Dot and dab tiles.....ohhh! - Tile Advice

[Fitwidge]

Ok so, some of you know I’m a new learner and to take my experience further i rung a ‘professional tiler’ to see if i could do weekends to learn the trade basics.

My first question for him was ‘how does he stick his tiles on the wall, trowel it or blob it(dot n dab)

His answer ‘blob’

I question why he uses this method and he said because if walls are uneven it gives him movement, so i said that it would have unwanted voids behind the tiles and couldn’t it cause water damage / tiles not stick correct? , to which he replied ‘no water should get past tiles and grout anyway’

So how can i tell him that he shouldn’t dot n dab and that i also won’t be working with him! Haha!

 

[Tile Shop]

With the exception of the age old sand:cement fixing method, with modern techniques and materials its always been bad practice. But since the recent updates, Spot fixing or dotting 'n' dabbing is now officially wrong as per British Standards.

1. Cement grout is water resistant, not waterproof so water will get though and wreak havoc on the adhesive and any non-waterproof substrates. ready mixed adhesive and to a lesser extent cement based adhesive can weaken under constant exposure to moisture.

2. Can get nasty mould growth in and behind the tiles

3. Less contact with the substrate and tile means drastically reduced bond strength which can lead to shearing under movement

4. Voids are weak spots so tiles are open to cracking from water and temperature fluctuations.

5. If the wall is so far out, fix the wall before installing the tiles.

6. Anyone who spot fixes are either trying to cut costs on materials, wrongly educated, or lazy.

 

[Flintstone]

Sadly from my experience there is a large portion of tilers out there who do it.

 

[Old Mod]

If you’re not going to work with him, don’t worry, call someone else.
He won’t take your advice kindly and probably won’t change his ways on the day so if someone who rang up for him to teach.

 

[Dumbo]

Ok so, some of you know I’m a new learner and to take my experience further i rung a ‘professional tiler’ to see if i could do weekends to learn the trade basics.

My first question for him was ‘how does he stick his tiles on the wall, trowel it or blob it(dot n dab)

His answer ‘blob’

I question why he uses this method and he said because if walls are uneven it gives him movement, so i said that it would have unwanted voids behind the tiles and couldn’t it cause water damage / tiles not stick correct? , to which he replied ‘no water should get past tiles and grout anyway’

So how can i tell him that he shouldn’t dot n dab and that i also won’t be working with him! Haha!

Just don't . You are not the tiling police he might be doing it wrong it's not your problem . Move on . Also I take it he is in your area , you don't really want to make enemies of people in your trade in your area .

 

[Andy Allen]

He might punch you in the face...!

 

[Boggs]

Just don't . You are not the tiling police he might be doing it wrong it's not your problem . Move on . Also I take it he is in your area , you don't really want to make enemies of people in your trade in your area .

I agree, if you are starting out then making enemies with already established tradesmen in your area will not be a good idea.

 

[Dumbo]

I agree, if you are starting out then making enemies with already established tradesmen in your area will not be a good idea.

We had a guy come in shooting his mouth off that was probably over ten years ago . Still no one wants to know him .

 

[Boggs]

That’s the thing, just put your energy into doing what you do well.
Forget what others are doing and see it as potential future work when it all fails.

 

[Bathfix Bob]

Don't turn up Monday morning and when he rings you say you've blobbed.

 

[Waluigi]

I’ve seen crap work done by plenty of trades folk. I’ll often go into someone’s house who’s had their previous bathroom done by someone else and I get asked what I think. It’s far easier to just nod and say it looks good than anything else.

Make sure your own work is spot on and that’s all you need to worry about. When it comes to explaining to the customer why you’re the man for the job, simply list out what you do. They can make an informed choice based on the information you have told them or listed out in your Quotation.

 

[Time's Ran Out]

We had a guy come in shooting his mouth off that was probably over ten years ago . Still no one wants to know him .

I’ve been on here ‘probably over ten years’!

 

[Dumbo]

I’ve been on here ‘probably over ten years’!

Sorry @timeless john of course I didn't mean you but you are correct and especially with me being a relative newcomer . But I meant in my local geographical area .

 

[Old Mod]

I’ve been on here ‘probably over ten years’!

Your 10th Anniversary John is on 21st February 2019.

 

[Blunt Tool]

I love dot dabbers !! They keep me in a job, carry on I say, puts food on my table. The best ones are the ones that use green top onto big porcelain tiles, I can scrape it off the tiles and walls easily even after 2 years