Wall Tiles- What Am I Doing Wrong

[thaibeachlovers]

Was told to mix a lot of cement with a little bit of fine sand to fill a curved wall space and fix tile to wall, but as soon as I put mortar on the tile it goes off and I can't put it into proper position. I have wet the tile and the wall.

So, what is the right technique?

Thanks for any help.

[dazk]

i would recommend a proper tile cement or you may find if you do get them to stick to the wall they will soon be falling off due to lake of flexibility in the cement mix, there are plenty of quality tile cements available here.

your cement mix is most likely to dry and too much cement try 1 part cement 3 parts sand

if you have a big dip in the wall i would first render the wall flat then use a tile adhesive to fix the tiles

[overherebc]

Home-Pro and other big stores similar do now carry 'Fix and Grout'.

Makes the job much easier and the tiles stay in place a whole lot longer.

[Morakot]

Agree. Create a evenly surfaced wall by rendering it properly and then use a specific tile adhesive for your tiles on the tried render.

Tiling merely with a cement/ sand mortar is an artisan job, hard to master for DIY.

Edited August 16, 2012 by Morakot

[Morakot]

Which DIY store sells sacks of cement mortar mix (fine sand for rendering/ plastering)?

I've checked in HomePro twice and they only have bags of Dry-set cement mortar for floor tiling. I'm quite surprised.

Edited August 16, 2012 by Morakot

[dazk]

Which DIY store sells sacks of cement mortar mix (fine sand for rendering/ plastering)?

I've checked in HomePro twice and they only have bags of Dry-set cement mortar for floor tiling. I'm quite surprised.

you want a fine sharp sand for rendering ( not sure if they have a choice of sands here )best go to a mom and pop type store for that, mix 4 parts sand 1 part cement applied in layers no more than 10mm thick not sure what you are rendering over but a slurry of cement, water and PVA applied to the surface with a brush then allowed to dry will help the render stick to the wall, key each coat also the last coat for the tiles to go on.

get your self a sponge float if you can find one its easy to use if you have no experience

[Morakot]

Which DIY store sells sacks of cement mortar mix (fine sand for rendering/ plastering)?

I've checked in HomePro twice and they only have bags of Dry-set cement mortar for floor tiling. I'm quite surprised.

you want a fine sharp sand for rendering ( not sure if they have a choice of sands here )best go to a mom and pop type store for that...

Sorry, you lost me here. Mom and pop store? A small building material supply store?

I'd be happy with mortar mix, for some small-scale repair jobs.

Edited August 16, 2012 by Morakot

[Morakot]

I found something: in 35 stores in the Bangkok area:

http://tigermortar.c...roduct.php?id=6

Might be useful for the OP too, if he is going to render it first before tiling.

Edited August 16, 2012 by Morakot

[dazk]

Which DIY store sells sacks of cement mortar mix (fine sand for rendering/ plastering)?

I've checked in HomePro twice and they only have bags of Dry-set cement mortar for floor tiling. I'm quite surprised.

you want a fine sharp sand for rendering ( not sure if they have a choice of sands here )best go to a mom and pop type store for that...

Sorry, you lost me here. Mom and pop store? A small building material supply store?

I'd be happy with mortar mix, for some small-scale repair jobs.

yes i mean the small builders merchant, often much cheaper than big chain stores, if you get a good one that does not see "falang atm"

[dazk]

I found something: in 35 stores in the Bangkok area:

http://tigermortar.c...roduct.php?id=6

Might be useful for the OP too, if he is going to render it first before tiling.

looks good, from what i can make out it has additives for easy working and flexibility

[thaibeachlovers]

Thanks everyone.

In the end, I used my cement mix to fill the gap, used an angle grinder to smooth the surface, and stuck the tile on with silicone sealer. As I had only one tile to replace didn't want to be buying bags of anything.

However, if I ever have a big tiling job, your advice will be very useful.

Thanks again.

[travelmann]

Thanks everyone.

In the end, I used my cement mix to fill the gap, used an angle grinder to smooth the surface, and stuck the tile on with silicone sealer. As I had only one tile to replace didn't want to be buying bags of anything.

However, if I ever have a big tiling job, your advice will be very useful.

Thanks again.

Doubt silicone sealer will hold a tile on for long.

[dazk]

Thanks everyone.

In the end, I used my cement mix to fill the gap, used an angle grinder to smooth the surface, and stuck the tile on with silicone sealer. As I had only one tile to replace didn't want to be buying bags of anything.

However, if I ever have a big tiling job, your advice will be very useful.

Thanks again.

Doubt silicone sealer will hold a tile on for long.

it will it will stick and hold most things if the surfaces are clean, we use silicone a lot back in the uk in property maintenance even have some now that can be used on wet surfaces or under water

[Morakot]

I found something: in 35 stores in the Bangkok area:

http://tigermortar.c...roduct.php?id=6

Might be useful for the OP too, if he is going to render it first before tiling.

Just some more background information for budgeting, if people find this useful.

For a 50 kg bag of this cement mortar I paid 95 baht (August 2012, BKK). You might be able to get a lower price for bulk purchases, I guess.

Edited August 20, 2012 by Morakot

[thaibeachlovers]

Thanks everyone.

In the end, I used my cement mix to fill the gap, used an angle grinder to smooth the surface, and stuck the tile on with silicone sealer. As I had only one tile to replace didn't want to be buying bags of anything.

However, if I ever have a big tiling job, your advice will be very useful.

Thanks again.

Doubt silicone sealer will hold a tile on for long.

I'll let you all know if it falls off. Somehow, I'm not going to lose sleep over it, LOL.

[thaibeachlovers]

I found something: in 35 stores in the Bangkok area:

http://tigermortar.c...roduct.php?id=6

Might be useful for the OP too, if he is going to render it first before tiling.

Just some more background information for budgeting, if people find this useful.

For a 50 kg bag of this cement mortar I paid 95 baht (August 2012, BKK). You might be able to get a lower price for bulk purchases, I guess.

dam_n, that's less than I paid for the silicone!

[Morakot]

I found something: in 35 stores in the Bangkok area:

http://tigermortar.c...roduct.php?id=6

Might be useful for the OP too, if he is going to render it first before tiling.

Just some more background information for budgeting, if people find this useful.

For a 50 kg bag of this cement mortar I paid 95 baht (August 2012, BKK). You might be able to get a lower price for bulk purchases, I guess.

dam_n, that's less than I paid for the silicone!

Actually I saw a 1kg bag of repair mix (cement sand) for 45 baht. This should have been yours for that kind of job. But than again silicon in a tube is nice and easy to apply; no dust or dirt with the mixing.

Edited August 20, 2012 by Morakot