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I’m using a lot of Talavera tile in my house. It’s the old style handmade tile from Mexico – very uneven stuff and very thick. Traditionally the grout lines in Talavera are very wide; it’s a good thing, too, because the tiles are so irregular in shape that I have to compensate with varying grout line widths. I have not been able to float the grout like I have on other 4″ field tiles. The Talavera tiles are so thick and each one is either convex or concave. When I try to float the grout I have to put 1/4″ to 1/2″ of grout over the entire surface of the tiles to clear the high spots, and then try to get those huge grout lines full. Grout goes everywhere but where it’s supposed to be.
So I end up hand filling the grout lines one at a time. It is tedious but I don’t really mind it – at least I get the grout in good and full and solid. I tried using plastic gloves but I couldn’t work with them on because I couldn’t feel what I was doing. But without them I sanded the skin right off my fingertips. How do professionals solve this? (Short of using red grout, of course.)
Also, I’ll be using 4″ x 12″ bullnose saltillo tiles (stained to match existing brick floors) instead of wooden baseboards in rooms where we had walnut colored laminate flooring laid. (I know, gag, gag.) I plan to use mastic to glue the bullnose to the wall, use the same sanded grout for these grout lines that I’m using in the bathrooms, and use sanded colored caulk where the tile meets the floor. Sound right? Or should I just sit the tile onto the laminate and put a little bead of clear caulk along the bottom to seal the crack? Or something else entirely?
Thank you.
Replies
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I'm using a lot of Talavera tile in my house. It's the old style handmade tile from Mexico - very uneven stuff and very thick. Traditionally the grout lines in Talavera are very wide; it's a good thing, too, because the tiles are so irregular in shape that I have to compensate with varying grout line widths. I have not been able to float the grout like I have on other 4" field tiles. The Talavera tiles are so thick and each one is either convex or concave. When I try to float the grout I have to put 1/4" to 1/2" of grout over the entire surface of the tiles to clear the high spots, and then try to get those huge grout lines full. Grout goes everywhere but where it's supposed to be.
So I end up hand filling the grout lines one at a time. It is tedious but I don't really mind it - at least I get the grout in good and full and solid. I tried using plastic gloves but I couldn't work with them on because I couldn't feel what I was doing. But without them I sanded the skin right off my fingertips. How do professionals solve this? (Short of using red grout, of course.)
Also, I'll be using 4" x 12" bullnose saltillo tiles (stained to match existing brick floors) instead of wooden baseboards in rooms where we had walnut colored laminate flooring laid. (I know, gag, gag.) I plan to use mastic to glue the bullnose to the wall, use the same sanded grout for these grout lines that I'm using in the bathrooms, and use sanded colored caulk where the tile meets the floor. Sound right? Or should I just sit the tile onto the laminate and put a little bead of clear caulk along the bottom to seal the crack? Or something else entirely?
Thank you.