Newbie tiler :- What to buy from screwfix

Never really dont any tiling before and got to tile my kitchen floor and wall

I have read that stuff from B&Q/focus/wickes etc is not that great, i have got a screwfix down the road and they seem to have a good selection of grouts and adhesive.

The floor is plywood and walls are plaster.

Any advise on what products to buy from screwfix when i pop there over the weekend? Need both grout and adhesive

Where are you buying your tiles from? Some tile stores may do you a deal if you are getting it all at the same time , tiles, materials, tools etc etc

I think wall tiles will be topps tiles and poss the floor tiles as well. I live in the
Leicester area and do know any tiles warehouse around here

Is the topps tiles brand grout/adhesive any good?

Topps are can be expensive for the general public, there is a chance that a tiler in your area could lay the floor for you and save you money on materials and of course not require the purchase of tools. Have you had any quotes in or is this something that you'd like to try anyway. Have you a good idea of the preparations and meathods needed to lay a successful floor? Not trying to put you off doing it yourself but it's best to know the full ins and out before going ahead

Looking to do it myself so i can learn for the future.I have been reading guides on the net and have brought a electric tiles cutter to help.

Just reading on the forum that trade ppl get 40% off adhesive at topps, thats a good discount!

Hi jonny! be careful tiling is not a game,you need specified products , the adeshive to the concrete is not the same to the wood and the grout as well.:8

Like said the floor is plywood (It was vinyl).

I wont be doing in on my own, someone who has gone abit of tiling before is going to keep an eye but hay you have got to start/learn somewhere hence asking which products would be best for my situation. I understand that the wood floor is going to need a flexi adhesive

Originally Posted by jonnywells

Looking to do it myself so i can learn for the future.I have been reading guides on the net and have brought a electric tiles cutter to help.

Just reading on the forum that trade ppl get 40% off adhesive at topps, thats a good discount!

It is but we buy the stuff day in day out. Good luck with your project and make sure you research all aspects to ensure a good job

Advice on what tools you need would depend on the type of tile you are going to install

They are ceramic tiles, both the wall and the floor.

What does the current floor look like? is it standard floor boards?

The floor is currently 6mm plywood and its good nick (Under it i think its floorboard, its a fairly new house and has got raised a raised floor)

hi johhnny,,6mm ply is too thin to tile onto even if it is in good nick mate,if your fixing ceramics i would replace the 6mm ply with 12mm wpbp ply screwd to the floorboards,adhesive would be a flexible cement based adhesive,dont buy rapid set just ask the supplier for one with a good bucket life giving you time to tile at your own speed,,i would also advise to use the same adhesive for the walls,i would stay away from the tubbed ready mixed adhesives johnny as tempting as they may be for easiness you cant pack out dips and hollows in the walls with them to keep your tiles nice and straight but if you use the bagged powedered adhesive i mentioned then you can with this.

mapei keraquik is a good one and a nice pot life,tile giant sell it and a fair bit cheaper than anything out of topps mate also dont forget to ask for primer from the shop also for your plywood floor mate dont use pva

Originally Posted by jonnywells

The floor is currently 6mm plywood and its good nick (Under it i think its floorboard, its a fairly new house and has got raised a raised floor)

It's not an ideal substrate to tile on, the main thing to look out for is deflection in the floor (i.e. bounce), It's hard to say without seeing your floor construction and how well it has been built but in a lot of cases new houses (less than 25 years) are constructed with smaller timbers than in previous years and do sometimes have a lot more bounce to them. There are many ways to minimise deflection but sadly 6mm ply does nothing more than create a flat surface to tile on to, it doesn't strentghen the floor so to speak. Some pictures are always very handy when trying to advise anbody on what the best course of action would be, so if you have the time i'm sure the members on here will give their opinions

Screwfix is expensive for most stuff, and from seeing their adhesives in the book it doesn't seem too cheap there either. Probably get a better price on adhesive going to a local tile shop.

If I were you, id:

- Change ply foe 15mm or 6mm cement board

- Use a slow set powder with a flexible admixture

- Flexible grout or standard grout with admix

- For walls, id be priming with acrylic primer (not PVA) and using a slow setting cement based (bagged) adhesive. If the walls are in very good condition - i.e - PERFECTLY FLAT, as a DIYer maybe a bucket adhesive.

- Silicone corners


I wouldnt buy any adhesive from Screwfix. Go to a local tile shop and get all your materials. You could ask a local tiler to get all your materials and bung him a tenner as a thanks, will save quite a bit of doing this.

get a pro in mate ,saves time money and your get the right job done , then just say you did it any way ,lol joking