Travertine Tile Help!!!!

[cheeseboy7]

Hello, i am new to this forum and would really appreciate your help on the following questions. I apologise if these questions have already been asked before.

My girlfriend has just bought some Travertine tiles from B&Q (600mm x 400mm) for our bathroom and i have to fit them. However i need help on the following things:

1. I didn't realise that these tiles had to be sealed. Please advise what sealant i need and when i apply it (ie after/before grouting).

2. What tools do i need to use to cut tiles. They are 10mm thick. I only need to cut straight edges.

3. What is the best/strongest adveshive that i should use? They are very heavy and i'm worried they won't hold on the walls.

4. What does it mean by them being honed and filled? I haven't got a clue if this is something i need to additionally do.

Any others tips/advice would be appreciated.

I really appreciate you help in answering these questions.

Thanks.

[Dave]

welcome to forums cheeseboy.
1. i use lithofin stain stop to seal this type of tile 2 coats before grouting and 1 after.

2. you wil need to use a wet cutter only to cut them.

3. you will need to use a single part flexible powder adhesive for theses tiles ( preferably white just to make sure of no staining of tile ). and use a flexible grout.

4.travertine when first mined is full of holes and imperfections , so honed and filled is when the holes and imperfections are filled with a mixture of travertine dust and resin binded together to make a paste which is then used as the filler then the travertine is polished to a smooth textured surface and then cut into its required sizes. hence the phraise honed and filled. lol.

as you are using a powdered adhesive you will need to prime the walls first , use bal bond sbr or bal apd.
and finaly good luck and post some pics dave.......

[Varley]

You said that these tiles are going on the wall, if so has the wall been plastered, if it has you will need to dot & dab plasterboard onto it as these tiles may be too heavy and just pull the plaster off the walls.

plaster can take weight up to 20kg psm
plasterboard can support weight up to 32kg psm

Something else to think about

[guy1976]

i would seal twice before fitting these tiles mate just to be on the safe side as i assume you have not done a lot of tiling before then seal again after grouting but make sure the tiles are spotlessly clean and free from dust

[altile]

Guy, can I jump in and ask an additional question on this? As you say, make sure the tiles are clean before applying the lithofin. What is the best way to clean them prior to 1st sealing coat (and later ones for that matter)? I'm laying travertine floor tiles, rather than wall..
Tx, mate.

[Varley]

Before they have been layed the tiles should really only need dusting down with a dry clth/towel, but if they are a bit dirty then just clean them with sponge and water before first seal.

[guy1976]

do as varley says but dont soak them in water to clean them as they will absorb the water just use a damp sponge

[altile]

Cheers guys, appreciated. They are super-delicate, I picked up a 200x400 cut tile longways and it broke in my hand..... I assume you have to back-butter and make sure adhesive very well spread or they'll crack easy? I'm also tiling under range cooker and large free-standing fridge-freezer, so any advice on avoiding cracks?
Tx help again.

[Dave]

Originally Posted by altile

Cheers guys, appreciated. They are super-delicate, I picked up a 200x400 cut tile longways and it broke in my hand..... I assume you have to back-butter and make sure adhesive very well spread or they'll crack easy? I'm also tiling under range cooker and large free-standing fridge-freezer, so any advice on avoiding cracks?
Tx help again.

use a solid bed trowel and back butter tiles to achieve a solid for your tiles and you will have no bother with any appliances, would be wise to use white spf adhesive and clean any excess of as you go.. check for any fracture lines in tiles before fixing and try and use them for cuts etc.. dave...

[vince]

Got some 200 X 200 travatine to put on a bathroom wall can i use bal white star or will this not be suitable?

Vince.

[Dave]

better to use white spf adhesive as this is still quite heavy tile and spf will hold better...

Originally Posted by Varley

You said that these tiles are going on the wall, if so has the wall been plastered, if it has you will need to dot & dab plasterboard onto it as these tiles may be too heavy and just pull the plaster off the walls.

plaster can take weight up to 20kg psm
plasterboard can support weight up to 32kg psm

Something else to think about

WTF, are you trying to kill people? You are right in saying that plaster can take 20kg psm. However, if you dot and dab plasterboard onto it the original plaster then has to take the weight of the plasterboard as well as the tiles. The plasterboard will take the weight of the tiles but the whole lot will fall off the plaster.

Hopefully this hasn't been done. If it's not too late then you need to strip the plaster off the wall and dot and dab plasterboard to the breeze block or mechanically fix some plasterboard.