Q:So I have the substrate ready, the room is a L shape 253 x 148. Where do I start the tile, I am assuming the center of each on a chalk line. Is this correct?Bond

As others have said, start in the center and make your cuts all on the edges, but be careful you don't end up with a sliver of tile. Measure and pencil in the center of each leg of the L, so your chalk lines make an X at the center of the corner where the two parts meet. Then measure away from that line to see how each tile will get cut at the walls. If there is a pattern with strong lines on it, you have to be careful to lay out the cuts so that if there is any taper, due to the floor being not perfectly square...that you don't have cuts going across the lines and accentuating the error. So think ahead! If you can't help but have a funny edge, see if you can put it on a side that is covered with furniture, or isn't that visible in normal use. Do the same with the tile in the other rooms...do some measuring, and see what layout gives you the best size tiles. You don't want to have small tiles at the transitions from one room to another. Adjust your X starting point so your cut tiles are not too small. You should lay it out so you can use the biggest tiles you can (in other words, don't cut little strips to fill in a gap...shift the whole centerline over to make those slivers at least a 1/3 tile. Once you have your X starting point, put down 4 tiles around that X, and work out from the center, but don't run all the tile down the lines, then do another row, etc.. out in an expanding pattern. If you do a long run all at once, and are just off by a tiny bit at the start...the error with keep growing. Work out from your starting point, filling in all the floor as you go, leaving the edges to trim last. I strongly recommend the Time-Life books on this.

Q:I keep hearing that tile showers are a real chore to keep clean. I bought some tile sealer, and grout sealer. Will this help out significantly? How often should I reapply? Any other tips I should know about while it‘s still a virgin shower before it‘s too late?

not tough at all. Sealer will help some but the tile are not really that difficult to care for. I use scrubbing bubbles and if the grout gets dark I use softscrub with bleach and the edge of a folded scotchbrite pad

Q:There is a broken tile in my hall, and two of them are loose. do I need to scrape off the old dry morter that was under them? What do I purchase to secure them? mortor, grout or? I noticed that grout comes in many colors- mine is the shade of sand. Also, the one tile has to have a cut out for the door - is there any other way to cut it than with a tile saw?

If you get the replacement tile from Lowes or another store with a tile cutter, you can mark it and they will cut it. They will also have the best advice on fixing your problem. My advice is ask the oldest guy in the tile and cutting department.

Q:I am about to redo my bathroom, and I Absolutely hate corners. They get dirty and are hard to clean plus I think they are ugly. So as far as tile is concerned is there something like a bent tile for an inside corner such as from floor to wall which will eliminate corners. Imagine if you will a quarter pipe use by skaters. If nothing exists where could I go to get custom tiles made.

American Olean, Summitville and I m sure there other makers make a cove tile meant to be used of flooring corners between the wall tile and floor tile. You can see them in commercial applications allot. I don t see why you cant adopt the same concept to walls. There is also a base tile used for showers called an A 3401 that you could use in the same way. There is a whole color range in in 4x4 and 6x6 tiles. These are nice but basic tiles . Many manufacturers make these, including Florida Tile, Dal Tile and Interceramic that I can think of. Any questions you can e mail me through my avatar and check my qualifications there. GL

Q:Our house was built in 1925. My husband is removing our bathroom floor tiles that haven‘t been touched since then...we had only vinyl tiles on top of the old. He discovered these tiles are extremely difficult to take out they are very hard tiles under the vinyl we have now. Then when he tried to remove the hard tiles he had to remove concrete like stuff and sand like stuff. It‘s been one hell of a job just to remove everything. He went down to the foundation of the house! I just started worrying now about asbestos. I remember how old homes have them. Is it possible there is asbestos in these? There is a lot of dust in the house because of the removal process. Anyone know? I have two small kids and I‘m petrified. I‘ve heard of vinyl tiles having them, but what about the other stuff in our floors?

No. That is just old tiles hardened due to age.

Q:Renovation of the new house is good with tiles or wooden floor ah? Which of the two are you expensive?

Practicality: 1. Whether the family will often have access to the guests, or whether the family wear slippers habits, after all, relatively contrast with the floor tile and wear and cleaning. 2. Whether there will be a very tide of the year, no matter what the wooden floor, tidal weight will be deformed or corroded, but the degree of different, but if the tile is not anti-skid but also consider whether the elderly or children at home, easy to wrestling. 3. Indoor light how strong, light can be considered non-reflective wood flooring, light can be considered weak color tiles. Decorative: Combined with the living room in the walls, ceiling, furniture overall consideration. Such as wall wood structure is more, and are wood-style paste, or furniture style classical, that with the wood floor will see some of the harmony. If it is hard line style, or color to black and white, can be considered with tiles, etc., I will give an example.

Q:My parents want to re-tile their bathroom. My dad says he can use regular tiles in the bathroom, bathroom being the floor and the open-shower walls(the only thing stopping the water spillage is plastic and fabric on a rail), but my mom says it needs bathroom tiles and bathroom grout for the job. Any help would definitely be appreciated!!!

We put ceramic tile and grout in our bathrooms and kitchen. Never heard of bathroom tiles. The kids get the whole bathroom wet when they bathe and we haven't had any problems with it in over 10 years.

Q:I am a big fan of tile in homes. I really love tile flooring and tiles in shower stalls, as it looks really nice and feels good on the feet lol. Is there any way to tell the difference between a porcelain and ceramic tile by looking at it after it is already installed? Friends of mine have tile in their kitchen on the floor, and I would like to be able to tell the difference by looking at it from an already installed view. This would also help for visiting other homes with tile, to better understand the difference in look and feel.

Porcelain indicates the type of clay used to make the tile. Ceramic incorporates all clay tiles, including porcelain. There is no way to tell unless you look at the back of the tile. They often use glass tiles in bathrooms now, too. Ask an experienced installer for tile already in place or an experienced seller of tile if you want new tile.

Q:My foyer and hallway is white tile with white grout. I am more vintage/traditional and was going to be using new grout. Are there any other colors besides white that will look good for the grout?

Depend on the style of house.. example 50s and victorian houses black will look good.Other than that I wouldn t change it. You make much of a dramatic change and eyes will be drawn downward..If your having trouble w/ the white grout staying white try staining it w/ a stain made for grout.. Time consuming and slow but you can do it yourself and it ll last for years.. Digging out grout is a risk of chipping tiles and not digging down deep enough I stained my gout from a lite grey to a dark grey .. GL

Q:My father wanted to replace the tiles in the master bathroom as he plans on putting the house on the market. I was skeptical whether or not he could accomplish the project and after hitting several snags I‘ve decided to get involved.The problem is that the old tile was removed and there‘s only 7/8 - 1 to work with. The new tile is 3/8 thick; leaving 1/2. His original plan was to lay down plywood, cement board, then tile, however, it‘s going to raise the floor a solid 1 which will cause several complications. Any advice on what the #$@* I‘m supposed do? I truly appreciate all of your help.

It wont raise the floor, jus fix your tiles with a good tile adhesive . dont go for cement.