DIY Network

Floor Tiling on a Diagonal Take an interesting slant on floor tiling. From "Bathroom Renovations" episode DBTR-507

Diamonds are a girl's best friend – especially if she's laying floor tile. Amy Matthews shows homeowners Matt and Michelle how to lay their square floor tiles as diamonds, just by going on the diagonal. They also jazz up the job with a mosaic inset.

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Materials:

12" x 12" marble tile thinset tile adhesive bucket drill with mixing bit safety glasses dust mask speed square

marker measuring tape wet saw 1/4" x 1/4" square-notched trowel tile spacers knee pads

	This tile technique is easier than it looks.
	Figure A
	Figure B
	Figure C

Floor Tiling on a Diagonal

• Dry-fit the first tiles on the floor before getting started. To position the first tile, start in a corner of the room where the walls make a 90-degree angle. Lay out the first tile so that one of its flat sides is toward the corner and the tile's corners are almost touching the walls. Use a speed square and measuring tape to make sure the tile is centered and sitting at the correct angle. Mark the floor along the top and bottom edges of the tile for later reference (figure A).

• Matt and Michelle decided to use glass mosaic tile from the shower as accents in the floor. To decide where to place accent tiles, lay out several field tiles (the tiles that will cover most of the floor), and see where the inset tiles will look best.

• Use a wet saw to cut the corners from the field tiles and make space for the inset. Amy recommends clamping a speed square to the wet saw to create a guide with the correct angle.

  Safety Alert: Always wear safety glasses and use caution when working with a wet saw or even when cutting tile with tile nippers or other hand tools. Small, sharp bits of tile can fly in all directions with no warning.

• Also use a wet saw to cut tiles in half – and one tile into fourths – to fill in the edges where the diagonal tiles meet the wall.

• Wearing a dust mask and safety glasses, use a drill with mixer bit to mix thinset tile adhesive according to the manufacturer's instructions. The adhesive should be about the same consistency as toothpaste.

• Spread the adhesive on the floor using a 1/4" x 1/4" square-notched trowel (figure B). The thinset can be spread directly over the in-floor radiant heating mat used in this project. Don't spread thinset over too large an area; the tiles won't stick if the thinset dries out before tiles are set.

  Note: If you're not sure whether the thinset is too dry to hold the tile, simply press it gently with a finger. If the thinset isn't sticky enough to come away on your finger, it's not sticky enough to hold a tile (figure C)

• Set the first whole tile along the marks, then fill in with corner tiles. Use tile spacers to ensure even grout lines.

• Continue setting tiles, making sure to correctly place the tiles with cutouts for the mosaic insets.

• To set the mosaic accent tiles, Amy used a utility knife to cut a group of four small glass tiles from a full sheet of tiles. She spread thinset in the opening for the mosaic inset, then back-buttered the tiles with more thinset and pressed them into place. When adding accent tiles, make sure they sit level with the rest of the floor tiles.

RESOURCES :
Tile
Stonelocator.com
Website: www.stonelocator.com