Q:I have a new bathtub with Durock cement board installed around it and I‘m ready for tile. I just got a guy out to give me an estimate for doing the tile work around the tub and he said the Durock would have to be primed first. I‘ve heard you‘re supposed to put the tile directly on the Durock, not paint it. Now I don‘t know what to do. Is he wrong? If he‘s wrong, do I hire someone else or just question him? He did another (non-tile related) job for me and did an excellent job, so I trust him, but I‘m nervous about this. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks!

Do NOT prime cement board before tiling. The whole reason is to bond to the cement substance of the Durock or cement board. There are times or situations that you need to water proof cement board , but that would be a different situation. I would consider hiring some one else. He may be fine at certain projects but he does not know allot about tiling. Any questions you can e mail me through my avatar and check my qualifications there. GL

Q:We laid tile in our Master bath about a month and a half ago. Now we have 2 tiles that are crackd. I would like to no what caused it. We have a slab foundation.

It depends on what you used as the adhesive. You may not have enough thinset/tile adhesive under the cracked tiles OR the slab floor was not leveled properly. You will have to remove those 2 tiles and scrape the adhesive off the floor and check for level. Once that is done you can re-apply thinset adhesive as that is the best for flooring applications, and re-set the tiles in the new thinset and tap them down a little bit so they are level with the tiles around them.

Q:We're remodeling our bathroom and looking for tile. Thanks in advance!

if i was you i would first go to a tile shop ...many shops ..and find the tiles you really like first ..take down their number and batch number ..they vary a lot in shade ..then see if you can get the same on the net ..in my experience ..you can do as well in the shop as on the net ..they are all so easier to deal with if something goes wrong

Q:I need to know if flexbond is the best stuff to use for this type of job for a do it yourselfer. I have never worked with this stuff. I have only used regular thin set mortar in the past. Is it hard to work with?? And to lay the tiles this large do I have to butter the mortar on or can I just trowel it onto the plywood floor?Thanks, Fran

Tile and use almost as a regular thin set. Flexbond like any stronger thin set will tend to set up a bit faster than standard thin set . This because of the added latex in the thin set. Mix a bit less than normal. Mix and let set for 5/10 minutes and mix again, being very important when using extra modified thin set. Although this is a stronger thin set and will bond to ply wood. But the minimum substrate thickness must be met to be able tile tile over. Any questions you can e mail me through my avatar and check my qualifications there.. GL

Q:Recently, my carpet got a bit singed in front of the fireplace. so, I decided to place tile in front of the fireplace. I plan to remove the carpet and the padding. what will be left is the plywood and 2x4‘s. not exactly sure if there is anything under the plywood since this was an addition and is on top of the garage, where the garage is not underground but has cinderblock walls. when my son jumps around, it kinda shakes the floor.what I need to know is if cement board has to be used. can I just place tile over plywood with the appropriate adhesive? remove plywood all together? what is the simplest method for a single momma with low funds who is not familiar with laying tile? my second inquiry is about finishing it off. I can do the grout easy enough, but what about where the tile meets the carpet? I really hate the cheap look of those metal things, but I don‘t know what other options there are except for folding (?) the carpet under (?). suggestions?thanks in advance!!

In the very least you ll need cement board. For 2 reasons.. One is to have the proper support so the tile won t break and the second is because its fire code ( unless this is a sealed gas fireplace) to have a non combustible in front of the fire place.. There are codes on how big this must be also. Not doing so could possible void any fire insurance you have if a fire should occur.. As far as fixing the carpet it s best to turn and tack the carpet to the tile.. You ll need a carpet installer to do this.. Any questions you can e mail me through my avatar and check my qualifications there. GL

Q:I‘m remodeling my house and was thinking of using porcelain tiles for my bathroom (floor only). What are the advantages/disadvantages of using porcelain instead of ceramic, et cetera?

Ceramic tile will show chips more than porcelain. Porcelain tile is the same throughout. Also it is good for exterior areas as it is frost proof. porcelain tile is generally harder than ceramic and may be harder to cut.

Q:I have a kitchen that currently has 20X20 tile The kitchen has 40 tilesWhat is the square feet of the kitchen?

Going by your tile count and size given only,( not including grout lines and tile isn t always the exact size , you have 111 s/f 20x 20=400 square inches 400 divided by 144 ( inches in a s/f) is 2.77 s/f per tile 2.77 x your forty tiles is 111.11 s/f THAT is the math But you really need a kitchen measurement for an accurate measurement Any questions you can e mail me through my avatar and check my qualifications there.. GL

Q:We have recently had our bathroom refitted, and tiled floor to ceiling with large ceramic tiles in a brick pattern. However now finished it is obvious that they are uneven. The tiler said it is the tiles. Is this likely or is it just a bodged job - he re-platerboarded the walls prior to tiling so they should be flat?

From what I understand, I'd install either waterproof drywall or regular which you can then seal. You can shim the drywall out where the gap is with furring strips. This will give you a straight surface to put your tile on. This assumes the drywall butts into a corner. You can't put tile on an uneven surface as it just magnifies the unevenness. You might be able to put a molding on to cover the gap. That sounds the easiest and cheapest. Take a picture and show it to some one at a tile store or at a hardware store and they might be able to help.

Q:A rectangular area can be completely tiled with 200 square tiles. If the side length of each tile was increased by 1 cm, it would take only 128 tiles to tile the area. Find the side length of each tile.

while they ask you to degree the element of a rectangle, they desire to comprehend how a lot of a unit will extra healthful interior that rectangle. In different words, for a 9 in via 2 in rectangle, they desire to comprehend how many a million via a million (insert unit) squares will extra healthful interior this rectangle. BTW, A=LW section=LengthxWidth answer to above question is: A=LW A=(9)(2) A=18

Q:Dongpeng tiles I know more famous, but Dongpeng sanitary ware is their home Well? Dongpeng still have to sell sanitary ware?

There is ah! Are ceramic products! Foreign Wrigley, Kohler (USA), Lejia (Spain), TOTO (Japanese devils, not recommended to buy).