Q:I need to tile a kitchen back splash from counter to cabinets. Backerboard at the moment is drywall, textured and painted. I‘d like to hear some opinions on tiling directly over this or using cement backer board. Also thinset or mastic?

You said textured. Is that textured paint or lumpy texture . If lumpy texturing, you have to get it smooth. Sand ,scrape or replace, just so its smooth to go over. No cement backer board required. This really isn t a wet area to really be concerned about.. Thinset or mastic will work fine. Thin set is a little harder to work with if your not all thatexperiencedd. But thin set is cheaper. If your using a self stacking tile its real easy. But if the tile your using requires spacers to hold it up until you set the spacer its a pia, but can be done. Mastic , w/ the right trowel , the tile will pretty much set and hold into place until you put a spacer in. Thin set will skim up and set up much quicker when using over dry wall .. The moisture will absorb into the dry wall just faster so you can t do as big an area at once..So when I do thin set over dry wall I make my thinset just a bit( just a bit) so that it ll set a bit longer. This takes practice and you need a bit ofexperiencee. . Now if your using some glass tiles you should use thin set.And they want you to use a special enhanced thin set.. Any questions you can e mail me thru my avatar and check my qualifications there GL

Q:How about Tommy Tiles?

Zhuo Ma tiles cost is relatively high, than the so-called top ten brands are almost the same quality, the price is much cheaper, as well is good, try to know ah!

Q:I‘m installing 13x13 floor tile on a slab. Any tips on how to do it right

If your not overly familiar with doing tile a diagonal isn t the easiest to start on. Lay out and proper tools are a big help in your preplanning. Right size trowel and large enough wet saw and had cutter is a must. Get the longest straight site line and split the room in 1/2 with a chalk line. Lay tile back to the wall and figure the size of pc(pcs) you need. You can cut a few of these pcs as a starting point. Knowing you split the room you should be equal when you get to the other side. A perfect straight edge will help keep your lines straight. Use this on all sides as you build out from that wall and lay as though your doing a straight lay just that your on a 45 degree. Or if you are doing an open ended area , you can cut several tiles in 1/2 and work back. A bit trickier but overall look is better. Don t cut tiles directly in 1/2, you must cut just off center if this is a starting point. Very hard to do and takes experience. Any specific questions you can e mail me through my avatar and check my qualifications there. GL

Q:China 's top ten brand tiles

(China Famous Brand, National Inspection-free products) Dongpeng Tiles (China Famous Brand, China Famous Brand, National Inspection-free), China's famous brand, the country's best-selling brand, the national best-selling brand, the national Mianjian Tile (China's first brand, national Mianjian products) (China Famous Brand, National Inspection-free Product) Asian Tiles (China Famous Brand, National Inspection-free Products), China Tricolor Tiles (China Famous Brand, China Famous Brand, National Mianjian Products) ) Eagle Tiles (China Famous Brand, National Mianjian Products) Samit Tile (China Famous Brand, National Mianjian Products)

Q:We currently have carpet throughout our house, but due to having dogs, we hate the carpet. While hardwood or laminate seems the logical choice, tile would hold up much better to their toe nails. My concern is how having tile throughout the entire house (even in the living room, computer room, bedrooms, etc) would look. I know it is done sometimes, but I just can't picture it in my mind. How do you feel about it? Would the tile (it would be very neutral in color) be okay through the entire house or should we go with laminate deal with the scratches when/if they happen?

A couple considerations first tile is brittle and not flexible. On the other hand wood floors flex. If you have the bare minimum joist size in your floor for the span they cover, then tile isn't an option, it would simply crack up. Make sure you check that first. Just laying down a layer of plywood, or concrete board won't fix it either even though many will try to tell you it will. Once you know you have a flooring to hold tile, you can make your choice. My recommendation is to mix tile, laminate, and area rugs. By now you know where the highest traffic areas are, that is where you need tile or rugs. Laminate is sturdy stuff, and casual use by even dogs usually won't harm it. It is safe to use everywhere else.

Q:Is it better to use ceramic or vynil tile in the bathrooms and why?(example: how it feels on your feet if you live in a state where it gets really cold in the winter, how easy are they to clean, etc.)Thanks!

I like ceramic tile. Yes, it will be cold on your feet in the winter, I just use bathroom rugs and have no problem with this. I prefer ceramic, especially for the bathroom, because that is going to be the wettest room of the house...and even more so if you have kids! Make sure you get textured tiles...we didn't know to do that for the bathroom and needless to say there have been lots of slips and falls when our kids start running through the house with wet feet. I have cleaned many many ceramic floors and many many vinyl floors....not much difference in how well they clean up. Tile has grout, but it won't show dirt depending on the color you choose.

Q:We recently had new porcelain tile installed on our guest bath floor, and we‘d like to clean it regularly without harming the tiles and grout. The tile installer had no recommendations about this process, nor did the tile company where we made the purchase. Researching this info is very confusing. Some sites recommend using only a wet mop, while others claim that vinegar diluted in water is appropriate; others advise using some type of manufactured cleaning product. We know that regular sweeping is necessary, but we‘re unsure which products to use to protect our new floor. If you suggest a wet mop, please advise which is best: Shark, Eureka, Bissell, etc. Thanks for any detailed advice you can provide.

Hpofully the grout was seald. If tou have hard water you will get calcium buids up on porcelan.One way is Muratic acid (pool acid) deluted 10 to 1 The safe way is a pumas stone scrubber you can buy at any pool store. The vinigar will work but not as well. Lime away is also a good cleaner if you have hard water. If your installer didnt seal your grout do this first , the tile supplier can supply this. B^

Q:I am installing commercial tile and I have no idea what tool is used to cut this kind of tile, it easily breaks if its bent too hard. I need to cut curved areas on this tile and I have no idea what too to use. Please help! ;)

Forget the rental business, you'll pay for one day as much as you can buy one for your use. Go to Home Depot, they start at $88.00 for a cheapo that works just fine for a powered tile cutter. I have had one for several years now I paid $120.00 for it, two days rental, and it's done more then several bathrooms and floors, still going strong.

Q:i have the material that is needed to tile my home but cannot pay for it to be done so i need information on how to do this

If you need to prep such as lay cement board or do you have slab to go directly over? Proper prep work is the most important thing. To lay tile , center the room, lay tile out dry. When you get to the wall, if you have a 1/2 tile or bigger, your all set. If you end up with less than 1/2 tile, recenter the middle tile to shift every thing over by a 1/2 tile. Then strike a line. Mix thin set, let it set and mix again. You ll want it to be spreadable but not to thick. The use of the proper size trowel for what ever size tile. Don t spread any more thin set than you can set tile in just a few minutes. This is just the tip of the iceberg. Any questions you can e mail me through my avatar and check my qualifications there. GL

Q:about a year ago i had tile installed on my home but winter is here and i was wondering if i could get carpet installed over the tile without getting the tile damage

I would recommend just using throw or area rugs over the tile. To lay carpet you must tack the padding to the floor then stretch and staple the the edges of the carpet along the floor boards at the walls. The end results would be tack holes in the tile and after time (walking on the carpeting) the padding will stick to the tiles below and would have to be scraped off if removed causing damage to the tiles.