travertine sealer for bathroom

**sparkybaz** · 13-12-2008

ive just had my bathroom done in travertine and the tiler has made an absolute balls of it to say the least.he used ltp ironwax to seal the tiles but when ive read the bottle it says it should not be used in wet areas's,is this right !.
also is there and form of waterproofer that can be used in the shower area or is the ltp ironwax good enough.
all advise appreciated

**whitebeam** · 13-12-2008

The ltp Ironwax, It says on there site not to be used in wet areas dos'nt say why though.
Check this site LTP- online floor treatment cleaners sealers

**enduro** · 13-12-2008

You will need to remove the ltp ironwax with something like Aqua Mix sealant & coating remover, i take it the shower area had a waterproofing tanking kit applied before the tiles were fixed? I would re seal these with Aqua mix ultra-solv. As travertine is natural stone it will be a lot more porous than ceramic or porcelain, so if the preparation wasn't carried properly ie tanking you could have problems in the future. I would recommend every six months a very good clean and re seal. Every time you shower wipe the travertine to remove excess water, and leave the natural stone to dry out naturally.

**david campbell** · 13-12-2008

never used it but bal do a travertine sealer,was told in topps 2night that it was only a fiver compared to there own brand which was £20(seems strange but prob worth a look)

**sparkybaz** · 13-12-2008

the whole bathroom was replastered then just tiled on the new surface,then 2 coates of ltp ironwax.the guy who did it says 90% of his tiling work is travertine so i presumed he new what he was doing

**david campbell** · 13-12-2008

I would say you would be lucky if 10% of any tilers work wpold be travertine unless he works for a company that only deals in it

**enduro** · 13-12-2008

[quote=sparkybaz;148800]the whole bathroom was replastered then just tiled on the new surface,then 2 coates of ltp ironwax.the guy who did it says 90% of his tiling work is travertine so i presumed he new what he was doing.
Have you paid him?

**whitebeam** · 13-12-2008

They would'nt be using Ironwax either

**sparkybaz** · 13-12-2008

yes 24 sq m i plastered the room 2 guys 5 days to tile it £800
please tell me ive made a mistake.
i thought the idea of the sealer is to stop anything soaking through the tiles

**whitebeam** · 13-12-2008

The sealer is there to protect the stone but if the wrong sealer is used then it dos'nt give the protection as it should. As it says on the tin Please read instructions

**atec** · 13-12-2008

not wanting to teach u to suck eggs, did u give the plaster time to dry out properly. the tiler should have advised u on this but from what im reading he probably dident. The plaster should have been tanked around shower area and the travertine sealed with a proper sealer, I would get him back. depending on how often u have used the shower Damage could already be done to the substrate.

**sparkybaz** · 13-12-2008

i plastered the room myself then left 7 days to dry .travertine then fitted,then grouted,then cleaned with ltp acidic cleaner to remove any adhesive or excess grout.then left 12 hours then first coat of ironwax then 12 hours later second coat of ironwax.
dont get me wrong the job looks great and the tile finish is good but want to make sure the ironwax will stop 100% of water penetration through the tiles

**atec** · 13-12-2008

personly i would have left the plaster to dry for 4 weeks,

**whitebeam** · 13-12-2008

Was the plaster a skim coat a float and set

**enduro** · 13-12-2008

Its the area in the shower what will be your main concern, as you have had it done and it looks fine, you have three choices 1.Rip out and do it properly 2. Do what i said in my earlier post, strip and re seal. 3 The most important dont tell the wife....

**sparkybaz** · 13-12-2008

the bathroom was given a coat of bonding then skimmed to give added strength due to tile weight.

since i bought the tiles,sealer and adhesive all from the same tile shop i'll go back and kick up a fuss and demand they stand the cost of the strip and reseal.

finally what is the best gear to use to strip and reseal

cheers all

**enduro** · 14-12-2008

Originally Posted by sparkybaz

the bathroom was given a coat of bonding then skimmed to give added strength due to tile weight.

since i bought the tiles,sealer and adhesive all from the same tile shop i'll go back and kick up a fuss and demand they stand the cost of the strip and reseal.

finally what is the best gear to use to strip and reseal

cheers all

Aqua mix products are the best in my opinion, google Aqua mix and yo will find a supplier. Good luck.

Sully · 14-12-2008

Originally Posted by sparkybaz

the bathroom was given a coat of bonding then skimmed to give added strength due to tile weight.

since i bought the tiles,sealer and adhesive all from the same tile shop i'll go back and kick up a fuss and demand they stand the cost of the strip and reseal.

finally what is the best gear to use to strip and reseal

cheers all

You won't want to hear this but the gentleman who fixed travertine to this substrate was not a 'tiler'. You've got more serious issues than just the sealing problem.

1) Without knowing the size of this travetine, it's still likely that it exceeded the safe weights for plaster - 20kg per sq/m. The room should have been boarded out.
2) Even if you meet the safe weight limits - the plaster should have been allowed 4 weeks to dry, especially in this weather.

Where does this leave you? With a hazerdous situation whereby the weight of the tiles & adhesive could pull the skim from the walls resulting in an avalanche of tiles. Sounds dramatic - but that's where you may well be.

You need to address this issue with the fixer in the first instance, although I wouldn't be inclined to trust him to put it right. Legally, you do need to offer him the chance to rectify. Sorry, you may not want to hear this but these are the facts based on info provided.

Andrew

**Dave** · 14-12-2008

Hi BAZ...

Andrew is right here.....Your tiler should know about weight limits...What substrates will take what weights etc....

We hope you installation will be ok....as for the sealer...it seems to be a surface sealer so should remove ok...

Use Lithofin wexa to remove it....leave to thoroughly dry and then seal with Lithofin stainstop....this is an impregnator and won't need any further coats...

Follow the directions on the tin.....

Good luck..

doug boardley · 14-12-2008

Baz, when you say room was bonded and skimmed, do you mean gypsum base coat bonding, or an acrylic primer bonding on plasterboards?

**sparkybaz** · 14-12-2008

the walls are dot and dab plasterboards,i removed the old tiles but due to the surface being too rough i first applied a gypsum bonding base coat"glue particles"then applied a finish coat over that to give added strength,rather than just a finish coat over the old rough boards.the tiler then used a sealer to seal the bare plaster to stop the adhesive drying out too fast.
as i say it looks ok and all feels solid it was just the aspect of making sure the tiles are 100% waterproof and nothing is going to penetrate the tiles or grout and attack the wall causing future problems