Do I need to back-butter my tiles? - Tile Advice

[essexsi]

Hi all,

I have been reading a great deal on this website as I have a DIY job. I am fitting 600x300 ceramic tiles to the walls and 300x300 ceramic to the floor in a walk in shower that will be tanked.

I was all set, thanks to advice on here , to use a 10mm square notched trowel for the adhesive.

However, I have been reading other threads which has confused me. The advice is that I may need to back butter the tiles and also use a round notched trowel. This is because of the tile size and that its being fixed in a wet environment.

I think it is because I have been reading too much I have info overload!!

Is back buttering where you apply adhesive to the wall/floor, apply adhesive to the tile, then fix the tile? Do I need to do it to either my wall or floor tiles? Still a bit confused round or square notch?

Thanks for any help. Cheers Si

 

[Perry]

all floors should be if you are not using a solid bed trowel its easy ete

 

[beanz]

all floors should be if you are not using a solid bed trowel its easy ete

Why? I'm just curious, as i've never seen anyone do this, except for on light stone where they are worried about the ribs bleeding through!?!

 

[White Room]

I tend to do it because of the profile on the back of the tile

 

[Perry]

all floors should be solid bed thats why i use PTB if you have scissor lifts on them all day you need to

 

[doug boardley]

back buttering is giving the tiles a ribbed bed of adhesive, back skimming is giving the back of the tile an un-ribbed skim of adhesive, these methods are to be used with normal spreading of your adhesive ie on your wall/floor. I use a round notch trowel on floors and areas that are subject to a lot of water, this is a solid bed technique. A square notched trowel is used in areas that aren't subject to drenching.
Hope this clears things a bit

 

[White Room]

Glad your on the ball Doug, back skimming is what I meant to fill the profiles

 

[Perry]

i allways use a 13mm square trowel

 

[Mozza]

Pete, do you mean you use a 13mm square for floors? What would you use if your after 100% cover on walls?

 

[225driver]

i was always told to back skim the floor tiles as you need 100% coverage back skimming fills any voids on the rear of the tile then trowel floor as normal should get 100% coverage. This is what i do please enlighten me if im wrong

Andy

 

[doug boardley]

you've been told right 225driver

 

[225driver]

Cheers Doug thats reassuring

 

[beanz]

I honestly can't see why you would need to back-skim!?! Surely if you are floating the tile into the addy it'll go into the voids too? I know when i've layed a tile, then pulled it up, the whole tile had adhesive on; it doesn't just sit on the ridges...

 

[doug boardley]

as whitebeam mentioned beanz, it's when the biscuit is profiled, it fills out the profiles and makes sure you get total contact

 

[essexsi]

Thanks for all your input.

As its a shower room the floor will be getting wet regularly, so from your info I will need a solid bed under the 300x300 tiles going on the floor. I will get a solid bed trowel.

Now with the 600x300 wall tiles I take it I will be ok with a 10mm square notch trowel with adhesive only on the wall, no back buttering on the tile. Correct? If it makes any difference there is a sort of profiling of small squares on the back of the tile. What I am trying to say is that its not smooth!

Thanks very much for your help. Si