First job- brick pattern

[alib103]

Got my first job next week. Its a bathroom in a brick pattern. I can set it out with my gauge rod using half tile lengths but i'm not sure whether i should try and follow the horizontal around the room e.g in the corners should i go half tile to half tile.....is this even possible or should i just treat each horizontal on each wall seperate??

[Sir Ramic]

Always follow the half to half if you can but this may lead to awkward cutting elsewhere. Usually in kitchens there are places you may be able to hide the pattern if it doesnt quite follow....like in corners under the wall units where a TV may be sat or the Microwave etc. You have to do what looks best in these cases.


Technically to do this correct if you ended a wall with a half cut, the cut to go on the return wall should really be the size of the offcut plus the thickness of the tile but that would be wasteful.

[enduro]

Try and keep th same bond around the corners, as it will look really good when you have finished it. I always do

[grumpygrouter]

Originally Posted by enduro

Try and keep th same bond around the corners, as it will look really good when you have finished it. I always do

Yep, must follow the pattern around. You didn't say what type of tiles you are using, if they are bevelled and you are putting up trim, then try not to have a half tile/full tile going into the trim. Looks hideous in my opinion. If this si the case, try and set out on the 1/4-/3/4 so you are cutting in to the full body of the tile into the trim.

Grumpy

[MICK the Tiler]

Here's a few pics of a brick bond bathroom I did last week.
Note that you can't always get the pattern to work because it will leave bad cuts elsewhere. In saying this though the larger the tiles and the darker the colour the more important it is to match the pattern. I was lucky this job was in white 200x100. If I was 400x200 black or another dark colour my set-out would have changed.

[alib103]

Cheers guys, thanks for replying, thats really helped. Will let you know how it works out.

[sibs]

Those are good tips especially about the bevelled edge but what I would like to know it whrn you are doing brick bond do you have to get the grout lines to fall exactly in the middle of the tile on the row below or is it more important to get reasonable cuts at each end even if the grout lines don't fall exactly in the middle?
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Oh yeah one more thing - following on from the bevelled tile senario if you are tiling a window reveal would you also put your half tiles into the trim and have full tiles nearest the window so as to get rid of the bevelled edge as opposed to how it would normally be done where the half tile is usually put at the back nearest the window?

[Sir Ramic]

Originally Posted by sibs

Those are good tips especially about the bevelled edge but what I would like to know it whrn you are doing brick bond do you have to get the grout lines to fall exactly in the middle of the tile on the row below or is it more important to get reasonable cuts at each end even if the grout lines don't fall exactly in the middle?
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Oh yeah one more thing - following on from the bevelled tile senario if you are tiling a window reveal would you also put your half tiles into the trim and have full tiles nearest the window so as to get rid of the bevelled edge as opposed to how it would normally be done where the half tile is usually put at the back nearest the window?

Brickbond is half bond and should be treated so but saying that you could have 1/3 bond or 1/4 bond. So when using Half bond ( Brick bond) then all half tile joints should line up and same with full tile ...if that makes sense.
Staggered joints wouldnt look too good IMO.

As for the window it would depend on the depth of the window but i generally start full and then above half from the trim.

[Sir Ramic]

Oh yeah i 2nd the bevelled edge tiles look crap. Only if there are not external angles do they look good.

[sibs]

Originally Posted by Sir Ramic

Brickbond is half bond and should be treated so but saying that you could have 1/3 bond or 1/4 bond. So when using Half bond ( Brick bond) then all half tile joints should line up and same with full tile ...if that makes sense.
Staggered joints wouldnt look too good IMO.

As for the window it would depend on the depth of the window but i generally start full and then above half from the trim.

I think I see what you mean I didn't realise they went 1/3 bond 1/4 bond I just thought that brick bond was all full tile/half tile pattern. I agree with you about all the half tile joints lining up its just that I have seen tiling where the tile joints don't sit in the middle of the previous row they sit to the left or right. Still looked good because as you say all the joints lined up but just weren't in the exact middle of the previous tile if you know what I mean. So is 1/4 or 1/3 bond down to the choice of the customer or is it a choice you make to get rid of awkward cuts?

[Sir Ramic]

Brick bond is what i would call the laymans term and generally they mean half bond really.
The 1/3 bond and 1/4 bond are not so popular but may get asked for if say the tile was a 300 x100 so they may ask for 1/3 bond in that case.
I have in the past been asked to lay random and not to keep the joints in line but IMO it doesnt look good on walls, it can be effective though on floors.

[sibs]

Thanks SirRamic