My 2-Car Porcelain Tile Install....

[foodie]

Hi foodie,

It took some time, but your floor turned out gorgeous! That was quite the adventure, surely the both of us will never forget any time soon!

Talk soon.

Oh yes it was quite the adventure!. I could have never done it without all of your professional advice, time and commitment to helping me! You will never know how grateful I am for all of your advice and getting me through those trial and tribulations. You sir, are a true gentleman

 

[Kevin Deal]

Hi foodie,

It took some time, but your floor turned out gorgeous! That was quite the adventure, surely the both of us will never forget any time soon!

Talk soon.

I shudder to ask, but the thinset you used does not appear to be available. I'm about to have my 12x24 tiles installed with a membrane. No issues with moisture, and the cement floor has no cracks.

I don't mind paying more for the thinset. Just don't know what to buy. Also, I'm using regular grout and it doesn't appear you used epoxy grout, right?

Thanks!

 

[foodie]

Kevin send a PM to Dakota, he will answer your question. Also check the beginning of his write up and you will see the exact products he used. The Mapei products are the ones I used and I was able to order from a local tile dealer.

 

[Kevin Deal]

Kevin send a PM to Dakota, he will answer your question. Also check the beginning of his write up and you will see the exact products he used. The Mapei products are the ones I used and I was able to order from a local tile dealer.

Thanks. I hate to bug him. I also may use an epoxy grout. Much more expensive to install.

 

[Dakota00]

Thanks. I hate to bug him. I also may use an epoxy grout. Much more expensive to install.

It's not a bother, I'm still here.

I sent you a PM, answering your questions in detail.

 

[Angelfire]

Thanks. I hate to bug him. I also may use an epoxy grout. Much more expensive to install.

I believe he used a cementitious grout (Mapei Ultracolor I think). See post #463 as he has a couple of recommendations. Mapei claims it's stainproof and the fact that Dakota used it, tells me it's probably very good at resisting stains.

Myself, I used Fusion Pro. Was going to go with Epoxy as that is just bullet proof but the cost and the horror stories I read of installing it, turned me off. The Fusion Pro is kind of between cementitious and Epoxy in terms of performance/cost is how I see it. It was definitely a learning curve as it's applied very differently from your old school grouts. In my install post (https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=388934) I talk about it a bit in post #39. Once I got the hang of it, it went very well....slow but a ~1.5 years later and I haven't a single crack/stain/etc....

It seems Dakota has been pretty busy the past few months but let me tell you, he absolutely is the reason my floor turned out the way it did!
Cheers.

 

[Dakota00]

Thank you Angelfire, I appreciate the kind words. I can't believe its already been 1.5 years since you finished your floor, wow!

 

[bonehead04]

Here's a pic of the Reno U edge protector. Once the grout is completed I'll finish up the exposed lip in front of the edge protector. I would have loved to tile right to the edge of the concrete but the edge protector was 4" short from brick to brick. When I do the driveway I'll figure something out for a nice transition.

View media item 33598

Hey Dakota
Been searching for a solution to transition from the driveway to the garage and found your post. How's the edge protector holding up to car traffic?

 

[Angelfire]

Hey Dakota
Been searching for a solution to transition from the driveway to the garage and found your post. How's the edge protector holding up to car traffic?

I used a Reno edge as well very similar to Dakota. Haven't had any issues with it and traffic. I did fill it with thinset when I put it down.
Cheers.

 

[bonehead04]

I used a Reno edge as well very similar to Dakota. Haven't had any issues with it and traffic. I did fill it with thinset when I put it down.
Cheers.

Thank you!

 

[bmw57isetta]

What Anglefire said. 5+ years of two vehicles coming and going. Solid as a rock just like the porcelain tile.

 

[nicobkn]

Sent you a pm thanks!

Sent from my SM-G965W using Tapatalk

 

[Dakota00]

Hey Dakota
Been searching for a solution to transition from the driveway to the garage and found your post. How's the edge protector holding up to car traffic?

The edge protector is holding up perfectly fine. No wear marks or staining from the winter salt. Still looks like new.

Nicobkn, I sent you a pm.

 

[bonehead04]

The edge protector is holding up perfectly fine. No wear marks or staining from the winter salt. Still looks like new.

Nicobkn, I sent you a pm.

Thanks Dakota! And let me express my gratitude for this most excellent and informative thread. I'm sure I can say we all appreciate the effort and your expertise here!

Product list for myself from the info I've gathered here so far:

Rectified, unglazed, through color tile
Thinset with latex additive (e.g. Kerabond/Keraelastic)
Epoxy grout

Few more questions. I live in Houston. Gets ungodly hot and humid here for about 6 months of the year. Winters are generally pretty mild, but we can get occasional freezing temps (had snow here 2 years ago for the first time in 10 years). Also have yearly flooding concerns which could potentially submerge the floor in the garage.
I'm currently building a home and would like to lay the tile immediately. Prefer not to wait the full year as you suggested.

1) Would you recommend a crack isolation membrane to alleviate any potential slab shifting/cracking issues?
2) Why do you recommend unglazed tile (vs glazed)?
3) A bit unclear to me, but any reason to use Schluter Reno U vs Reno Ramp/K for the transition?
4) Thoughts on this is this tile I'm looking at:

https://www.emser.com/products/esplanade?variant=32481636366

Specs look adequate as far as moisture absorption and DCOF. It is a glazed tile. Not sure of adequacy of hardness since they appear to use a different standard from PEI.

 

[Dakota00]

Thanks Dakota! And let me express my gratitude for this most excellent and informative thread. I'm sure I can say we all appreciate the effort and your expertise here!

Product list for myself from the info I've gathered here so far:

Rectified, unglazed, through color tile
Thinset with latex additive (e.g. Kerabond/Keraelastic)
Epoxy grout

Few more questions. I live in Houston. Gets ungodly hot and humid here for about 6 months of the year. Winters are generally pretty mild, but we can get occasional freezing temps (had snow here 2 years ago for the first time in 10 years). Also have yearly flooding concerns which could potentially submerge the floor in the garage.
I'm currently building a home and would like to lay the tile immediately. Prefer not to wait the full year as you suggested.

1) Would you recommend a crack isolation membrane to alleviate any potential slab shifting/cracking issues?
2) Why do you recommend unglazed tile (vs glazed)?
3) A bit unclear to me, but any reason to use Schluter Reno U vs Reno Ramp/K for the transition?
4) Thoughts on this is this tile I'm looking at:

https://www.emser.com/products/esplanade?variant=32481636366

Specs look adequate as far as moisture absorption and DCOF. It is a glazed tile. Not sure of adequacy of hardness since they appear to use a different standard from PEI.

Hi Bonehead04, thank you for the kind words!

The tiles do not have to be rectified, non-rectified tiles are fine to use as well. Unglazed, through color tiles would be ideal for a working garage. If a chip in a tile does occur, it'll be way less noticeable.
The grout I recommend throughout this thread is not epoxy, but a polymer modified grout. They're different but with similar benefits.

In the event "if" your garage floor were to get flooded, the grout (Mapei Ultracolor Plus) in which I recommend in using is water resistant. Water will not penetrate through the joints.

If you can not wait to tile your garage, using a crack isolation membrane would be added insurance, this will only be beneficial for minor horizontal shifting. However any vertical shifting of the slab (depending on how severe) could result in cracked tiles and/or grout lines. Using a flexible thinset like K/K or FlexBond can also minimize the chances of tiles cracking.

As for the Reno ramp you could use which ever transition that works best for your application.

Having a look at the tile you picked. It's a class 3 for abrasion similar class to that of a PEI 3 tile. Which is ideal for residential, heavy traffic - commercial, light traffic. While it could still be used in a garage application. I would recommend going with minimum of a PEI 4 tile.

 

[gb99]

Hi Dakota and GJ members: thanks for keeping this thread informative and alive!

I'm interested in laying porcelain tiles in my new garage, but am somewhat concerned about how fatigued my knees and back will get due to the hard surface. Now that you've installed porcelain in your garage, do you think that's a real concern or not? Even though I'll be wrenching on cars in there, maybe it won't be for enough hours at a time to be a concern?

Also, how do you ensure each and every tile is level all the way across the garage? Does the mastic/butter have enough "give" to make it difficult to keep all the tiles level?

Thanks!

 

[Dakota00]

Hi Dakota and GJ members: thanks for keeping this thread informative and alive!

I'm interested in laying porcelain tiles in my new garage, but am somewhat concerned about how fatigued my knees and back will get due to the hard surface. Now that you've installed porcelain in your garage, do you think that's a real concern or not? Even though I'll be wrenching on cars in there, maybe it won't be for enough hours at a time to be a concern?

Also, how do you ensure each and every tile is level all the way across the garage? Does the mastic/butter have enough "give" to make it difficult to keep all the tiles level?

Thanks!

Hi,

For me I don't experience any fatigue on my joints while working in the garage. If this is a concern for you be it bare concrete or tiles, it will have the same affect on your body. You could invest in a couple of anti-fatigue mats for your work area(s), if need be.

To answer your last questions, when laying tiles using a level or a straight edge will help guide you to ensure the tiles are nice and flat. You want the floor flat, not level. Any minor adjustments can be made when tiles are freshly laid, but only for a short time span.

 

[houtan]

Great thread. I started my own thread trying to figure out what flooring to get and am getting some good feedback there. Your results have swayed me to pursue a porcelain tile floor so I thought it might be a better idea to post here.

One thing I wanted to ask is if anything needs to be done with regards to some sort of moisture primer. One of the poly aspartic flooring companies said the moisture in my foundation was a little high, I believe he said 4 to 5 percent if that means anything. He was still willing to give a 5 year moisture warranty, but said they would put some sort of base layer that locked on the moisture. Will the same be required if I do porcelain? Or do I need to do something else?

Finding tile at a reasonable price has been a challenge as well. I can’t seem to find anything with plain solid colors! I am finding suitable colors in 12x24 though. Is the rectangular shape major mistake? I do some wrenching in my garage if that makes a difference.

Thanks again for posting your journey!

 

[Dakota00]

Great thread. I started my own thread trying to figure out what flooring to get and am getting some good feedback there. Your results have swayed me to pursue a porcelain tile floor so I thought it might be a better idea to post here.

One thing I wanted to ask is if anything needs to be done with regards to some sort of moisture primer. One of the poly aspartic flooring companies said the moisture in my foundation was a little high, I believe he said 4 to 5 percent if that means anything. He was still willing to give a 5 year moisture warranty, but said they would put some sort of base layer that locked on the moisture. Will the same be required if I do porcelain? Or do I need to do something else?

Finding tile at a reasonable price has been a challenge as well. I can’t seem to find anything with plain solid colors! I am finding suitable colors in 12x24 though. Is the rectangular shape major mistake? I do some wrenching in my garage if that makes a difference.

Thanks again for posting your journey!

Thank you for following along.

To answer questions, you do not need a primer or sealer to lock out moisture. Any moisture that wickers up from below the slab will be released through the grout joints.

If you have limited to no tiling experience I would suggest sticking with a 12x12 tile. Laying 12x24 tiles could be a case of biting off more than you can chew.

 

[ScaldedDog]

Finding tile at a reasonable price has been a challenge as well. I can’t seem to find anything with plain solid colors! I am finding suitable colors in 12x24 though. Is the rectangular shape major mistake? I do some wrenching in my garage if that makes a difference

Consider Takla Montana tile. I had it for years in my last place, and it held up well, and was relatively inexpensive at the time. Here's my install thread, and I, too, thank @Dakota00 for his help on it!

Mark

 

[Dakota00]

Hi Mark,

Glad to hear the floor is holding up well, continue enjoying it!

 

[houtan]

@Dakota00: thank you. That makes my choice even easier!

@ScaldedDog: thanks for the input. I will take a look.

Another general question, what is an acceptable dollar per sq ft cost to pay someone to do the install? I am going to get a couple of quotes but just wondering what to expect.

 

[ScaldedDog]

Hi Mark,

Glad to hear the floor is holding up well, continue enjoying it!

Thanks man! We sold that house earlier this year, and moved into a place with about 2100sf of garage/shop space, and unimproved concrete floors. If my wife knew I was looking at these threads, she'd serve me with papers by the end of the day...

I was reading through this thread, and realized again how much help you and @slickgt1 were when I was doing that floor. It turned out great, and I still appreciate all your help!

I realized you'd asked me back then for pictures of the space, and I never posted them. If they are helpful for anyone else who happens upon this, here they are:





Mark

 

[houtan]

I couldn’t find the Takla Montana tiles. But I found these locally on Craigslist. Currently at 1.40 per sq ft without negotiation. Pei 5, MOHS 8, slip greater than .42. But they are a matte glaze. Does that mean the color is not through The body? They are also 12x24 so I would have someone install them most likely. You think these would work? http://www.eleganzatiles.com/loft-grigio-12x24.html

Mark, that garage is badass!!!!

 

[Dakota00]

Damn Mark!

You sold that house with those garages?!?! Holy **** man!

Houtan,

That's correct the tiles are a glazed porcelain which means they are not through body color.

 

[houtan]

Damn Mark!

You sold that house with those garages?!?! Holy **** man!

Houtan,

That's correct the tiles are a glazed porcelain which means they are not through body color.

Thank you. Does that rule them out for a garage application or would they be ok still? I emailed the seller, they are saying the entire tile is grey.

Also, how do you guys handle the area where the garage tracks touch the ground? Do I cut the track so the tike can fit underneath?

 

[Dakota00]

Thank you. Does that rule them out for a garage application or would they be ok still? I emailed the seller, they are saying the entire tile is grey.

Also, how do you guys handle the area where the garage tracks touch the ground? Do I cut the track so the tike can fit underneath?

It doesn't necessarily rule them out. Those tiles would hold up just fine for light duty jobs in the garage. If you're a weekend warrior type that's constantly abusing the floor by dragging out the jack stands and floor jack all the time, look into getting through body porcelain tiles.

As for the garage track, cut it so the tile can fit.

 

[houtan]

It doesn't necessarily rule them out. Those tiles would hold up just fine for light duty jobs in the garage. If you're a weekend warrior type that's constantly abusing the floor by dragging out the jack stands and floor jack all the time, look into getting through body porcelain tiles.

As for the garage track, cut it so the tile can fit.

Ok thanks. My wrenching has slowed down a lot, maybe once a month at most. So I am going to get them. Can’t wait to see them installed.

 

[houtan]

Bought the tile. It looks really nice IMO of course. Hear are a couple of pictures.

I have a few more questions I was hoping you guys can help with.

1. Do I start the schluter right at the edge of the joint between the garage and driveway?

2. Is there any issue having the stem wall tiled?

3. I am giving in on the install and having a professional do it. Time is my biggest issue right now. It would literally take forever. Having said that and losing all my manhood, I found out products they use for install. They use the following thinset and grout. Will they be good for the garage?

Grout: https://laticrete.com/en/tile-and-stone-installation/grouts/cementitious-grouts/permacolor-select

Thinset: https://www.custombuildingproducts....ed-thin-set-mortars/versabond/versabond.aspx#

 

[Dakota00]

Nice tile!

1. Schluter what?, I'm guessing you are referring to the tile edge protector? Start at the joint where the garage slab begins.

2. No issue with tiling the stem wall.

3. Grout choice is perfectly fine. However I would recommend stepping up the thinset to FlexBond, this is more suitable for a garage.

 

[houtan]

Nice tile!

1. Schluter what?, I'm guessing you are referring to the tile edge protector? Start at the joint where the garage slab begins.

2. No issue with tiling the stem wall.

3. Grout choice is perfectly fine. However I would recommend stepping up the thinset to FlexBond, this is more suitable for a garage.

Thank you.

Sorry for the vagueness in number one, that’s what I get for trying to write a post while giving milk to a baby lol.

Yeah I meant the reno u or Reno ramp. Any preference between the two? It seems the short ramp of the Reno u would be better since it will allow some of the garage door to rest on tile Vs. the ramp which may result in the door resting on the ramp. Or am I overthinking it?

I am going to ask the installer about flexbond. Am I totally screwed if they insist on using the original one they recommended?

 

[Dakota00]

That's correct the Reno U would be better suited, allowing the garage door to rest flat on the tile.

Flexbond is better suited for this application due to its excellent flexibility and adhesion strength. If your installer is willing to use Versabond, he should have no problem getting or using Flexbond.

 

[houtan]

Thank you.

What is the recommended spacing between the tiles? I was thinking 1/8 inch, but have read 1/16 is possible.

 

[Dakota00]

Ideally a 1/16 grout joint would look best when using a rectified tile. However, I'd recommend going with a 1/8" for a stronger grout joint.

 

[houtan]

Thank you.

for the Reno U, we decided on the 10mm size. Of course, I went to double check measurements last night lol. My tile, per my calipers is 9mm, and I believe the thickness of the mortar is 3/16 of an inch, which is .007mm. So the total thickness is 9.007mm which makes the 10mm Reno U the right size. Does that sound correct?

 

[Dakota00]

Sounds good, adjustments in height of the Reno U can be made while the thinset is fresh. Don't sweat it!

 

[56Mark]

Thank you.

for the Reno U, we decided on the 10mm size. Of course, I went to double check measurements last night lol. My tile, per my calipers is 9mm, and I believe the thickness of the mortar is 3/16 of an inch, which is .007mm. So the total thickness is 9.007mm which makes the 10mm Reno U the right size. Does that sound correct?

Flip you math over....(3/16)/25.4 = .007. What you want is (3/16) * 25.4 = 4.8 mm.

BTW, I would love to tile my garage and might if I find a steal on porcelain tile I like.

 

[houtan]

Flip you math over....(3/16)/25.4 = .007. What you want is (3/16) * 25.4 = 4.8 mm.

BTW, I would love to tile my garage and might if I find a steal on porcelain tile I like.

Wow. I have no idea what I was thinking, obviously not much lol

Thanks for pointing that out, I appreciate it

 

[Blue Seducer]

Lots of good information here. I want to tile my 24’ x 36’ garage. In the planning phase now.

 

[bonehead04]

Hey Dakota. General question. Aside from the tile itself, are there any fundamental differences in the tiling process of a garage space vs. indoor which only sees foot traffic? What I'm getting at is should someone that's competent in tiling a home be skilled enough to do a garage?