Recommendation New Tilers Support - 2 - Page 3 - TilersForums.co.uk | Tile Forums

**Dave** · 01-01-2008

Depending on the sealer make..some say 1 coat some say more....generally its a coat before and then after grouting...this will seal the grout as well....
Lithofin stainstop is a good one to use....if you can get hold of it...make sure what ever sealer you use is suitable for honed surfaces....

**whitebeam** · 01-01-2008

Sorry Dave, could you tell me what a honed surface is, is it polished or somethink to do with the edge's. I know what a honed blade is for a chippys' plane but never heard it for a tile, Thanks

**Dave** · 01-01-2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by whitebeam

Sorry Dave, could you tell me what a honed surface is, is it polished or somethink to do with the edge's. I know what a honed blade is for a chippys' plane but never heard it for a tile, Thanks

It is just that ...factory finishing the stone to a smooth finish. be it honed to a matt finish or honed and polished to a gloss finish....

It is the texture of the tiles surface...Smooth..

dalerichardson · 02-01-2008

HI, I'm new to the Tilers Forum and live in the States and I have a question, how can I keep my grout high in the joints, I seem to remove more than I want when I am wiping my tiles clean? Thanks Dale

**Dave** · 02-01-2008

Hi dale..welcome mate....
Mix the grout up to a good texture..don't mix it too wet..grout then leave to set for a while....the trick is when washing off is to apply light pressure so as not to remove it from the joints....we use washboys and these cleaning tools leave a very neat finish....here is a pic of a tilers washboy....supplied by our forums tool sponsors...

wash the tiles once and leave the grout to set longer again before final clean up....hope this helps dale..good luck...

dalerichardson · 02-01-2008

Thanks, I haven't seen one of these States side, but it seems everyone over here uses a sponge. And am I ever tired of wringing out sponges, looks like this thing might be easier. I have been tiling only small jobs since 1995 when I started in the remodeling busness working by my self. Now I am retired and am building a house for myself. Dale

**Dave** · 02-01-2008

washboys are a great assett for floor tiling dale..i never used to want one until i tried it and would'nt be without it now....even if you arn't using a washboy it's the same process..just lightly wash off with a sponge..but not too early...

jaime w · 23-01-2008

Hi all im in leeds just finished my tiling course is they much work out there for tiling whats the average to charge for a b room or a kitching splash back ect thanks.

darrenba · 27-01-2008

Hi guys, another newbie here.

I'm in the process of adding a shower room under my stairs and was wondering if there are any tips for tiling the underside of the staircase. Is there any particular adhesive I should use to stop the tiles from falling off as I'm putting them up? Or should I be supporting them in some way?
Should I also replace the current plasterboard with aquapanel or is there something I can waterproof the plasterboard with?

Brindle · 01-02-2008

Hi folks.
A bit of a query here again. I've searched for the answer but not found it exactly.
I am pricing a large ensuite, walls and floors. 21m ceramic walls, 8m porc or ceramic floor - cust yet to decide.
The substrate is very solid chipboard (recent new build), and runs through at the same level into the bedroom. Am I ok to tile the floor using Bal flexible providing I acrylic prime first.
I have a feeling the customer won't agree to adding another £200 for me to install tile backer board.
Cheers

Bob

dalerichardson · 02-02-2008

Hello, been grout with grout that is on the dark side and when it dries some of the grout lines have a light film on them and it doesn't change them when they are sealed, when the sealer dries it comes back and looks the same as it did before, what going on?

**Dave** · 02-02-2008

This sounds like you have an efflorescence problem...try using lithofin cement away it should help.....heres a description of what it is....

Efflorescence. A salt deposit visible on the grout or on the tile edge also becomes an unsatisfactory situation. What is efflorescence? Efflorescence results from a soluble salt present in your mortar setting bed, in your cementitous grout and in concrete slabs. It remains fairly inert unless moisture is present, in which case the salt moves to the surface where it dries into a white, crumbly powder.

Where does the water come from? It may be available in the concrete substrate or in the cement mortar (where too much mixing water has been used). The water may come from the cementitous grout itself, particularly if excess mixing water was used - a situation which also results in voids in the grout that allow easy passage of water from the concrete or mortar mix. Elimination of efflorescence is achieved by some of the following methods. When installing over an on-grade slab, a vapor retarder should be in place beneath the slab. Use a meter to check moisture emissions. Other preventive measures include allowing your setting bed to dry (and cure), using proper mixing techniques, installing dense grout joints, not using excessive water in dressing joints, and using kraft paper for curing.