Help before wokmen arrive

[sparty29]

Hi, I am getting my bathroom ripped out and replaced. The guys have left tiles on one of the walls at the bath and have fitted the bath. Now this wall has to get new tiles on it which they know about so I am thinking that they are going to tile over the old tiles.

This wall has had a lot of water damage and I am going to request that the old tiles are taken off.

Is there a way they can protect the bath so they don't have to remove it?

Am I being unreasonable in asking them to remove the old tiles?

[wacker]

Hi sparty
if the wall has had water damage then i would remove the tiles and check to see what damage has been done to the wall. If its plaster board it could well need replacing. You can replace with tile cement boards that dont rot when they come in contact with water. Tanking out is another option (all baths/shower areas should be tanked)
as for protecting the bath, i use a section of board that is cut to the shape of a standard bath and has sponge on the under side to protect the bath when ripping tiles off.
What type of tiles are you fixing???
And no you are not being unreasonable. Its your house and workman should respect it!!!

[mikethetile]

no your not, remember your the client

if its a brand new bath its not unreasonable to ask for it to be removed and then refitted after tiling

you state water damage to that wall, is it a plasterboard wall and if so are they replacing the board

[sparty29]

just told the guy to remove the tiles. He says the plasterboard is fine and that the old tiles are the best surface for new tiles. Is he correct or talking rubbish?

[wacker]

YOU CAN TILE ON TILES BUT I WOULD NEVER RECOMEND IT. YOU NEED TO THINK ABOUT THE WEIGHT OF THE OLD TILES, PLUS ADDY AND GROUT, THEN THE NEW TILES, PLUS ADDY AND GROUT.
ALSO ARE THE EXISTING TILES SECURLY FIXED TO THE WALL???
AS FOR THE PLASTERBOARD BEING FINE, IF IT HAS HAD WATER DAMAGE THEN I WOULD GO DOWN THE ROAD OF RIPPING IT OUT AND REPLACING IT, TO BE ON THE SAFE SIDE. AS FOR TILING ON TILES ITS A NIGHTMARE FOR THE TILER. DID IT ONCE A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO FOR A CLIENT WHO DID NOT WANT THE MESS OR THE BILL FOR RIPPING THEM DOWN. TOOK TWICE AS LONG AND WAS A PAIN FROM START TO FINISH

[chris.tiling]

He is talking rubbish - get him to remove them and repair the wall beneath if it is damaged. How can he say the wall is fine if he hasnt looked (and you know there has been water damage in the past.)

chances are you could well go over the weight limit guidelines for the wall (32kg/m2 for bare plasterboard walls and 20kg/m2 for skimmed p/board) by tiling over the tiles. Would your workman want to be sitting in the bath when the tiles fall off?

[Martyn Leeds]

how does the tiler know that the plasterboard is fine if the tiles are still on?

[Rad2474]

how does the tiler know that the plasterboard is fine if the tiles are still on?

Totally agree,pay him what you owe him and tell him to leave he's obviously not bothered about cutting corners and about your property. You might well end up with a bodge job which will cost you more in the long run. Post where your from and get someone from this forum to look at the job for you.

[grumpygrouter]

Got to agree with the other guys here. Water damaged plasterboard is damaged, it doesn't "heal" itself!! it needs to be replaced where necessary. Also always best to remove old tiles first unless you absolutely 100% SURE that the substrate is fine.

Tell them to stop cutting corners and do it properly.

[Eddie]

Did they remove tiles from other walls around your bath, and leave this one wall?

[gaz man]

your the customer tell them what u want done.if they persist on trying to cut corners and trying to flannel you just tell them to pack their tools and go

[sparty29]

Did they remove tiles from other walls around your bath, and leave this one wall?

They removed the tiles from the other 2 walls but had left one wall.

They have now removed the tiles from this wall so hopefully it will be okay from now on.

He has said that all the plasterboard is okay.

When he puts down our floor tiles, should he use something such as plasterboard before laying them?

[wacker]

Depends on what the sub floor is made of. If its wood it needs to be boarded out with 18mm mg ply or 6mm hardie board. Hardie is thinner and easier to cut than ply but its up to the workman. What ever happens you must have the floor boarded to get the right results.

[grumpygrouter]

What you use on the floor depends how rigid the floor is. If there is bounce in the floor then you should really stabilise it with 18mm ply first. If it is quite solid then 6mm hardie would be the way to go IMO. needs to be glued and screwed though.

[davy_G]

Sparty, im not liking the sound of this guys prep work one bit!
Never tile over tile on a plasterboard wall, especially one that has had water damage and is over a bath. Imagine a kid in the bath if it comes crashing down. Ask him if there is potential for that given the weight of the two sets of tiles plus or minus any plaster. Nightmare.
The floor will need strengthened as per wacker if its a wooden floor.

Good luck
Dave

[lucius]

This bloke dont sound real to me, okay he is a builder but is he going to use a pro to do the tiling or do it himself, [comment removed]?
Lucius

[cornish_crofter]

Settle up with him for the work done the GET RID OF HIM!

He will riun your house if left to his own devices.

Then post the job on here, people will get back to you. The tilers here are all in general agreement with the right approaches.

If you get someone from here who needs to ask the way from time to time, he will do so here and will be well guided.

[Colour Republic]

Are you able to post pictures of the work done so far Sparty? The method he has chosen isn't the best but some other factors need to be taken into account first.

Did he give you a detailed quote (as all good builders should) for the works you require or just an overall figure? If so did it mention he would tile over tile on this wall? Did you give him a budget when you asked him to quote and told him you couldn't go over it? Have other problems arisen which have cost extra?

If you are working to a strict budget it may mean your builder will have to cut back on the correct prep or the quality of materials to keep the job within your budget, now in all circumstances the builder should discuss this with you as the job progresses and not make any major decisions without your input and say so (and this is a major decision). If none of the above apply, then I’m afraid your builder may very well be taking a short cut so that his profit margin increases and that just isn't on

[sarah mills]

Just read this thread because we hare having our bathroom ripped out and remodelled. I thought it might be useful and was very impressed by the concern shown and advice offered by everyone. I will be making notes and have questions to ask our builder based on recommendations here
Thanks

Hope everything went ok in your bathroom
xxxsarah