Template for cutting floor tile around toilet

[MartinH]

Afternoon folks - just been thrown a bit of a curve ball .....am going to be tiling a bathroom floor for a customer and when I went to see what was required, the old chap said, we'll take all the old stuff out and you can tile before we install the new toilet sink bath etc.....I thought ideal .....

...the old chap then obviously realises that they only have one toilet so they got the plumber to take everything out, but plumb the toilet in , hes just rung to apologise.

As a relatively new tiler, this will be the first time that I will have had to fix the floor tiles around the toilet as opposed to under.

Is there any advice you could give me as to creating a template so as to ensure I cut as accurately as possible...also would I just silicone around after tiles are fixed ?

Any help gratefully accepted and appreciated ...many thanks

[AMtek]

Personally i would take the toilet back out, tile and grout underneath then put it back again. Would be much quicker and easier but if thats not an option make a template out of cardboard, cut and fix tiles and silicone round toilet

[MartinH]

many thanks AMtek

[Bri]

Lay all the whole tiles around the toilet, then use a cardboard template (cut it to the same size as your tiles) to get your cut. When you mark out on your tile, cut it a bit bigger to start with just to make sure you are on the right track, then you can make little adjustments, nothing worse than cutting it short then having to start again!

[MartinH]

Many thanks Bri - as a new to the trade, this forum is a godsend for me ....as previous have said ...what you learn on training hardly scratches the surface, and this forum is great to have to call on those that have the experience and have been there ...

thanks again

[jwatson]

i use lining paper and stanley round the tile to be cut then put in possition of tile and mark round with a sharp pencil. a roll of lining paper lasts forever(well allmost) cut out the waste bit on the paper then transfer markings on the tile.
as bri said better cutting it slightly too big than too small.

"better looking at it than looking for it"
good luck

[Bri]

Many thanks Bri - as a new to the trade, this forum is a godsend for me ....as previous have said ...what you learn on training hardly scratches the surface, and this forum is great to have to call on those that have the experience and have been there ...

thanks again

When you've been doing it a few years you'll learn to do it by eye, keep practicing and good luck with your tiling career.

[MartinH]

jw - again thankyou - all these tips are really useful ...funnily enough have lining paper as I has to decorate daughters bedroom a few weeks back...and thankfully never ditched the HUGE surplus ! cheers

[MartinH]

if I get to a few years , god knows what my post count will be on here ! ...heres hoping anyway

[Phil Hobson]

As Bri above for me, using thin cardboard, better stil felt paper. These were done using that method.

[MartinH]

Phil when I get to the level in those pics...i can say ive cracked it !

whats felt paper - is it readily available ?

[nybor62]

i dont use templates but practice makes perfect ,its one of those tasks eventually you crack it

[Phil Hobson]

Phil when I get to the level in those pics...i can say ive cracked it !

whats felt paper - is it readily available ?

Some carpet shops stock it I try to carry a part roll in my van, good stuff for templates

[andy allen]

try and work the floor out so you get decent cuts round the tiolet, you dont want to end up with that impossible cut, it will drive you mad as it keeps breaking when you get to the last nibble..........yes wev'e all been there!

[Stewart]

I use cardboard to make templates for awkward cuts, but it's been years since I last cut round a toilet. I always get them taken and re-fitted after tiling.....

[andy8758]

I cant believe everyone is talking about paper templates...........

First off, try to centre tile layout around the toilet. Make sure that at the back of the toilet you have a joint in the centre - it is a nightmare to try and fit a whole tile behind a toilet.

Second, fit the full tiles around your toilet.

Third, mark a rough guide (very rough sketch to keep your mind straight about where to nibble) of the cut you need to make.

Fourth, lay the tile exactly in an adjacent line (either with adjacent horizontal; or vertical tile) and mark the point between edge of the set tile and toilet, on your tile to be cut, so that you have a starting point.

Fifth, get a marker rod/ruler (Rubi TS lateral stops are popular for this). Place it exactly up against the toilet base, and mark the position on your marker, of the mark made on the tile to be cut. Now use the rod as a template marker - keeping it exactly at 90 degrees to the tile, move it inch by inch around the toilet base. Mark on your tile, the point on your rod that was transfered from your tile - effectively you will quickly mark the shape of the cut exactly onto the tile.

Once the tile is marked up, use a wet cutter to cut out most of the waste tile, the use nibblers to get to the exact marked line. Until you get confident with your marking, always cut too little. As you cut more away you can place your tile against the toilet, and use a pencil to fully mark the final cut.

This really works well, is so much more professional than DIY or paper templates, and wont get you laughed off the first building site you work on.

However, If the tile is bigger than the gap between the toilet and adjacent wall, either partially cut away known waste on the tile until you can get a proper marking on it, or you may need to use a short ruler to mark a straight line adjacent to the toilet, or measure distance to toilet base at 1" intervals, then transfer to tile.

This may sound complicated at first, but I haven't time to photograph this in practice - sorry.

And to all you paper templaters.... bah humbug!

[Stewart]

There is nothing better than a template for a really awkward cut, and it takes minutes... So bah humbug to your bah humbug. Also you don't have time to photograph it because your taking so damn long to do the cut......(;0)

[Mike]

i mark the tile the same way as andy above but i use my grinder with a diamond blade to cut the tile. i've not used my nibblers since i got rid of my rubi (i'd have to 'clean up' the rough cut it made)

[Phil Hobson]

I must be doing something wrong eek All these years. I have never been laughed off a site, and never will be, templates DIY???????. Can you explain. I am confused, or is this a wind up. Granted the ideal situation would be to remove the sanitary ware but sometimes it is not possible. DIY I find that an insult, to the extreme, If I have taken this post out of context I must apologize. But templates are a very important part of tiling, for a pro.

[andy8758]

I love it when everyone gets all agitated - but surely controversy is part of a good discussion?

I know that a lot of tilers use BnQ plastic templates, paper, cardboard, plastic etc. Could even be said that shows an innovative approach to a problem. All that matters is a good job at the end of the day (and a good quick job earns money). But I still dont like paper templates and think they are unprofessional.

As for nibblers - Mike - they still remain one of the quckest tools for accurate removal of small amounts of tile waste - I know there are "Sigma" tilers who can break 4mm off the edge of a tile, but I still score with a manual cutter and use nibblers to break at the score on such small cuts - about 10 times quicker than using a diamond dry/wet cutter. And what do you guys do when the electric gets cut off?

[Mike]

i'm fortunate enough to never have been without leccy, mainly cos i don't do site work . i still don't see the need for nibblers but i guess it's the same as to use a template or not. it's each to their own , whichever way you find is easiest.

[andy8758]

As a recent newbie to site work, two things come to mind as real frustrations - when some one unplugs your electrics when you are trying to do an accurate cut (loss of light and power) and ever tried laying floor tiles by torchlight?

Sometimes hugging a well used toilet to get a good template cut around it seems like an attractive job..

[Stewart]

I've got a generator for when there is no electric...... We all have different methods on how to actually cut the tile, but I was taught to use a template for any tile that couldn't be measured directly. It takes minutes to cut a tile that's been marked with a template and fits first time every time.

[Mike]

As a recent newbie to site work, two things come to mind as real frustrations - when some one unplugs your electrics when you are trying to do an accurate cut (loss of light and power) and ever tried laying floor tiles by torchlight?
Sometimes hugging a well used toilet to get a good template cut around it seems like an attractive job..

i used to do steel erecting years ago and we had to be careful whilst drilling the steelwork with a rotobroach drill (very heavy and costs around £1500) it holds to the steelwork with an electric magnet whilst drilling so you had to watch the cables/spiders or you'd get some divvy unplugging it and then it would fall to the floor

[Phil Hobson]

I love it when everyone gets all agitated - but surely controversy is part of a good discussion?

I know that a lot of tilers use BnQ plastic templates, paper, cardboard, plastic etc. Could even be said that shows an innovative approach to a problem. All that matters is a good job at the end of the day (and a good quick job earns money). But I still dont like paper templates and think they are unprofessional.

As for nibblers - Mike - they still remain one of the quckest tools for accurate removal of small amounts of tile waste - I know there are "Sigma" tilers who can break 4mm off the edge of a tile, but I still score with a manual cutter and use nibblers to break at the score on such small cuts - about 10 times quicker than using a diamond dry/wet cutter. And what do you guys do when the electric gets cut off?

Hi I must bow down to your 2yrs experience NOT but each to their own I have 43yrs in this iindustry and I find your comments offensive . Take this as you will. Regards Phil.

[Daz]

Okay, I've skimmed this thread so apologies if I'm duplicating another post.

I don't use templates, mainly because I was never taught that way. I'll try to describe my method.......

I will cut a thin strip from the edge of a tile so that it is the full pitch of the tile.
I position the "target" tile so that it sits where the nearest full tile would be but set forward by the grout joint width (I hope that makes sense).
I then use the cut strip by lining it up against the sanitary ware so that I can plot a point on the target tile. By moving the strip around the sanitary object and plotting the points I can join the dots to replicate the sanitary shape.

I appreciate that I have not described this very well, but it does work for me and gives near spot on results everytime.

Daz


I've just read Andys post and I'm sure my method is the same so apologies for the duplication.

I would also like to add that I don't regard my method as the best way, it just the way I learnt and I'm comfortable with it.

[ScottG13]

lay the tile exactly in an adjacent line (either with adjacent horizontal; or vertical tile) and mark the point between edge of the set tile and toilet, on your tile to be cut, so that you have a starting point.

Fifth, get a marker rod/ruler (Rubi TS lateral stops are popular for this). Place it exactly up against the toilet base, and mark the position on your marker, of the mark made on the tile to be cut. Now use the rod as a template marker - keeping it exactly at 90 degrees to the tile, move it inch by inch around the toilet base. Mark on your tile, the point on your rod that was transfered from your tile - effectively you will quickly mark the shape of the cut exactly onto the tile.
:

I have used this method but marked the tile to be cut with an off cut of another tile. Just allow for grout line and the measurements will be exactly where they need to be.

Gonna get me some lining paper though, can't be a bad idea. Ideally toilet removal and refitting is best, did one a while back and had to replace the waste connector due to the toilet being raised. Im sure the seals go on them once you remove but only a few quid for a new one

[whitebeam]

Carry a roll of linning paper in the van, works for me.

[ScottG13]

What Daz said

[Phil Hobson]

It matters not whether you use templates or not, I feel very angry when members insinuate that fellow members are DIY. Bad Very bad insult