Porcelain Tile in the Man Cave

[Dakota00]

Hey Dakota,
I've tried snapping string lines in the past and found they weren't very useful. As I was working away, I continually covered them up with thinset so couldn't see them to align the tiles. So a quick question (and I apologize to the OP for hijacking the thread)....do you lay the thinset close the chalk line and just from experience know how close to burn the thinset in or is there some other recommendation? I've also heard to preserve chalk lines is to spray them with a lacquer/poly/etc... (I actually think I've heard of using hair spray too but can't be sure....***** to get old!).

Yes, you lay down the thinset as close to the caulk line. But at the same time when laying, you are using the rows above that have been set as a guide. This is where experience comes into play, the caulk lines are only used for reference.

As shown in the pics from my thread when I did my floor, I prefer to use a long straight edge. Placing the straight edge on the caulk line, then adding weight on the straight edge (with tiles) to keep in place. This will ensure the tiles are perfectly straight and also held together tight to stop the tiles tendency of moving while the thinset cures.

View media item 33581

 

[Angelfire]

Thanks folks.

I had forgotten about a straight edge but the comments reminded me of when I saw a guy installing tile at a relatives house. He was using angle iron that he would screw to the floor as he moved to his next row...seemed like it was working.

I've done some ceramic before but my biggest claim to fame is about 1500sf of authentic Saltillo.....that stuff isn't square to save your life so it's all about eyeballing it.

Thanks again...now back to the regularly scheduled program.
Cheers.

 

[Dakota00]

Another small tip when using a straight edge. Place a few small pieces of cardboard under the straight edge, this will keep it from touching the slab. The point of this is to help keep the straight edge cleaner of the thinset and it will make it easier to remove once the tiles are set.
But it would be best to remove the straight edge after 4hrs or so if possible, where the tiles are dry enough that they wont move. But yet the thinset is still fresh enough that cleaning of the edge and removal would be effortless.

 

[Track t-4]

Should a grout line be used where the tiles **** up to the Reno ramp? I purchased the Reno Ramp-K and the video on their website suggests not using spacers:

www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=1Ta0fZy-9vU

In the video they refer to an "integrated joint spacer" and their cross section view shows one:

www.schluter.com/p/content/csd_renoramp.jpg

but there isn't any on the ramp. I called Schluter but the lady I spoke with didn't know and seemed unsure of herself. I'm using 3/16" grout spacers and wondering if I should use a grout spacer or if there is a reason to not do a grout line next to the ramp.

 

[Dakota00]

Dry test and see when you **** the tile up to the Reno ramp, is there a grout joint?
If not, I highly suggest in adding at least a 1/8" joint. This will ensure that water or snow melt doesn't find its way under the tiles or ramp causing any issues ie: like popping tiles in a freeze/thaw situation.

 

[Track t-4]

Finally caught a warm day, bit the bullet and laid 1/2 of the Schluter ramp and about 6 tiles - it went well. Not much of a start but I had to leave access to get one of the cars to one more Cars & Coffee this Saturday before storing for the winter. Dancing around the holiday schedules now but hope to make more progress and post photos soon. Merry Christmas to all!

 

[Track t-4]

Progress! Not moving too quickly but I was able to get a couple of days working on the floor. Installed the Schluter "K" ramp and got 34 tiles laid. My wife is helping by handling the buttering and some cleanup. After burning in I'm still working on applying just the right amount of thinset to get good grooves with the 1/2" trowel. Trial and error but skills are improving. The cars can still move forward a bit so my plan is to lay tile as much as I can then grout, wait at least five days and move the cars back over the laid tile with a ramp temporarily in place.

 

[Dakota00]

Track,

Is there a way to park the roadster "side ways" behind the other car to free up the whole left side of the garage? This way you can tile and grout the whole side. Then move the cars over after tiles had cured for a few tiles to finish up the other side.

 

[Track t-4]

Dakota,
Yes, we were just talking about that last night. Thanks. That's usually how the cars are parked. So plan is now to tile as close to the cars as possible, grout, let stand for a few days then swing the roadster sideways back behind the '37.

Yesterday I painted the threshold to match the rest of the foundation so that looks alot better.

 

[Track t-4]

I have a wet saw but decided to buy a tile cutter - the kind that you score then snap the tile. I have quite a few tiles to cut along the side edges of the floor and thought the cutter would be faster. The first two cut beautifully but the next four were lousy and I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong. Even tried scoring four or five times and the cut was still erratic. I can't believe the cutter got dull after two tiles - is there a trick to using these?

 

[rustyjames]

You should only score the tile once or you'll ruin the cutter wheel.

 

[OJ Bartley]

Track, looks great so far! I can't remember if you mentioned why you chose to have the tile and the ramp begin at the door threshold, instead of all the way out to the end of the pad (where you painted). It looks good painted, I was just wondering. I brought mine all the way out to the edge and am happy with it so far.

 

[Track t-4]

OJ,
Thanks. We got alot more done today, will have to get updated photos later this week.

I started the ramp and tile just inside the door because I didn't want the tile showing in front of the door when it's closed. The other garage is right next to it and isn't tiled so they still look the same from the outside.

BTW, didn't you say you used a tile cutter to cut your tiles? As I mentioned above the tool did not work for me. So I fired up the wet saw today and the cutter is going back to Home Depot tomorrow.

 

[OJ Bartley]

Yeah, I was kind of surprised to see you having trouble with yours. I used an old one that I borrowed from a neighbour, nothing fancy, just a basic cheapie, and it seemed to work well. My breaks weren't exactly razor sharp, but they were still pretty clean. I was amazed that I could even score and snap really small widths of tile as well, I think I got down to cutting about 3" slices. They were tough to break, and took some help (and extra leverage) to snap, but worked out OK. I think I only messed up 1 tile using it, and that was one that I didn't score all the way across.

I can definitely see why you wanted to keep both looking the same from outside, that makes sense. And I guess you get the added benefit of a little better water blockage too.

 

[duneslider]

Not all tile cuts well on a tile cutter. I have several really expensive cutters and it makes no difference if the tile "won't cut". From discussions I have had with manufacturers the tiles that don't cut were not fired correctly. This tends to be very common with chinese tiles but I have had the issues with all makes of tiles. Has to do with temps of firing and the cooling process from what I have been told.

I have not seen any damage occur to my cutters from scoring more than once, not sure why that would damage a cutter either. It is important to lube the cutting wheel frequently and it is also helpful to lube the whole line you will cut, this can help cutting difficult tiles. Use brush and paint a line of ATF over the tile and then cut over the oiled line. Now, in a garage I wouldn't go through that but if I am on the 5th floor of a building and the tiles saw is in the parking garage I will go through that effort.

I don't use a cutter for any place that will have an exposed edge, just along walls and such.

Also, cheap cutters don't work well or last long on porcelain tile.

 

[Dakota00]

^^ X2 what he said!! I have had issues as well with high end tiles using a top quality cutter.

 

[Track t-4]

That pretty much explains it then. Thanks guys.

 

[Track t-4]

It's been a bit too cold to work on the tile and I've been under the weather for over a week. This garage is heated but I'm cutting the tiles in the unheated garage so being delayed right now. Hope to get back to serious tiling again in a couple of days.

 

[duneslider]

Tile that is really cold can cut funny too. It is possible that is some of the issue you had too.

I have a bucket heater that keeps the water in my saw nice and toasty. Nothing worse than cutting tile on a wet saw in freezing temps. So many not so fond memories of pulling the pump and hoses off the saw to take inside to thaw out because they froze up in between cuts.

 

[Angelfire]

Tile that is really cold can cut funny too. It is possible that is some of the issue you had too.

I have a bucket heater that keeps the water in my saw nice and toasty. Nothing worse than cutting tile on a wet saw in freezing temps. So many not so fond memories of pulling the pump and hoses off the saw to take inside to thaw out because they froze up in between cuts.

And here I thought I was the only one mad enough to be outside cutting tiles in subzero temps with a wet saw! You are more than correct....not much else ***** that much...

 

[Track t-4]

The tiles are stored and marked in the heated garage (60-62 degrees). The unheated garage is right next to it so the tiles are in the unheated garage just long enough to be cut. I've been trying to do the cutting when it's not real cold outside but have seen 40 degrees in the garage. Looks like we'll have some warmer temps this weekend, I'm anxious to get back to work.

Question: Laying approx 600 sq ft of 1x2 tiles and 3/16" grout gaps. What's a good estimate for how many 25 lb bags of grout will be needed?

 

[duneslider]

The tiles are stored and marked in the heated garage (60-62 degrees). The unheated garage is right next to it so the tiles are in the unheated garage just long enough to be cut. I've been trying to do the cutting when it's not real cold outside but have seen 40 degrees in the garage. Looks like we'll have some warmer temps this weekend, I'm anxious to get back to work.

Question: Laying approx 600 sq ft of 1x2 tiles and 3/16" grout gaps. What's a good estimate for how many 25 lb bags of grout will be needed?

I will post this as it might help others in the future. Laticrete has an app that does coverage calculations and I have found it to be pretty good. I haven't looked but I bet other manufacturers have apps too. They should all give back basically the same numbers.

Anyway. 2-25lbs bags of sanded grout should be more than enough. I am a clean grouter (I really scrape it off so there isn't much anywhere but in the joints.) so I can usually get a little more coverage than they say. I will mix up a whole bag at once and knock it out fast but I wouldn't recommend that for a beginner.

If you are buying at HD or Lowes I think you can get 15lb bags too but can't remember. I think a 25 and a 15 would be enough. I always made sure I had more than enough because I liked to leave a half bag with the customer for possible future touch-ups, or for myself in new construction for call backs. Plus, even if I had a full bag left it was cheaper than having to leave a job, run to the supply house, and come back to finish and I could probably use the extra bag on the next job.

 

[Track t-4]

With the weather warming slightly and feeling healthy again it was time to get back to work on the garage floor. My plan is to tile the whole floor while keeping two cars and the floor cabinets in the garage. So today was the first test of actually driving one of the cars on the tile.

Here is the finished portion of tile – about 1/3 of the total floor space:



I taped door frame trim to the edge of the first tiles so I could back the roadster over the edges of the first tiles without risking breaking or chipping. Here is a photo looking out from inside of the garage:



Then backed the roadster onto the tile so I could tile the space where it was sitting (required driving out onto some snow to get backed around). This was the first test driving on the tiles – none cracked or broken! Moved all the cabinets and display case onto the tile too (moved in front of the roadster after this photo was taken).



This photo shows how we tiled around the other car



This Photo shows the garage door entry and the Schluter®-RENO-RAMP/-K:



Now I can tile the left side of the garage all the way up to the work bench. After that the car on the right will be moved to the left side of the garage and that side will be tiled to the work bench. Last, the work bench will be lifted onto the tile and the floor will be finished. This is going to be a huge improvement over the blue tarps that were on the floor for the past two years! BTW, the grout I'm using is Mapei Ultracolor Plus “Bahama Beige”.

 

[OJ Bartley]

Looking good, t-4! The reno ramp is awesome, isn't it? I feel your pain, working in small sections and moving stuff around every time. It's tedious and slow, and feels like it saps all your energy to get another section started, but you'll be so happy when you finish, it makes it all worth it.

 

[Track t-4]

OJ,

Thanks. Yes, really glad I went with the Reno ramp.

 

[Track t-4]

The bay on the left is now finished up to the work bench. As soon as the huge pile of snow in front of the garage is gone I'll be able to switch the '37 to the left-side bay and tile the right-side bay. Progress is slow but steady.

 

[Track t-4]

Progress has been slow but I'm finally about 5/6 of the way finished tiling the floor. Everything is now tiled and grouted except a section of the floor in the front of the garage - about 100 sg ft where the workbench and book shelves were located. The '37 was moved to the left-side bay and the roadster was parked sideways behind it. After driving over the finished area there have been NO issues with the completed tile. Before tiling the floor it was covered with blue tarps that curled up when the wheels were turned, now they turn freely and it's much easier to maneuver the cars. Sorry for no photos but everything is currently crammed into the finished area to provide working space to finish the job. Hopefully photos in a week or two.

 

[Track t-4]

Closing in on the end of the 600 sq ft. Only 12 more (partial) tiles to lay and then grouting on about 1/4 of the floor to finish. This is what I'm calling a 4-phase project - moving cars and "stuff" around to complete the job without emptying the garage. Phase 1 was at the door end of the garage behind the cars, 2 was the left bay up to the work bench, 3 was the right bay up to the work bench and 4 was everything moved to the door end - cabinets, cars, work bench, etc - and tiling the floor where the workbench usually sits. Very happy with the results so far and hoping to finish everything this coming week.

This is the area that is normally under the workbench. Everything else is moved to the garage door end:



This is a partial view of the mess jammed in the door end of the garage while we finish up in the other end. Should look much better in a few days:

 

[duneslider]

Looks great, I am sure you will be very happy with the end result!

 

[Track t-4]

We finished the floor back in March. Sorry for the delay but things have been a bit crazy around here. The floor went well and I'm very happy with the results. After living with wrinkled, trip-hazard blue tarps on the floor for two years this is like working in a showroom. My THANKS to everyone who has supported, recommended and suggested along the way - especially Dakota00. Here's the final result:




Now it's time for a 4-post lift:

 

[Dakota00]

Another satisfied customer!
Excellent job, the floor came out fantastic!

 

[EOT 4 Life]

Amazing job! Looks fantastic!

 

[Shea]

Beautiful!

 

[Overhaulin63]

Can you use a floor jack or jack stands on tile without cracking?

 

[Dakota00]

yes and yes, proper installation is the key to a problem free tiled floor.

 

[OJ Bartley]

Looks great t-4! Worth all that time and back breaking relocation work, wasn't it!?

Great job.

 

[Track t-4]

Absolutely, OJ. And thanks everyone for the compliments.
We weren't the fastest but managed to do about 20 tiles per session.
My wife did the buttering and I did the rest. Even my grandson buttered a few.

 

[Denwood]

Awesome outcome! Well worth the effort.

 

[GDPossehl]

That's a great looking floor! I'll bet it gives you a swelling sense of pride every time you walk in there.

 

[Cave Creek Ray]

Great job and so worth the effort. Makes you cars look like they jewels they are. And porcelain/ceramic is bullet proof. No need to walk around the floor with fluffy slippers like the epoxy crowd!

I am two days into 1150 sq ft in my workshop. Got about 1/4 done. Same size tile as you. It is so much nicer to look at the tile than the old concrete.

I'll do a photo log when I get it done. Great learning experience dealing with the crack joints in the proper fashion. ( Super source for people seeking tile advice: http://floorelf.com/ ) The outcome is worth the effort.

Re: Jack Stands. I epoxy all my jack stands to 1/2 wood bases, even for use on my old painted floor. I'll do the same for this workshop using new clean and finished wood.

Pic: End of day one...