Top Ten Tiling Tips

Many people consider themselves as DIY & home improvement experts. While some are, some
definitely aren’t. One particular section of home improvement, that many people have tried with
varying success rates is tiling. Whether its a small repair or a big project, it may seem simple in
your head, but it can soon become increasingly awkward and difficult, if you don’t have the right
tools or knowledge. After a while you may find yourself creating crazy mosaic tiles & styles, as a
way to piece together your wall and fill in the gaps – that’s not very professional is it.

Here are the top 10 tiling tips to make sure you achieve perfection every time.

Planning is key

Before you do anything, make sure you have a well-thought out detailed vision and plan, in your head
and written down. All great successes begin with a plan and tiling your room should be no different –
failing to plan is planning to fail.

The tools for the job

You can have all the best ideas in the world, but if you don’t have the correct tools, you’re going
to be in trouble. Like with any job, you’ll need certain tools to achieve your goal.
The basic tools you’ll need are:

Measure the space
you’re tiling accurately

Using your trusty tape measure, make sure you have accurately
measured the space you intend to tile. Just to be safe, get someone
else to do it as well. You don’t want that beautiful mosaic brick tiles
affect ruined, by poor measurements.

Double check tile sizes

During the tiling process, the double-checking of tile sizes is
often over-looked. People are happy to look at the tile sizes
once, but you should always check two or three times to be
absolutely sure. You don’t want to be purchasing bathroom
mosaic tiles or kitchen mosaic tiles and finding different
dimensions to what you were expecting.

USE SPACERS

Tile spacers are key to creating the perfect tiled look. Make sure they are placed deep enough beneath the surface of the tile, so they remain invisible after grouting. You could alternatively use them on the outside of the tile joints, but remember to remove them once the adhesive has set.

Lay out all the tiles before
installing them

This is an obvious one and is incredibly vital to the success of your room. By laying all the tiles out before you begin work, you can ensure that everything will fit. And if there is a problem, nothing has been stuck to the ground yet.

THE CUTS

The simplest way to measure the tile cuts is to turn the tile over
so the glazed face is facing towards the wall. Mark the back of the
tile with a china marker, at the point it crosses the previously
fixed tile. Bring the marks around to the front of the tile, which
allows room for tile spacing before cutting.

Let the tiles dry for 24 hours before grouting

Let you tiles dry and set for at least 24 hours before grouting.
This time period allows the tiles to settle and become firm in
their position. To ensure the tiles are not moved or disturbed,
make sure there is no foot traffic at all across them.

Lay your tile from ceiling down

Many shower tiling projects end up with cut tiles, but there is a
way to prevent that happening. Lay out your tile pattern from
the ceiling so that the mitered pieces start exactly on a grout
joint. By laying out the tile pattern from the ceiling height, it
makes it easier to get correct.

Always seal natural stone, like slate, before grouting

This final step is just as vital as the rest. You don’t want to spoil all your
hard work at the very end. If you have any natural stone tiles, like
slate, make sure they are sealed to ensure they become stain and
water-resistant. Once you’ve done that, you can grout the tiles.