I just demoed part of a bathroom that had some water problems. I’m putting in a new Swanstone shower pan, and tiling the walls, with a glass door. I’ve not done tile before (done some masonry), so I enlisted the help of someone hopefully smarter–I just like making sure I have all the info before I get in too deep.
Now for some questions: I know I need some sort of water/moisture barrier, and I’ve seen a guy use building paper before. I have a roll of Aquabar something or other building paper in the shop, will that work? Or do I need something impervious, like 6 mil plastic? And just staple it to studs?
I know not to use greenboard, so I was thinking Hardieboard or Durock…Is one much better than the other? And is there something special to seal the seams?
I also figure I need to seal the grout, what is a good product for that?
Anything else I may need to know? Obviously, I know nothing, so that list may be a bit long, but I’m open to your collective wisdom.
Thanks in advance, and Happy New Year.
Replies
Do you have time to buy a book? "Setting Tile" by Michael Byrne is excellent, and you can get a good book from johnbridge dot com, which is a very good tile forum.
30# tar paper and 6 mil poly are both acceptable choices. I am not familiar with aquabar.
Hardie is thinner and cleaner (except for the dust from cutting). I prefer it. Durock is more like concrete board: heavy, rough, permanent. I find it messy to cut, some folks prefer it. Either would be a good choice.
Buy a qualty grout sealer from a tile store, not a big box store.
"When asked if you can do something, tell'em "Why certainly I can", then get busy and find a way to do it." T. Roosevelt
Learn about Schluter Systems and their membrane product called Kerdi.
Go to the John Bridge site and read all about it, and download the installation video.
The membrane is bonded to ordinary drywall using thinset, and you tile right over it. This stuff is foolproof, and pros everywhere are using it.
It's the 21st century, and we can all forget about felt, cement board, mud base, etc.
mud base
Limited sizes don't forget.
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When I said mud base, Eric, in terms of being passe and old school, I meant mud on the walls.
Felt paper, diamond lath, scratch coat, another coat to level, etc., then tile. What people did before Durock.
I think it's infinitely easier to use 6 mil poly behind your backer board. 30# felt works too but it's harder to get nice folds into the corners, etc.
The thing no one mentioned is that it's nice to furr out your wall studs so that the face of the studs are flush with the inside face of the lip on the shower pan. That way the poly just hangs straight down over the lip, rather than folding out to get over the lip. Bring the backerboard down just over the lip but not all the way to the pan--leave a gap.
Also, no 1/4" board on the walls, use 1/2" only (unless you are installing it over solid plywood sheathing, which I sometimes do).