I have 3 corner shelves (stone) to install in my shower (hardiebacker wall). The shelves are pretty heavy and are quarter circles.
I was going to build wood (triangle) braces for each shelf to support the it while the adhesive cures. The wood would be screwed to the hardiebacker. The stone shelves would literally sit on the wood brace.
For the adhesive, is Versabond thinset the proper adhesive to use for such a heavy piece of stone (~9 inches on each side)? If not Versabond, is there another type of adhesive that I should use?
Should I cut the surrounding tile to have a grout joint around the shelf? Or should I cut so the shelf rests directly on tile?
Thanks in advance.
Replies
The tile cut to the shelf will lock it in. If you shelf over tile, it is the adhesive only that is holding it and it will be knocked off easily - not a good idea for a location where people will not be wearing their steel toed boots.
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Should I cut the surrounding tile to have a grout joint around the shelf? Or should I cut so the shelf rests directly on tile?
Leaving space for a grout line will be stronger, look better and be water-tight. If you set the corner shelf on the tile (I assume you mean the edge of the tile, not the face, which wouldn't work at all) you would have to caulk the joint and that wouldn't add any strength at all.
When you grout between the shelf and the tile, create a little fillet, It will add strenght and help deflect water.
OK, I will cut the tile and leave room for a grout joint. This is only my 3rd time tiling (only two small floors) and 1st time doing a shower wall. I was praying all night that I wasn't going to hear a loud crash of tile onto the tub. I knew I had nothing to worry about since it was almost impossible to remove a tile that had to be reset...but I'm a worry wart.
We usually make our shelves out of corian, but the techniques would be the same. We try to cut a tenon on the back sides of the shelf and work them into an enlarged grout line. The tenon stops about 1/4" short of the front edge of the shelf, and we enlarge the grout line to correspond. That way you can't see the mortise that is created, and the shelf sits in tightly. We install the shelves as the tile goes in, and once the thinset is dry, the shelves are virtually locked in. It would take alot of weight to knock them off.
I don't think I will be able to cut a tenon or mortise in the stone. I only have a wet saw, nothing else.
One more question: How much thinset do I apply to the back of the shelf? I'm using a 1/4" square notched trowel for the tile. Do I apply the same, i.e a 1/4" thick layer of thinset?
Thats all you need. The mortise is easy. It's just shaving a little off the edge of the tile. The tennon is a little more difficult. If your saw doesn't have a depth adjustment you'll have to do it by hand with out the sled. If it does have an adjustment, just make a few passes at about 1/3 depth.
OK, I think I know what you're suggesting. I thought you were telling me to make a mortise in the shelf itself and then fashion a tenon out of some other material.
Sorry. I'm having a hard time putting it into words. I can picture it in my head, but that doesn't exactly help. It's like a little tab that sticks out of the back of the shelf on the edges that would but up to the wall. If the shelves are too thin, I don't see why you couldn't notch out for the whole thickness of the tile. I just use the mortise and tenon method for a cleaner look.
Build a nook in the wall. It will hold more stuff and look better.