Big tiles aren't always fun...

When last we left our hero, Ditra had been laid and we were ready for tiling. So all we've got to do is throw some tile down right? Wrong. Well, right if you want your floor to look like Helen Keller helped you lay it, wrong if you want people to actually like it. Now don't go getting all huffy about the Helen Keller reference. Yes, her story is amazing and courageous, but really, would you pay her to lay tile for you? I don't think so. Maybe I'd let her grout but even then you're taking your chances.

To begin, you need to figure out what kind of pattern you're laying - square, brick (staggered) or diagonal. Because I'm using 12"x24" tiles (more on those pros and cons later) I went with a brick pattern. I've got the pattern, now I need to work on the layout. Normally you'd find the center of the long side of the room and snap a chalk line then do the same on the short side of the room to get the center. If there's a doorway, you'd also get a centerline from that and then figure out how to lay the tiles so you don't end up with any terrible (thin) cuts of tiles at the ends (as best as possible). It was pretty much the same for me, except I had to deal with the lovely bow-front of my bathtub. I didn't want little pieces to cut curves into, so I decided that I'd use the tub as my starting point. Here you can see the initial layout:

Note the chalk line on the right of the tiles (remember folks, you can enlarge these pictures). My first line was the center of the door and the tiles are currently covering it. The visible line is the one I used to set everything from. It basically let me use a full width tile for the starting point of the tub cuts. BTW, DIY tip - use hair spray on your chalk lines to get them from disappearing. It really does work. And measure about 80 times to get the line right - you don't want to finish your tiling and wonder why everything is veering to one side. Not good. Even Helen knows that. She can't really tell if it's happened and has no idea how to fix it, but she's starting to win me over with the grout thing.

In this picture I've started laying out part of a second row of tile to get the brick pattern right. I want the grout lines of one row to hit the exact center of the tiles in the next row. I also want the first row of tile to be as close to a full tile as possible taking into account the width of the threshold that will later be put in the doorway (they will be full 5" threshold to match the rest in the house):

It took a lot of trial and error to get it just right and get the measurements to the partial tiles that will be at the end of the run. One length for rows that start with a full tile, another for those that start with half tiles. Lots of fun. No swearing at all. Nope.

After a couple hours of measuring, checking and testing I was ready to go. I had the sense to cut the curved pieces first rather than cut as I needed because it takes a while to cut a nice smooth curve in a 24" tile. I used a cheap tile saw to do the work and it did the job admirably although I will happily smash it to little pieces when I'm all done. You see it's one of those  bench top models with the blade coming up through the top like a table saw, rather than from above like a chop saw. There is a reason why they cheap tile saws are built that way - they spray a ridiculous amount of water back at you. Oh sure there's a guard to use, but you can't see anything when it's down. I felt like I was in Das Boot at some points. Anyway, it did work as you can see from this dry fit (note the ever important cardboard template sitting on the tub used to cut the Ditra to shape and the tile):

And yes, the closet really is a horrible colour - but it's not staying. I've got some shelves and an access panel to put in so the closet will get finished after the main work. And it was pointed out to me that I should have probably put my door trim in after the tile, but the simple matter of fact was that it was originally done this way and I just did it the same way. Once it's grouted and the trim is in, it won't show. After much fun and no swearing (really, you don't believe me?) the tile was down and then the following day grouted. I decided in the end not to use Helen's services, not because of any prejudice or her inability to return my phone calls or text messages because she's been dead for quite some time now and her whole participation in this event is clearly a complete and utter delusion on my part brought on my the stress of this never ending reno. Sorry, I digress, the grout:

You will notice in the last picture that I even managed to cut out the opening for the main drain pipe. That was actually easier than I thought. I measured it's location on the tile, made a square, then an octagon, and finally cut it all out with a diamond blade on my angle grinder. It was actually ridiculously easy. Just like laying the tile. Honest. There were no issues at all. Well not really. I mean not anything major. Nothing that would make me swear. Okay, fine. If the paint were on the walls at this point it would have peeled off while I was laying tile.

See, there's the issue. I like the 12"x24" tiles and I don't regret using them and they certainly cover a lot of floor as you lay them. But they have a certain "cost" associated with them. They can be a bitch to level. At two feet long, when you press one end down to get it level with the other tile (when the edges of tiles aren't even it's called lippage and best case it's ugly, worst case you stub your toe or trip) the other end pops up something fierce. To help get it right you need lots of mortar. That was another issue actually. Big tiles require more mortar than you'd think. Firstly, they need a bigger trowel size. I had to use 1/2" x 1/2" notched trowel AND I needed to back butter the tiles too (a slathering of mortar on the back of the tile to make sure there is good adhesion and support). Think about it, in the same way it's easier to snap a long piece of wood versus a short one, it's a lot easier to break big tiles than small ones. Don't have them fully supported with mortar and look out. I burned through 2 1/2 bags of mortar for that little floor.

All that aside, it looks good and it's let me move on to the next phase of this never ending story - painting. And that will be in my next post...which since I already have most of the painting done and pictures taken, might actually get done in a reasonable amount of time...maybe...

Ditra - not something you order off the Indian menu...

I'm ready for Ditra. This is a big deal. It means I'm about to tile the floor. This of course begs the question, what is Ditra. Well it's orange. Really orange. Not enough detail? Fine then. Ditra is from my friends at Schluter who also brought us that old time hit Kerdi (the other orange stuff I used when tiling the shower). Where Kerdi is basically like a fabric used for water-proofing vertical surfaces, Ditra is an uncoupling membrane for floor tiles. The back of the Ditra is a felt fabric that sticks to the mortar bonding it to the floor. The top of the Ditra is covered in square depressions that once filled with mortar form a mechanical bond to hold the tile in place. Now here's the neat part - if the floor moves for any reason, the Ditra absorbs the movement. That means that the tile and grout won't crack and since I'm using 12x24 inch tiles that's a big deal to me. First step is to lay out the Ditra and cut the sheets to shape for a dryfit:

When it came to the tub I had the sense to make a cardboard template of the curve of the tub before I installed it. This made making the curve quite easy and will be used again to help with the cutting of the tiles that will also need to match the tub curve.

With the Ditra cut to shape, it's time to stick it down. Ditra is adhered to the floor using a modified (latex added) thinset and an unmodified (no latex) thinset between the Ditra and the tile (don't mix those up - you'll have drying issues). I've marked on the floor where the first sheet of Ditra ends, so after mixing my mortar I spread some out on the floor and use a 1/4 x 1/4 inch notched trowel (Schluter recommends a 1/4 x 3/16 "V" notched trowel but they are basically only made my Schulter, so the norm is to use a 1/4 x 1/4):

Notice that I only but it down over half the floor. That's because you don't want to wrestle with mortar under the full sheet. BTW, aren't the patterns pretty:

So what you do is roll up your Ditra, lay it over the section you have the mortar under, use a grout float to smooth it out and ensure good bonding, then roll the other end of the Ditra up and apply mortar to then section:

Then rinse and repeat for the other sheets. The advantage of the Ditra is that because it's on a horizontal surface, you can start tiling right away without having to wait for the mortar to dry (as you do with the Kerdi which is on a vertical surface so that makes sense). However, by the time I got all the Ditra down it was getting late and I didn't want to spend all night tiling, particularly when I have to make what I suspect will be some pretty gnarly curved cuts. So the layout and tile starts tomorrow...

Squeaky squashes a squeak...nothing like Horton Hears a Who...

Well I've emerged from my white, dusty hell and I cannot find the words to express my happiness. As you can see here, the drywall is done:

Here are my top 5 lessons learned when it comes to mudding drywall:

1. Hire someone. Seriously. Of all the things I've done on this reno, this is the only one where I would pay to have someone else do this. It's just so dusty and sweaty and if you get a pro they will have it done in 1/3 the time and 1/3 the mess.

2. Less is more - and then less again. The more you put on, the more you have to take off. That sounds simple but doing it in practice is not so simple. Still, if you're doing your own mudding, try to remember it.

3. Hire someone. Have you not seen on all the Holmes and DIY Disaster shows where the hosts leave the mudding to pros or the homeowner? There's a reason for that. The hosts know better and want nothing to do with it.

4. Buy a vacuum attachment for sanding. You can get these most places and basically your sanding block (the pro kind that uses sheets of wire mesh) hooks into a Shop-Vac. Really cuts down on the dust (it's insidious) and helps with the breathing.

5. Hire someone. I shouldn't need to explain this anymore.

With the walls done, I looked to the floor. I had two issues to deal with - a squeak and a dip. The floor had a wicked squeak and now was the time to fix it. Basically impossible to fix once the tile is down. Also, there was a dip on one side of the room where the floor went down about 1/8 of an inch. This could be solved with some self-leveling compound or a scratch coat of mortar, either way I was going to deal with the squeak first.

The first thing to do was find the joists beneath the floor because you won't get much satisfaction from screwing straight through the floor and not actually getting the joist. I measured off the wall, used a stud sensor and figured out where a joist should be. I then put a 2 1/2 inch flooring screw in and went downstairs to check my accuracy. If my goal was to put the screw exactly between two joists, I would have won first prize. As it was, that was not what I was going for and so did not make the podium. On the plus side, I could now measure the distance from the screw to the joists, go back upstairs and layout for where the joists really were.

Knowing that I was actually hitting the mark now, I drove in about 20 - 30 screws and lo and behold the squeaks were gone. And there was a bonus too; the floor was now level. Looks like the floor bowed up in the middle over time which caused both the squeaks and the floor to drop off on one side. Once I screwed the floor tight to the joists, the floor leveled out. So, no need for self leveling compound and one little victory for Team Squeaky.

With the floor squeak free and level, I had to patch a few depressions that resulted from my wonderful experience with glue remover many posts ago. A little Planipatch (a patching compound) mixed fairly dry, spread with a tongue depressor and leveled with a 5 inch trowel and the damage was patched:

So now that the floor is all ready, it's time to move on to Ditra - the orangest orange you have ever seen and tomorrow's entry...

Dante was wrong...there are 10 circles of hell...he missed drywalling...

Seriously, I'm not sure what sin you have to commit to get to the tenth ring of hell, but I can tell you that once there your eternal damnation will be in the form of applying infinite coats of drywall mud and then an equal number of times will you be condemned to sand it. And like Sisyphus pushing that boulder, everytime you think you're done you'll notice a ridge, or a dip,a ripple, or something else that makes you put another coat of mud on knowing that the next day you'll be entering a fresh, white, powdery hell of your own making.

Let me describe my recent world. You balance on a step ladder, in a small room with 4 light bulbs, the door shut and no other ventilation. You stare at hard, drywall compound on the wall and wonder how you managed to cock it up that badly. It looked okay last night. Then you start sanding. Back and forth. Back and forth. Back and forth. Time has no meaning. It's like a training session with Mr. Miyagi gone horribly wrong. Ralph Macchio isn't there, so at least that's something I suppose. Soon your shoulders start to hurt like you've been throwing baseballs all day long. The air is thick with a fine, white dust. To protect your lungs you're wearing a mask but it doesn't let enough air in so you constantly feel like you're going to suffocate. Work too hard and your heart races, crying out for more air. I felt like Homer Simpson trying to do...well...to do anything really. But the best part, the best, is the sweat mixing with the powder on your skin and hair. There is nothing like getting little drywall compound balls hardening in the corner of your eyes. Second to that is sporting the new fashion look - plaster of Paris hair. Even with a bandanna on, it still gets in. And my beard? Oh you don't want to know what that does. It's like the hair is wet and frozen, except it's hot and sticky.

So this has been my world for the last while. And you wonder why I haven't written? BUT it's getting better. Just a final coat and a light sanding (please let it be a light sanding) and I'm ready for paint. There are more things beyond that, but I don't have the heart to plan that far ahead, not while I've got my while hell waiting for me...

PS - if you think this is laid on thick, imagine the pain of my parents when I was a teenager :)

Not dead...

The rumours of my death are greatly exaggerated. That's not to say it hasn't felt like I'm dying. No I've been in the process of mudding the drywall and I took a few days off from the bathroom for the first time in 3 weeks. That being said, I'm back at it now and hoping to have some significant updates soon. Here is the battle plan:

A couple more nights of mudding, then a light sand.
Prime the whole room.
Get the ceiling and walls painted.
Lay the Ditra on the floor.
Cut and lay the tile.
Grout the tile.

I'm hoping to have all that done by the end of the coming weekend. Truth of the matter is being back to work really cuts down the time I have in the evenings to get things done so it's slow going. However, I do have a functioning shower now so I've come to discover that the greatest indicator of being human is the ability to have a shower. Stay tuned, there is more to come...

Progress!!

Well it's not a long post tonight, but it is a significant one. I've got the shower tiled and grouted!! Yay!! Tomorrow I caulk, and add some more trim and then once everything has dried fully I get to take a shower. It will be sad to give up the rag and stick that has kept me company so long now, but I think it's a necessary step to move on.

Here's a quick shot of the shower, I've used 13"x13" tiles with a glass penny round tile as an accent. When I say "I" I mean that "I" put then up, and the Task Mistress picked them out in her great co-ordinating wisdom (can you tell it was suggested that I make an edit?). Lighting is crappy; it looks even better in the flesh. Also walls are still wet where I've been wiping off the grout haze:

I have to say I'm pretty happy thus far. When the trim is on, the caulking is done and the hardware and shower curtain are in I might actually smile. But only for a minute.

Calm before the storm?

Today has been a productive day (indicating that tomorrow all hell will break loose). I got the first coat of tape and mud on the walls (seams, corners and screw holes). For the DIYers, I used a self-adhesive fiber tape for all the seams, and a paper tape for all the corners. For mud I've been using Durabond 90 hot mud which is meant for repairs so it hardens to a rock-like consistency that can't really be sanded. It's called a hot mud because it comes as a powder and you mix it yourself. Unlike pre-mixed mud which dries via evaporation, hot mud dries via a chemical reaction. It will dry and harden in 90 minutes regardless of anything else. You just can't stop it. Why use that? Two reasons: First, because it's so hard, it really aids in preventing cracks. Second, mould don't like it. In fact, mould won't grow on it so big plus there. And with drying times of just a few hours it means you can get a couple coats on in a day. The rest of the mudding will also be a hot mud - Sheetrock 90 - but it's meant to be sanded so I can get a nice flair. Final coat will be a pre-mixed ultra smooth top coat.

With the taping done and the mudding started I decided to tackle the Kerdi membrane in the shower alcove. If you're not familiar with it Kerdi is that orange stuff you see all being using on the shower walls in all those DIY shows. It's a waterproof membrane that adheres via unmodified thinset to the backer boards. Like drywall, you tape the seams (using thinset instead of mud) and and once you're done  you've got a waterproof membrane to attach your tiles to.

And that is the next phase - tiling. Gosh, I really can't wait so see if I can't screw up take on the challenge of tiling a shower. Yeah, this should be fun...