Hi there lads and ladies , Now I could be on for an absolute slaughtering here but having read a few forums and posts am still unsure about this . Have been re-jigging the bathroom , all done bar the bath panel. I have built a frame around the bath to support the panel which I want to tile onto. The frame is secured to the walls at both ends and floor , point being it is very secure. Here comes the "are you for real?" question. Can I use MDF (oh no did he say MDF?) as the bath panel to which I am going to tile onto? Was going to score the panel (so the adhesive would have something to bite on ) and then use a mix of PVA to cover (before tiling of course). Now I'm not tight (yea right) just have a load of this MDF around and it would be handy to use it , however I don't want to have to get the kids to wear safety shoes every time they use the bathroom in case a tile is liable to fall off . If its possible then grand , if I need to go off and get something else then thats grand too , but would be very grateful for your suggestions and time. Thanks in advance

MDF is naff for tiling on to ducatikid... a load of pro tilers will be along in a moment to tell you why

Forget PVA! It has no place in the tiling industry any longer. You need to find your nearest Tile Giant store, pop in and ask for an acrylic primer (probably Mapei). This will do the job a million times better than PVA and a pro tiler will be along shortly to tell you why about that too

You don't mention what size tiles you're fixing or what adhesive you're using to fix them with

to the best forum in the world by the way

1st question mdf in bathroom under bath is a no no ( try and use cement sheet)
2nd question PVA thats a big NO use an acrylic primer (pva and tiling do not mix)


as GRR has already stated (beat me again )

hi there Grr and Jay thanks for your response's. the tiles are 400mm x 250mm ceramic. The adhesive is evostick wall adhesive , showerproof , ready mixed , antifungul , turbocharged , blah blah blah . PVA has been chucked back in the garage already. and will have to wait for the cavalry to arrive to get some cement board (be tricky enough getting it on the bike!) the MDF will also go back into the garage for another project some day. Once again cheers

ps how do I thank you both (on here)

pss just opened my eyes and seen the thanks box!

hi ducatikid,

try the Thanks button it's on the right hand side of each post.

just out of interest, did you re-tile your bathroom walls too?

Yea I literally took the bathroom suite out and moved bath , sink and toilet to new locations. Tiled floor and wall (not my first tiling experience but am certainly no expert) all looks great just the finishing touches really left. I njust didn't want the job spoiled at the last hurdle , so thats why i came to you guys for expert advice . not just manufacturing advice if you get me , which usually involves answers covering their behinds.

use cement boards and personally for a tile that size id be using mapei kerraquick or mapeker, if you order online tile giant do deliver i believe

welcome to the forums

andy

did you use the evostick tubbed adhesive for the walls and floor too?

if you can't get hold of a piece of cement board, 15mm+ ply will do the job but it's thicker than a normal 6mm cement board so may not fit the way you planned.

Thanks Andy will certainly take those names with me when going to the shops!

Grr , I used powdered floor cement (bostik possibly) for the floor strangely enough! And used pro-grip again bostik I think for the walls. This was ready mixed also. I hope this was ok and not a ? Love these smilies!

Hope I don't turn this into a circus but its great.

On a serious note thanks to all.

Originally Posted by ducatikid

Thanks Andy will certainly take those names with me when going to the shops!

Grr , I used powdered floor cement (bostik possibly) for the floor strangely enough! And used pro-grip again bostik I think for the walls. This was ready mixed also. I hope this was ok and not a ? Love these smilies!

Hope I don't turn this into a circus but its great.

On a serious note thanks to all.

the reason I asked about the adhesive you used was because I feel that you may be pushing the boundaries with 400x250 tiles and tubbed adhesive.

I don't wish to alarm you, but considering you have already mentioned your kids, are you absolutely sure that the tiles you have fitted to the walls are fully stuck? the reason I ask is because tubbed adhesive requires air flow to set. If the adhesive was not fully cured before you grouted, you may still have damp adhesive behind the tiles that cannot dry out easily. and tiles of that size may be at the weight limit that the tubbed adhesive can take.

what kind of tiles have you used? simple ceramics? porcelain? travertine or other stone?

The tiles are ceramic and there was about 3 days between tiles going on the wall and the grout being applied. Should that be long enough for the adhesive to set? As I said earlier am no expert on this and basically went into the tile shop (won't name) and explained what I was doing and where. These were the materials provided to me , which I accepted with good faith. Were these adhesives not good enough for the job?

Originally Posted by ducatikid

The tiles are ceramic and there was about 3 days between tiles going on the wall and the grout being applied. Should that be long enough for the adhesive to set? As I said earlier am no expert on this and basically went into the tile shop (won't name) and explained what I was doing and where. These were the materials provided to me , which I accepted with good faith. Were these adhesives not good enough for the job?

we generally recommend on here that tubbed adhesives are avoided if tiling on to bathroom walls. powdered adhesives (bagged) that you have to mix yourself are much better to use as these set by chemical reaction so the time it says on the bag is the time it takes to set. tubbed adhesives are a bit like a guessing game.

you'll only know if the tubbed adhesive wasn't good enough for the job if you can easily pull the tiles from the wall.

advice from tile shops varies quite considerably however the advice you get here on the forum is impartial advice from professional tilers who use the best products in their work. I can't imagine many of the tilers on here will have heard of, let alone used, Bostick tubbed adhesives.

You're in the right place now though I came here when contemplating my first diy tiling job in 2008 and the guys and girls are only too happy to share their knowledge and help you along the way (as best they can over the internet )

Liz

Your tiling Knowledge is getting better and better Liz, you should get a van and tools and go it alone, you would make lots of money.

evo stick no no no . may as well use cottage cheese