Browning as a substrate for tiles?

[mscg]

have been rendering up stone walls with BALS rapid set render -working out rather expensive! Is browning plaster a good replacement - its cheaper and builds up depth easilier. To be tiled to travertine afterwards - any views appreciated

[whitebeam]

No mate, The browning is,nt suitable. What about standard render 4-1 sand and cement would be a lot cheaper

[Sir Ramic]

No not suitable.

[Droopy]

No, Browning/Bonding coats are unsuitable for tiling onto.
They are too weak, and too porous. They need to be covered with a finish coat before tiling to.

But in your situation, again, I think this will be unsuitable. The weight limit for plastered walls is only 20kg per sqm. It is very likely your Trav' will exceed this.
The other problem you would have is the drying time. There is a 4 week drying period before plaster can be tiled to.

Whereas BAL Quickset Render can be tiled after only 2 hours.

[mscg]

thanks guys - yup 4+1 would be cheaper - whats the problem with browning then?

[grumpygrouter]

thanks guys - yup 4+1 would be cheaper - whats the problem with browning then?

Needs to have finishing plaster on top to make suitable for tiling.

[mscg]

beat me to it there james - thank you.

[pjtiler]

cant you dryline it ??

[mscg]

I could well do as there is a fair depth to make up in places - what board could you recommed given its got to hold 400 x 400 travertine? - I would have to dot an dab the boards

[Droopy]

beat me to it there james - thank you.

You're welcome, mate.



One more point, if you are going to go down the road of standard S&C render, you must leave it for 2 weeks minimum before tiling.

[mscg]

well thats that option gone then!

[Droopy]

I could well do as there is a fair depth to make up in places - what board could you recommed given its got to hold 400 x 400 travertine? - I would have to dot an dab the boards

If it is a Bathroom/Shower room, the dry areas should still be moisture resistant 12.5mm (Green board). This could also be used in the wet areas, but MUST be tanked. BAL WP1 would do the job.
Or the wet areas could be lined with a Tile backer board, such as Wedi.

If it is a Wetroom, the tanking should be extended to the "dry" areas to a height of 1m. And ofcourse the entire floor should be tanked too.

[Spirit]

Without knowing the surface and thickness you are trying to achieve, it is hard to give an exact answer, but assuming that the surface is solid and reasonably flat, I would dot & dab a tile backer board, with securing screws inserted the following day for extra security. If the surface is a poor, scratch up with sand/cement render first. The render will be dry enough to fix the boards after two days.