I just finished remodeling a kitchen in an 1896 Victorian home. Now the homeowner wants a tiled backsplash (4×4 ceramic tiles). The walls of the backsplash are either original plaster over lath OR drywall with a skim coat of plaster — where I had to patch OR plaster over the brick exterior walls. So how do I proceed? So I suppose you guys would all cringe if i dared to mention tiling over the existing walls as they are! Do I need to put durock over the walls? Or remove the plaster and then put durock? Thanks.
Bonnie B.
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With a coat of primer, you can probably tile over the plaster. Just so long as you are aware that whenever the tile needs to come down, the plaster will come with it.
Is the plaster flat enough? Is it still well-adhered to the lath? If yes, then have at it.
And note that there is a ton (actually, about 100 tons) of really good information about tiling at http://www.johnbridge.com
If the tiles are to be butted tight, make certain the walls are flat before you start. I'll second prime, then tile and add I like thinset over mastic even though it's not a "wet area".
YMMV
The awful thing is that beauty is mysterious as well as terrible. God and the devil are fighting there, and the battlefield is the heart of man.
- Fyodor Dostoyevski
tile over the existing walls.
depending on flatness, mastic or thinset. Vic
There's no problem at all tiling over sheetrock/plaster, as long as everything's properly attached to the studs.
I like to use mastic in this application, but thinset is still better. Just, IMO, overkill for this