How To Screed A Wall Before Tiling

Let us take the mystery out of learning how to prepare a floor in readiness for laying tiles with our simple step by step guide to installing an under tile screed for shower bases and wet areas.

How to screed a wall before tiling.

Learn how to prep a shower wall for tile. For wet areas such as shower walls you must take certain precautions. For instance you can t just tile over floorboards as they simply aren t strong enough to take tiles of any description. Basically your tiles grout and adhesive are being held in place by a thin layer of pva.

Every 60cm 100cm you screed have a break and float it off to ensure the screed is a smooth surface for the tiling works and fill up any small gaps or holes. Not many people realise that before you tile a floor it is important to lay a bed of screed to ensure your finished floor is levelled correctly. After laying all the tile over the surface of the concrete slab allow the tile to rest for 24 hours before finishing the tile. Now that we know what trowel we need to use let s start the floor leveling process and fill this dip.

Apply the grout and wipe off the excess grout with a damp or wet sponge. Screeds should be firm enough to walk on usually at least 3 days after application before tiling can be started. Mix up some thin set. Pattern they ll take is established.

When you spread tile adhesive onto a wall the water in the adhesive makes the pva live and stops the adhesive from penetrating the substrate and providing a mechanical grip. The cements screed generally required 3 6 days to cure properly before tiling. This also applies if you choose to waterproof on top of the cement screed rather than below. This means deciding where the first tiles will be laid and how the tiles will align with floor and wall joints.

Tile adhesives work by crystallising when it sets. Floor or wall indoors or out tile type and size all are a factor. Find the right trowel and mortar here. Before you even consider the priming of a wooden floor you need to be satisfied that the floor construction is suitable to take the tiles.

Tiles are cut as necessary to fit where they belong. Most of the time when using a 12 x 12 or 13 x 13 tile i use a 1 4 x 3 8 square notch trowel. The tiles will probably crack and peel up over a period of time. All substrates to be tiled must be clean and surface dry.

Tile trowels come in many sizes click here to see chart. Let the grout dry for about 1 hour then use the wet sponge to remove any grout film left on. Concrete should be at least 7 days old. Before you start remember that using the correct trowel and mortar is critical to a successful tile project.