I am building a tile shower with 3×6″ subway tiles. I just realized that one wall is 37 1/2″ long so with 6 tiles across I have a just over 1″ of extra space.
I have already covered to walls with Schluter so tearing it down is not very palatable to the wallet. Could I install an layer of Durock or the like on top of the Schluter to make up the difference?
Any other suggestions?
Annoyed in Victoria!
David
Replies
See if the tile comes in a 9" and use two 6 1/2" cuts to make up the inch?
Use a 1" x 3" accent piece zig zaging thru each row, like you intended to do that from the start! <g>
buic
So what is the problem?
Tiles get cut to fit the space every day
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Find the center of the space and measure over 1 1/2-in. Start at that point to maximize the size of the pieces at the end.
that makes sense, likely the tiles can be made to appear as though they wrap around the corners.
No diagonal for me!
Thanks all
David
Dare to be differnt! Diagonal!!!
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
"Success is not spontaneous combustion, you have to set yourself on Fire"
I'm doing the upper half of a shower diagonal...
The trick is to match the grout lines at the corners - ALL the corners - while NOT coming up with tiny cuts on one side and large on the other and having the fixtures also fit the pattern in a pleasing manner.
Same problem as with normal setting only magnified.
The absolute worst tile job I ever saw was a walkin shower in NC. Huge, 10'x10' and tile even on the cieling. Diag with a band of rope like rail..nuthing matched up anywhere...I mean FLUSH wasn't even Flush..that bad.
So yeah, a good diag is not easy.Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
"Success is not spontaneous combustion, you have to set yourself on Fire"
Ralph,
Unless you get lucky you will most likely have to dump the layout in the least seen corner. And the layout will likely not be centered or symetrical on any wall.
Get back here with how it turned out.
Eric[email protected]
I've been drawng the layout on the walls trying to get it right or even close.
If it doesn't turn out top notch you can bet your bippy I'm not posting that #### here.<G>
I hope you don't think I was implying shoddy workmanship.
Just being real. It may work out. My experience is that it often gets dumped in the least visible corner.
[email protected]
"If it doesn't turn out top notch you can bet your bippy I'm not posting that #### here.<G>"what else can i bet with? I lost my bippy by betting long time ago
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
with subway tiles ??? reminds me of the time Trapper on MASH had the pin stripe suit made by a local, they ran the pin stripes horizontal ..
Sure..thinking outside the box is a virtue<G>Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
"Success is not spontaneous combustion, you have to set yourself on Fire"
Hey - got a great idea for a tag line or a "buy local" campaign -
THINK OUTSIDE THE BIG BOX!
Forrest - learning about HWH in old BT threads - neighbor has a bad elec; can't afford a new one, but does teach my oldest one violin
with subway tiles ??? reminds me of the time Trapper on MASH had the pin stripe suit made by a local, they ran the pin stripes horizontal ..
I guess you've never seen it before. It actually looks nice.
Have you done a dry layout yet?
6" x 6 tiles PLUS grout lines could be closer to 37 1/2" than you think and you also can use the thickness of the tiles x 2 on the adjacent walls to cover the ends of that long wall.
You need to spend some time doing layouts and see how it works out rather than assuming you have a botch to fix.
90% of a good tile job is layout.
[email protected]
6" x 6 tiles PLUS grout lines could be closer to 37 1/2" than you think
That was my first thought. Especially if the the two adjacent walls were tiled first, the remaining space could probably be cut down to only 37". That would leave a full inch (37-6*6) to spread over seven grout lines, or just over an 1/8" grout line.
Subway tile often has grout lines tighter than an 1/8", but it probably wouldn't look too bad.
Edited 2/21/2008 8:39 pm ET by Ragnar17
Depends on a lot on the format of the tile as well.
I've seen some that were cut like sheets of paper, and otheres that vary up to (+-) 1/8 or even 3/16".
I'm thinking run the long wall out and butt the other walls to it.
I think it might work.
Like I siad a couple of times. Take some time to do a thoughtful layout. It shows in the finished product.[email protected]
Daltile says the tiles have integral lugs to create a 1/16" spacer so actual tile spacers aren't necessary but a 1/16" grout line seems pretty thin to me.
David
That sounds about right for self spacing tile. You'll probably end up with a grout line slightly larger.
You can push it open a wee bit too if that's what you want to do. A bit more work because now you will have to open the horizontal lines as well.
I use small plastic wedges for that type of thing.[email protected]
there's a DYI stone job in town where the guy laid his stone with the long axis vertically, it looks hillarious, I'm going to take a pic and post it soon ..
I've seen vertical running bond patterns that looked pretty cool.
"Daltile says..."Pay attention to what Eric says at least as much as what Dal says. do a dry layout.I had some daltiles where they did not send the whole amount ordered. When I called about it, they had to make some more of them for me. Three weeks later, the tile guy is setting them and tells me there are three slightly different sizes. Sure enough, the whole batch from both shipments looked like seconds to me.The owner had bought and paid for them. I called her in Denver. She said go ahead and use them so we did
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
And don't forget..........with subway tile the cut at the corner plus the adjacent cut should equal a full tile.
So, if you have a 2 1/2" cut at the end of the course, the next tile around the corner should be 3 1/2" ultimately.
Something to shoot for anywho.
Remember what I said about layout.
[email protected]
Four words.
-=Really=- wide grout lines.
;o)
When it rains, it snows.
Is there anything technically not feasible with adding some Durock on one wall? I'm curious.
It might not be necessary in this instance. I'm having a hard time figuring out why it wouldn't work, though.
There are two basic starting points for most tile layouts.
1) Centerline of the space is the centerline of the tile.
or
2) the centerline of the space is the centerline of the grout joint.
One or the other will satisfy the requirements that "the edge piece is greater than half the unit size".
Bob's next test date: 12/10/07
1) Centerline of the space is the centerline of the tile.
or
2) the centerline of the space is the centerline of the grout joint.
One or the other will satisfy the requirements that "the edge piece is greater than half the unit size".
Jim,
That's true if the units are stacked. Usually subway tiles are offset. If every other course of the 6-in. tile is offset 3-in., you're effectively dealing with a 3-in. increment. That's why I suggested that the op find the center of the 37 1/2-in space, then move over 1 1/2-in.
The center of the space in question is 18.75-in. from the edges. Starting there, he ends up with an undesirable 3/4-in. piece at both sides. If he moves over 3-in., he ends up with a 3 3/4-in. piece, which is great. But what happens when he offsets the next course by 3-in.? He's back to the 3/4-in. piece.
If he moves over 1 1/2-in. from center, he ends up with final pieces of 5 1/4-in. and 2 1/4-in.
If you are combining two tiles, then the unit size changes. It's not one or the other, it's both combined. If the tiles are layed diagonal or on and angle, the units are a measurement of the diagonal rather that the horizontal. Of course, that brings the question of the complimenting pieces into play and the aesthetic deccions might be made on some other criteria. The goal is to never end up with slivers on the ends, but offsets in the walls wil often render that policy to be impossible. The use of borders and other solutions certainly becomes a serious option. Bob's next test date: 12/10/07
Houston we have a problem.............
Jim, you ain't getin' it. What he wrote is correct. i don't have the inclination to try to enlighten you in another way.
Or maybe I am misunderstanding you.[email protected]
Stack bond or running bond pattern? If stack bond add the 1" to the 6" = 7 then half at 3.5" short on each end for balance.
Herringbone pattern?
Don't see anything wrong with adding cement board on top of the Schluter membrane. The wall is already watertight, so as long as you can seal penetrations in the membrane made by the new screws, what's the diff?
By the way, the grout lines on vintage subway tile I've seen look more like 1/32 than 1/16.