Bathroom floor best practice

[kaharrison9]

Evening All
I am doing my first bathroom floor on Wednesday and would just like to clear a few things up in my mind before.
I am putting down first Hardie backer board then tiling on top.
I keep the Hardie board 3mm from the skirts but do i cut the tiles to have a 3mm gap as well or do i tile right up to the skirts?
If i butt the tile up to the skirts do i push grout into any fine gaps or perhaps use a fine line of silicone?
Also with the floor been raised i don't think the bath panel will fit if i tile under where the panel sits.
Is the best practise then to hold the h/backer back 3 mm from the panel and the tile as well to get silicone between the tile and panel?
Cheers for any advice
Kev

[brian c]

leave a small gap at skirtings to allow wood to expand and contract and yes silicone.

Tile under the bath and sit the bath panel on top as this gives a better finish. Fix some wood to the floor where bath panel will sit so you can glue or screw to it and finally you can cut the base of the panel with a saw,stanley etc no probs.

oh and send some pics as Dave likes them.

[kaharrison9]

Great advice Brian
One final question.
When i put the baton on top of the tile to screw the panel to.
Will silicone between the baton and tile work or do i need to screw the baton down?
Cheers
Kev

[brian c]

i prefer to put a screw in with a white screw cap cover,but yes you can silicone to it but let it set so the silicone sticks.Other tilers might do it differently,some might give advice soon m8...all the best.

[doug boardley]

screw down through bath panel batten and tiles into existing floor K, or if you know where bath panel is coming to why not screw a batten into floor before tiling and then tile up to the batten?

[brian c]

i use this method also Doug depending on the curveture of panel i.e p -shaped or rounded but as you say m8 this can also be done and is the easiest way for normal straight bath panels.

[kaharrison9]

Many thanks for your quick responses
Kev

[Dave]

Good advice lads..........Kev. will you put some pics in an album in your profile.....please...

[Wylie]

I would prefer to remove the skirting,tile up to the wall and leaving room for expansion much neater finnish,skirtsings can be fixed later
some prefer tiled wall to wall below the bath,batons can be fixed later to take tha bath panels

[kaharrison9]

Will do Dave.
The few jobs i've done at the moment i've been quite nervous,double checking and concentrating on doing such a text book job i've forgot to take it with us.
Kev