One "SAFETY" note I keep forgetting to mention.
If you are going to be on your knees for hours, you absolutely have to use knee pads if you ever plan on walking again.
I have some pretty fancy silicone pads that work great in long pants but the dual strap drives you crazy in shorts as the straps slide into the backside of your knee. Its really irritating. I bought a set of cheapie ($4) single-strap foam pads at Home Depot and they are awesome. They provide plenty of padding yet stay put and don't irritate a naked, dirty, sweating leg. I have since bought a few more pair as they last a whole job and you can chuck them if they get too nasty -or use them for outdoor work.
The other thing is DO NOT TRY to dry cut all your tiles with a diamond saw. Porcelain dust is nasty stuff and breathing it is not good. Use a wet saw.
Speaking of wet saws, I used a RIGID 10" blade for the last 3/4 of my workshop and the whole three car garage. Its still cutting after over 1600 feet of tile. It was $40 and worth it. If you rent a wet saw you will get the blade they have installed unless you ask them to change it. My "rental" saw (that I bought from HD Rental) came with a blade that was worn out on one side because the sliding table was not square with the blade and the tiles were going through the blade at a slight angle. Truing up the table was easy enough using a square.
Wear ear protection when cutting tiles. A wet saw is a loud machine and using a wet stone on porcelain after cutting to knock off the sharp edge is brutally loud too. Save your ears. Hearing damage is cumulative.
Working in the wet for a few hours is brutal on your hands, especially if you have dry skin. I kept a tub of Eucerin creme handy and would lube up twice a day and that kept my hands in really good shape. I tried wearing disposable gloves but they slide and limit your grip. If you wear gloves, keep your hands protected as sweat will accumulate in your gloves and further **** the oils out of your skin. Mortar and grout have lye in them that will waste your hands if not protected.
Tile is heavy, especially in the shipping boxes. Most tile boxes weigh in the neighborhood of 80 lbs. Take care when lifting those and break the boxes down if need be. Use a Harbor Freight small moving dolly to move the tile around the work space. It will save your back.
And don't forget to take a break and try to stretch out your back and neck so you don't end up "tweaked" the next day.
For mixing my mortar and grout, I used a HF Heavy-Duty reversible drill that ran $35. Awesome for mixing and the reversing action really whipped the mortar up and kept the quality high. I used a four hoop mixing paddle and it cleaned up well after each mixing. Keep your tools clean as you go because solid mortar is hard to get off steel or chrome.
I mixed all my mortar in a smaller black two-gallon bucket from the paint department at HD. It will do about 3/4 a bag of mortar which is enough for one period. I tried to keep it clean but by the end of the job, the upper lip had a nice accretion of mud stuck to it. You just don't want any bits breaking off in your mud or mortar. When you are done with the job, you can pitch it. If you were wondering, I have found in summer temps, mortar will last about three hours in a bucket before it starts setting up. Keep mixing it with your margin trowel to keep the consistency up and everything fluid.
Last thing: Shoes. Working with cementaceous products takes its toll on footwear. The mortar and grout are bad enough but the dust of prep and mixing will toast most tennis shoes in little more than one job. Spending so much time on the floor bends the shoes for prolonged periods. I ended up with rips along side of the shoes in three pair over both projects before I got done. But, the cost was, my feet made it through with little damage. Protect those toes. Don't wear flip flops.
Ray
