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Let me preface this by saying, I am not a builder. Just a knowledgable (I like to think so anyway) DIY’er. Anyway, I have some tiling questions. In my master bath is a preformed acrylic shower. Between the top of this unit and the ceiling is just painted drywall. I’m not sure if it’s plain old drywall or blueboard. Is there a way to tell the two apart once the surface has been painted? I suspent it’s drywall because it is not in direct contact with water and regular ‘rock is cheaper. Anyway, I want to tile the walls from the top of the stall to the ceiling. Can I just tile over the existing wall using mastic? Seems that this would be ok as the wall is not directly exposed to water other than the steam generated in the shower. I don’t want to have to tear out those walls and replace with masonry backer or blueboard, but I can and will if it’s necessary. A complete remodel is due at some point in the future (10 or so years). But that’s a long way off. Just trying to make it nice on a budget in the meantime.
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ChrisinMD:
In short...of course you can install the tile with mastic above your acrylic shower, assuming the tiles are not lug back and 8x8 or smaller. Is it the best possible method of installation for a wet area? In my opinion, no it is not. But the alternatives involve quite a bit more prep work.
Dave
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Can you elaborate on some of those thoughts Dave?
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I'd guess that anything that you do up there will last ten years at least!
There is some danger of the paint peeling off along with the tiles. I problably wouldn't worry about it though!
*Using an organic mastic in the location as you propose is acceptable. As it sounds as if it is an iterim remodel, stick with this method, it costs less. I suggest you scuff of the painted surface before installing tile. Use 80-120 grit sandpaper.Creature has a good point about avoiding lug back, or button back too, for that matter. These type of tiles have protrusions on the back to allow for "keying in" of mud or thinset. They are not for mastic installations.Stay with a smaller tile such as 4 or 6". The reason? They stay on the wall better than a larger tile when using mastic.As for whether drywall or bluboard as substrate, it doesn't matter--I've seen wall tile stuck to closed cell foam!What does matter is your surface preparation. All imperfections on the wall should be eliminated first. Paint drips, excess taping mud, etc should be scraped off the wall. They will interfere with bedding the tiles in mastic. If these imperfections are not removed, you will have to build out the tile at that spot. This will result in increasing the thickness of mastic behind the tile, and lippage, where one tile is higher than its neighbor. A thick coat of mastic(>1/8") will take longer to cure. Some very thick coats(>1/4") may not ever cure. In a wet area, like above a shower, this may result in tile "hanging" off the wall, or popping off the wall.
*There you have it....enough said. Hope it looks great!!Dave
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Thank you gentlemen.
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Let me preface this by saying, I am not a builder. Just a knowledgable (I like to think so anyway) DIY'er. Anyway, I have some tiling questions. In my master bath is a preformed acrylic shower. Between the top of this unit and the ceiling is just painted drywall. I'm not sure if it's plain old drywall or blueboard. Is there a way to tell the two apart once the surface has been painted? I suspent it's drywall because it is not in direct contact with water and regular 'rock is cheaper. Anyway, I want to tile the walls from the top of the stall to the ceiling. Can I just tile over the existing wall using mastic? Seems that this would be ok as the wall is not directly exposed to water other than the steam generated in the shower. I don't want to have to tear out those walls and replace with masonry backer or blueboard, but I can and will if it's necessary. A complete remodel is due at some point in the future (10 or so years). But that's a long way off. Just trying to make it nice on a budget in the meantime.
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Chris, one more pointer. Examine the surface of the drywall where it meets the rounded edge of the acrylic shower stall by placing a ruler vertically on the drywall. Is the drywall plumb at this point, or does it bow out from the wall surface? The bowing is caused by a 1/8" thick acrylic rim that's used for attaching the stall to the wall studs. Most drywall folks install their boards over this rim which causes the wall to bow outward slightly. If you install your tile over this area, it too will follow the curvature of the wall (not very attractive). Using a 12" taping knife, you can reduce the curvature by floating mud over the curved portion and then setting your tile after it dries.