hello all. i'm looking for a bit of advise . i'm an amtico and karndean vinyl tile floor fitter by trade so tiling is no problem for me so i thought i would do my own bathroom walls. its aprox 16 square meters .

ive used a black 33cm x 33cm floor tile 8mm thick.

ive also used mapei mapestik adhesive for the job

is this adhesive good for the job ? ive pulled a tile off the wall today that i fixed 4 days ago and the mapei mapestik adhesive is still soft ?

how long does it actually take to go fully off ?

Hello and welcome...

Sorry but totally wrong adhesive used, should be a cement based one.. So not that easy then.. ( joke ).



Tubbed dispersion adhesive are really not good for large tiles as it dries by water evaporation into the substrate and through the joints and also if used thicker than 3mm then this will take ages to set.

Are these porcelain tiles ? You should have used a cement based adhesive for those tiles anyway.

there a ceramic tile not porcelain ... the shop i bought them from said to use the mapei mapestik....

The shop is wrong then.

Originally Posted by Amtico

there a ceramic tile not porcelain ... the shop i bought them from said to use the mapei mapestik....

Then i'm afraid they were wrong..

will it stick them tho ? they seem to be stuck very well. just worried when i took a tile off today that was done 4 days ago to find the adhesive still soft

What is the background ( substrate)..? and how deep did you use the adhesive.

hello amtico,as above unfortunatley youve been mis informed by the shop

cement based addy needed im afraid....one saving grace however is you can probably remove all the tiles..clean them and re do it

Originally Posted by Amtico

will it stick them tho ? they seem to be stuck very well. just worried when i took a tile off today that was done 4 days ago to find the adhesive still soft

It does have a 7 day fully cured time but its all wrong IMO for that size tile.

Originally Posted by Amtico

will it stick them tho ? they seem to be stuck very well. just worried when i took a tile off today that was done 4 days ago to find the adhesive still soft

if thay are stuck very well they should not be removable

Originally Posted by Dave

What is the background ( substrate)..? and how deep did you use the adhesive.

freshly skimmed plaster walls ..

Originally Posted by Amtico

freshly skimmed plaster walls ..

Did you prime and if so what with.?

dave also used a 6mm notched trowel

It will be soft. The dispersion adhesive you have used needs air to dry. The air will come from the joints around the tile. When the does start to dry how does the air get to the adhesive in the middle of the tile ???
Use cement based adhesive and the chemical reaction will assure you of a solid fully cured bond.

Originally Posted by Dave

Did you prime and if so what with.?

no i didnt prime although i dont know how i didnt think of that because every job i do with amtico has to be primed... starting to kcik myself now

Originally Posted by Amtico

freshly skimmed plaster walls ..

How freshly skimmed ???

no i didnt prime the walls dave...

Best not to prime with tubbed adhesive as it relies on the open capillaries of the skim to hold..( crystallizing).. leave it a few more days and if not set then you will have to bite the bullet and remove.. but that is after going back to the tile shop and stroking the salesman..

Originally Posted by Sir Ramic

How freshly skimmed ???

last tuesday they were skimmed. i started tiling friday when the walls were fully dry

Originally Posted by Dave

Best not to prime with tubbed adhesive as it relies on the open capillaries of the skim to hold..( crystallizing).. leave it a few more days and if not set then you will have to bite the bullet and remove.. but that is after going back to the tile shop and stroking the salesman..

so i would be right in thinking dont grout for 7 days to allow air to get in through the joints ??

think i will be taking a trip back to TILEGIANT in the morning and asking them to explain themselfs. a phone call to head office as well ..

Originally Posted by Amtico

so i would be right in thinking dont grout for 7 days to allow air to get in through the joints ??

Yes and also allows it to dry back into substrate.

Originally Posted by Amtico

think i will be taking a trip back to TILEGIANT in the morning and asking them to explain themselfs. a phone call to head office as well ..

Well i would.. all feedback is welcome to help retail staff learn.