Slate tiles & sealing

[Darren1978]

Evening tiling experts

I originally posted this in the Guest Forum as I messed up my registration, but thats all sorted now so I thought I would re-post it in the 'proper' tiling forum

My question is this, I am going to be laying some of the Topps Tiles 'Natural Slate Sheera Modular' tiles this Saturday, and I've got myself a bit confused!

I understand that the tiles will need sealing, and the guy in Topps sold me the Fila Colour Enhancer (2 in 1 protection & colour enahncer) and the Grout Residue solution. Could you guys tell me at what stage of laying I should apply these products?

I've read various things saying you should seal before laying, some say lay then seal before grouting and some say to seal/grout/seal!!

Your help and advice would be appreciated before I go mad

[Dave]

You need to make sure the slate is clean and dry before sealing..

Sort and size your slate into thicknesses,,,lay the tick first and grading out to the edges with the thinner stuff where there will be less foot traffic.

Wash the slate to get it clean and leave to dry...then seal before you grout....then get it clean again and seal again, the second seal will seal the grout as well.....

Make sure the slate is DRY before sealing, or the sealer will cloud..

I use lithofin slate seal...

[chris.tiling]

I did it slightly differently from this...as in I grouted first then washed tiles of fully to ensure no residue remaining, working in small sections at a time. When everything fully dry, I used the colour enhancer mentioned - looks good (see album on my user page), BUT you will have to make sure you clean well - grout can sit in the tile surface, so Dave's idea is best advice, particularly if you are not comfortableto using slate.

The Multi Sheera is fairly uniform in thickness, but the darker tiles (they tend to be the 600x400mm) can be slightly thicker. The pinker shade tiles can be more fragile.

Good luck and post the pics when finished

[Fred]

Do you want it to be enhanced in colour, then yes they sold you the correct sealer, if you want a natural colour, just stain stop. Agree with Dave, thicker tiles in main area, grading out to thinner tiles where foot traffic is less. Some of those tiles are mighty thin, so check them as I've had them fall apart they were so thin.

[Darren1978]

Thanks guys for your responses

I would never have thought about grading the tiles so that the thicker ones are in the most heavily trafficked areas...makes sense when you think about it!

If I go with Dave's method of working, would it be good to use the Fila Residue Remover to clean the tiles before laying? How long does slate take to dry out? Also, after sealing/grouting is it ok to clean the tiles again using the same residue remover solution before applying the sealer for the second time?

Fred - yes I do want the colour enhanced, so I guess I was sold the right product! I presume the Fila 2-in-1 protector/enhancer does actually seal the tile?

Sorry for all the questions, as you can tell I've not laid slate before I'll be sure to post up pics of the finished floor

PS Chris - good to see your a fellow Spurs fan, top man

[enduro]

Thanks guys for your responses

I would never have thought about grading the tiles so that the thicker ones are in the most heavily trafficked areas...makes sense when you think about it!

If I go with Dave's method of working, would it be good to use the Fila Residue Remover to clean the tiles before laying? How long does slate take to dry out? Also, after sealing/grouting is it ok to clean the tiles again using the same residue remover solution before applying the sealer for the second time?

Fred - yes I do want the colour enhanced, so I guess I was sold the right product! I presume the Fila 2-in-1 protector/enhancer does actually seal the tile?

Sorry for all the questions, as you can tell I've not laid slate before I'll be sure to post up pics of the finished floor

PS Chris - good to see your a fellow Spurs fan, top man

Yes i always use a residue remover when im fixing slate, i would leave the slate overnight before last coat of sealer, i used the Fila enhancer the other day on a slate job and i thought it was a good product and yes it does seal the slate, i use a paint pad to apply to get a nice even coat on the slate.

[Darren1978]

Ok then, heres what I'm planning to do:

>Thursday evening - clean slate tiles with residue remover (would only do if sealing before laying is beneficial)

>Friday afternoon - set out tiles/pattern, apply sealer/enhancer to tiles (could possibly skip this sealing stage? Are there any benefits to sealing before laying?)

>Saturday - lay tiles

>Sunday morning - clean tiles with residue remove
>Sunday evening - apply sealer (is this too soon? will the tiles have dried sufficiently after cleaning?)

>Monday - grout tiles & clean

>Tuesday - apply final coat of sealer

Does this sound like a good/realistic plan of work?