FemaleFirst Guide to Wall Tiling

Window recesses and alcoves should be calculated separately and added on. If you are using patterned tiles as inserts, these must be calculated and deducted from your total figure.

If you want to incorporate patterned or motif tiles, plan their exact positions using graph paper, with each large square representing a tile. Shade in where you want the patterned tiles to fall. Stick with this plan because it may be difficult to change once you have started tiling.

Step 1:

Make a tiling gauge from a length of straight wooden batten (say 1.8m or 2.4m of planed 2 x 1in wood). Mark the spacing of the tiles on it and the separate spacer gaps if used.

Starting at the top of the skirting board, use the tiling gauge to plan your tile rows. If a narrow strip is left at the top, move the bottom row up by half a tile width to give more even margins.

Step 2:

Using a spirit level, mark out the first horizontal row of tiles to be fixed above the floor or skirting boards. This must be one tile height or less above the base level. Nail a thin guide batten along this line so that the tiles can be positioned against it.

Use masonry nails for the guide battens, but do not drive them fully in - then they can be removed easily.

Step 3:

Mark a vertical line down the centre of the wall, using a plumb bob and line. Use the gauge stick again to set out the vertical rows on each side of this line.

If the border tiles measure less than half a tile width, move the rows sideways by half a tile. Fix another guide batten against the final vertical line.

Since very few lines or fittings in a house are truly horizontal or vertical, you will probably have to cut 'filler' tiles to fit in odd areas around skirting boards, architrave and corners between walls.

5 - Laying the tiles

Most ceramic tile adhesives can be bought ready-mixed and some can also be used for grouting between the tiles.

Step 1:

Use a notched spreader (normally supplied with the tile adhesive) to apply the adhesive evenly over the surface to be tiled. The ridges in the adhesive allow for positioning and bedding of the tiles. Cover an area of about 1m² (1yd²)at a time, to prevent the adhesive drying out.

Step 2:

Start with the first tile in the corner formed by the two guide battens, pressing it until it is firmly fixed. Continue by adding the tiles on each side, building up three or four rows at a time. Use spacers between the tiles if they are not the self-spacing universal type.

Continue with successive rows of tiles until the whole area has been built up, applying new adhesive as and when required.

Periodically, use a damp sponge to wipe any excess adhesive from the surface of the tiles.

Step 3:

The guide battens can be removed after 12 hours and the cut filler tiles fitted (see 'Cutting tiles to fit').

Tiles in a window recess, and particularly on a window sill, should be laid to overlap the wall tiles.

Better still, use plastic edge trim to give a neat quadrant moulding between the two surfaces and to protect the edges from accidental knocks and chips.

Edge trim is supplied in 1.8m lengths, in a variety of colours to suit tiles and grouting. It is the same thickness as standard tiles and is simply bedded into the tile cement under the top surface tiles.

6 - Cutting tiles to fit

Step 1:

To mark each filler tile, place it face down, partly overlapping the tile next to the space and butting up against the adjacent wall or ceiling. On the edge of the tile mark where it needs to be cut (taking account of spacing), using a sharp chinagraph pencil or child's crayon.

Turn the tile over and draw a line between the two edge marks with a ruler.

Do not use felt-tip pens for marking out. The ink may run into the unglazed portion of the tile and may also bleed into the grouting and discolour it.

Step 2:

Using a steel rule as a guide, score along the marked line with a tungsten-tipped cutter. Make one good strong stroke to penetrate the glazed surface of the tile.

Step 3:

Place tiles glazed side up over either matchsticks or a thin wooden kebab-type skewer, placed directly under the scored line. Apply even pressure with the hands either side to snap the tile along the scored line.

Alternatively, use a tile-snapping tool with the jaws directly aligned with the score mark or use a platform cutting table with a scoring wheel to score and snap the tiles.

Where you need to remove thin strips of tile, and even pressure cannot be successfully applied to snap it, nibble away at the excess tile with a pair of tile nibblers.

You may have to break the tile away in several smaller pieces along the score line, and the cut edge may require smoothing with a tile file.

Step 4:

To fit tiles around shaped areas such as a washbasin or around a pipe, use a profile template gauge to copy the shape and transfer it to the surface of the tile.

Alternatively, use card cut-outs to trace the shape onto the tile. Grip the tile firmly, but without excessive pressure, in a wooden vice or in the jaws of a Workmate, then cut to shape with a tile saw. This has a blade like a thin round file, which is held in a frame similar to a junior hacksaw.

When working in confined spaces, it is often easier to apply adhesive to the rear of the tile rather than to the wall - especially when fitting filler tiles.

7 - Grouting

Grout can be applied 24 hours after tiling. Professionals use a 'squeegee' type tool, but a piece of dense foam sponge or a rubber spreader are also suitable.

Step 1:

Use the spreader to force the grout into the gaps between the tiles. Spread in all directions to ensure the gaps are well filled.

Step 2:

After covering the surface area to be worked, wipe away the excess grout with another sponge, rinsing it frequently in a bucket of clean water. To give an even, polished finish to the grout, use a piece of dowel to run down the grout lines, to ensure an even depth and thickness to the grouting lines.

Step 3:

When the grout is dry, polish the tiled area with a soft cloth or rolled-up ball of newspaper.

8 - Drilling tiles

Certain bathroom fittings such as hooks, soap dishes and rings are made as ceramic tile inserts. However, you may wish to add screwed-on towel rails or similar fittings.

Step 1:

First mark the hole position in chinagraph pencil.

Step 2:

With a hard, pointed tool (a centre punch or hole-boring tool), make a dimple in the tile. This will score the surface as a starting point for your masonry drill.

Step 3:

To prevent the drill point from slipping when starting up, cover the area with masking tape and drill through this, using the dimple as a starting guide.

To prevent the tile from cracking when tightening a screw fixing, make sure that the wall plug is fully seated in the wall behind the tile.

Tightening a screw expands the plug in the hole. If the plug is still seated within the tile, the tile may crack.

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