| To
lay ceramic tile, you'll need some special tools and materials to
get the job done.
Unless you plan to lay ceramic tile in
several rooms, it will probably be cheaper for you to rent the tools
needed. We carry a full line of tile laying tools including tile
adhesive,
tile saws, grout sealer, tile
spacer, grout trowels, and a whole heck of a lot more. You can order
it by phone and have it shipped right to your door if you'd like by
calling us at 541-884-0114.
If you aren't sure what some of the tile
laying materials/tools below are, you can learn about the tools by
following the link above, or give us a call and talk to a sales
representative.
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- Prepare the surface that the ceramic
tile will be laid on. If there is an existing floor covering such
as carpet, vinyl, wood flooring, etc... rip the old flooring up so the
sub floor is exposed. Once the sub floor is exposed, clear the sub
floor of any debris or bumps. ** Any bumps will cause the tile to
be un level and possibly break.
- Now it is time to draw out your grid
that will ensure the tile will be laid in a square and orderly way.
This is a very important step. Imagine trying to color in a coloring boo
 k
with no lines... now transfer that over to laying tile.
This is where we do a "dry run" to see how your tile will fit in the
room. Get out your chalk line and snap a line that runs
perpendicular with the door to the room (like the picture above).
Get out your square to make sure the line is straight and perpendicular
to the door. It is always a good idea to lay tile starting from the main
door, so there is a clean tile pattern view from the door.
- Now, from the door on that chalk line
you created, begin start laying tile (without adhesive!) using spacers
between each tile.
- Sooner or later you'll reach the other
end of the room and have no more room left to lay
another tile. Once you can't lay another tile, take a 1" strip of
wood and lay it along the chalk line you made. Get out your screw
gun and screw the strip into the sub floor along this line. This
strip of wood will act as a guide from which you will lay tile
along so your lines are straight.
If you would rather not use the wood strip as a guide, be very careful
with following your chalk line. Now lay tiles next to this wood
strip going across the area in both directions on either side of the
wood strip (see picture).
NOTE: You are still not using any tile adhesive or
grout... you are dry laying the tile to set your tile laying grid.
- Ok. By now you should have ceramic
tiles going out both ways from the wood strip as far as they can go.
A well laid tile floor has even borders on both sides of the floor.
Based on
the remaining space on each side of the room, shift your tiles until
there is an equal space between the tile and the wall on both sides of
the room. Of course, this space will be filled with tile that you
will need to cut later on in the process.
Now, snap a second line based on this measurement. This line will be
perpendicular to your previous line. Where the two lines (the wood
strip and the new line) intersect, this will be your starting place for
laying the tile. You should now have a big + sign between
your wood strip and the second chalk line.
- Now, pick up the tile that you just "dry
laid" and set it aside.
- Grab your notched trowel and lay a 2
foot by 2 foot square of tile adhesive at your starting point
(where the second chalk line meets the wood strip line). Ask your
local rental store for the correct notched trowel size. There are
different notched trowel sizes based on the type and size of tile being
laid.
- Now, grab a piece of tile and spread a
light layer of tile adhesive on the tile with a notched trowel with fine
grooves (once again, give us a call to find out the exact type and size
of notched trowel to use on your tile). As you lay each tile down,
be sure to set it firmly in place by working it into the adhesive along
your guide lines.
Get out your spacers to make sure your ceramic tiles are spaced evenly.
Also, make sure your
tile faces are flush... and one tile is not higher or lower than the
others. If a tile is too high, you can use your rubber mallet to
set it in place more firmly and sink it down a bit. Use your level to
make sure the tiles are flush with each other.
Work your way up and down the rows across the room laying the tile.
Be sure to work in 2 foot by 2 foot areas at a time. Laying down
too much adhesive at a time could cause the adhesive to set too quickly
and harm your tile job.
Do the entire room just like this, leaving the spaces where a full tile
cannot be fit in open for now. Let your tile site overnight to
dry. DO NOT WALK ON THE TILE UNTIL 24 HOURS.
- Now it's time to use the
tile saw that you rented from us
(or your local rental outfit) to cut the perimeter tiles to fit.
The best way to cut the perimeter tiles to fit is to lay a tile over the
last full tile matching up all 4 corners (yes, directly on top of the
last full tile).
Get out one of your 1/2" spacers and place it against the wall to leave
room for the grout. Now, take another tile and lay it on top of
the tile you just set down, against the spacer with your edges (future
grout lines) directly lined up with the edges of the tile you are
measuring against (see the picture). So, at this point, there are
3 tile stacked on top of each other:
1. The tile already set with tile adhesive
2. The tile you just laid on the set tile... matching up all 4 corners
(loose, not glued down)
3. The tile butted up against the wall (with the spacer)
Look at the picture to the right.
Now, make a line with your pencil across the middle tile. This is
where you need to cut. I know it sounds kind of weird right now...
but just trust me. It is a cool little trick.
- Ok... NOW it's time to get out your tile
saw or glass cutters (depending on how thick the tile is). If you
are using glasscutters, place a square along the pencil line and score
the line ONCE with the glasscutter.
If you are using a tile saw that you rented, simply cut along the pencil
line. Very easy.
If using the glasscutters, place the tile along the edge of your
workbench and lightly snap off the cut piece like the picture to the
right.
Repeat these cutting steps with each perimeter tile until all tiles are
cut... and laid down with tile adhesive.
Let the tile adhesive dry. Once dry, take out the spacers.
- Once all of the tile has been laid and
the ceramic tile adhesive is set, it's time to put on the grout
 .
Get out your grout and mix it per the package instructions. Grab
your grout rubber/foam float and lay a blob of grout directly onto the
tile.
Put your grout float at a 45 degree angle and slide the float to get the
grout into all of the grooves and spaces. Don't be shy. It
may take a bit of elbow grease to make sure the grout is all of the way
in every groove.
- As you are going, let the grout dry
lightly (not completely dry). There should be a light
film left on the tile by now. Get out a damp (not wet) tile sponge
and lightly wipe the damp tile sponge over the tile to lift up the grout
film.
Be careful not to push too hard with your sponge, because at this point
in time the grout should still be rather pliable and not dry. Just
get the major grout film off of the tile surface for now.
Once the grout is completely dry, come back with your sponge or mop and
get up the excess grout residue.
- You are almost done. Now your tile
is set, the grout is dry, and you have removed the excess grout residue.
Now it is time to seal the grout.
Get a grout sealant. They are usually under $7 and have a nifty
applicator that is formed specifically to get in the grout grooves.
Follow the directions of the sealer and seal the grout lines to prevent
moisture getting into the grout lines and damaging them.
You are basically done now with laying a ceramic tile floor.
You can now enjoy your floor and maintain it with an occasional mopping.
After your ceramic tile is installed, you
may want to think about installing baseboard or molding. They really
set the room off and make it look great. Ask a Power Pac Rentals
sales associate for advice on how to install baseboard or molding on top
of your ceramic tile floor. We carry all of the tools necessary to
get the job done.
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Our
Instructions Above Are Pretty Darn Good... but Learning From
Video Is Much More Effective And Will Leave You With NO QUESTIONS...
Just a well laid tile floor...
Power Pac Rentals prides
itself on providing only the highest quality products to our
customers. If we felt that these Tile Made Easy step-by-step
videos were not the single best way for you to learn how to lay
tile, we wouldn't even think about telling you about them.
Check them out >> Step-by-Step
Tile Laying Made Easy Videos << CLICK
(remember, there's a
100% money back guarantee if you don't like the videos
for any reason at all! You can't lose!) |
Did you
find what you are looking for? If not, type in a new search term
below to search our site or the web!
If you still aren't totally confident in
your knowledge of laying ceramic tile, follow the link below. It
provides a thorough step by step guide with videos on how to lay ceramic
tile.
Video On Laying Ceramic Tile << CLICK TO
GET THE VIDEOS
*From from www.hgtv.com |
