease of application second..
bonding is ok but if water gets in anywhere it'l be knackered in no time..
m.r. boards are good but forget skimming em.. let the tiler sort that out..
loads of technical info in the building trades publications over the last couple of years r.e. tiles debonding...
theyve got this aqua panel stuff these days which you can immerse in water with no damage whatsoever but by god is it expensive stuff...


aqua panel is F*****g expensive and a last resrot if the spec says so dont offer it you wont get the job its that expensive
Click to expand...
 
thing is, thats not to say its right though?
standards have slipped in modern building..
all due to greedy developers milking the industry for whatever they can get and giving the entire industry a bad name in the process thereby biting the hand that fed em if you like..
 
building regs are tighter than ever though seggsy .......im not an expert just speaking of what i see done .....theres nothing wrong with dabbing mr boards ???
 
fair one on the m.r. boards, i think thats what they were developed for in the first place - to combat tile delamination... theyre only moisture reistant on the one side though.. any water gets in from the other side e.g. leaky pipes and theyll fall apart like standards..
bondings not really a good idea though mate, neithers standard board.. they WILL fall apart, usually within a year or two and anyone whos unlucky enough to have bought a brand new house in the last couple of years is prolly regretting it..
last big tiling job i did we used marine ply then sealed it with pva just to get the tiles to bond..
 
anyway all im saying is that it depends on the application as to what you use.. it just requires prior knowledge of what is going to happen afterwards..
bit like knowing where theyre gonna put uplighters on a big wall..
ive been that general builder faced with the decision of what to use and how much is it gonna cost.. ive been tiling since my early 20's and when you first start you do whatever youre told..
ive used ordinary boards in the last few years.. for a 'property developer' who didnt want to spend the extra..
ive even used bonding round showers.. same reason...
point is, its what is BEST to use..
believe me, im prolly the worlds worst for not holding to my principles when i need work, long as the customer is fully aware of what theyre gonna get its their decision...
always pays to have the right knowledge to hand cos if you get a customer who wants everything bang on, by the book, million year guarantees and isnt afraid to pay for quality (yes theres lots of em) then away you go.. and get a good name to boot..
just sayin.. :-[
 
i think you will find the last 10 years plus, i can remember being on site just scimming normal boards in bathrooms when finished, just a row of 3 courses around the bath and one above the sink, no one seem to give a s**t !!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top