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Ceramic Tile From "10 Things You Must Know" episode DTEN-104

Here are the 10 Things You Must Know about ceramic tile.

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Ceramic Tile Countdown

10. Bigger isn't necessarily better, but it's definitely easier. Larger tiles are much easier to install than small ones. Larger tiles are commonly used for bathroom walls, but are great for kitchens and other rooms too. The smaller 1x1s are going to take longer to set, so you want to choose a small pattern.

9. What you can't see, will hurt you. If you don't have a flat subfloor, you won't have a successful install. Self-leveling subfloor compound works great and is easy for a do it yourselfer to install. Other options are plywood or cement backer board, but regardless of what you use, your subfloor should be at least 1" thick to ensure a quality job.

8. Squaring a room is as easy as 3-4-5. The best method to squaring your room is using a 3-4-5 Triangle. Measure three feet against one wall, four feet to the center of the room and connect the two lines to make a triangle with a five foot line. If your room is larger, use six, eight, and ten foot lines. If it's smaller, use 18", 2' and 2'6." Mark off all lines by snapping a chalk line along your measurements.

7. Make the best of your sticky situation. Thinset not only keeps your tiles on the floor, it can make up for minor imperfections in your subfloor. There are different thinsets for each application of tile, but for ceramic tile you want to use a latex modified thinset. Latex modified thinset only needs water. Remember, only mix what you can spread or use in an hour, otherwise, your job will become very hard. There is also a premixed thinset which would be better for your wall tiles. It is stickier and the tiles won't move much. With thinset, you can always add a little more on one side if the subfloor isn't perfectly level or take away a little on the other side to straighten the subfloor.

6. If you're going to cut corners, rent a wet saw. Renting a one will save you time and frustration. Unless you have a perfect house with perfect rooms, you will have to cut your tiles. The time saved in cutting all of your tiles exactly the way you want will pay off immediately. Wet saws are relatively inexpensive and can usually be picked up in any home supply store.

5. Don't rush yourself into a poor job. Always take your time and work in a small area to ensure you get everything right. Behind every quality tile job is an installer that chose to take his time. Even when you are working in a small area, you don't want to rush to lay the tiles down. Take your time to ensure you get everything right.

4. When your trowel gets jammed, butter your tiles. When you're working in tight corners or edges, your trowel won't be able to fit inside that space. The easiest way to work around this problem is to put the adhesive on the back of the tiles.

3. You can't rush the cure. Even though all your tiles are down on the floor and set, you can't start to put the grout down. You have to allow your thinset the proper amount of time to dry, otherwise you will damage your tiling job.

2. Never trowel grout in a straight line. There are two different types of grout, wall and floor grout. The only difference is that floor grout has sand in it and wall grout doesn't. Make sure the grout is the right consistency and trowel it diagonally to ensure an even application.

1. Guarantee perfect gaps with plastic spacers. You can easily buy the space between each of your tiles in a bag. Plastic spacers come in different sizes for your different sized tiles. Simply place the little X's between the tiles while they set and remove them before grouting. This will ensure the same exact space between each tile.

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• Seal before you tile. Always waterproof showers and wet areas before you tile them. Tile installations do not act as a 100% moisture barrier. They are designed to protect the waterproof surface below them and make cleaning easier. There is a good range of waterproofing materials available that are easy to apply and work well.

• Save your extra tiles. Keep spares for any future repairs. Ceramic tile is very brittle and if a heavy object falls on your tile, chances are its going to break.