Tiling a bathroom from scratch - a few questions

netman

Having checked the thread here http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055375697 I still have a few questions...

I was initially thinking of tiling the whole lot, floors and walls up to ceiling, but now I'm having second thoughts.

1) Floor tiles or laminate?

The bathrooms are upstairs, there's no carpet or laminate there, just the floorboards. To tile over them I guess I'd have to put down a 1/2" plywood across, and then tiles. This would bring the level of finished floor higher than the door and the saddle. (saddle is 1/2" high)

Can I use a smaller (thinner) plywood? Or would it be ok to use bathroom-proof laminate floor instead? I laid down the semi-solid floor in my work room so I'm comfortable doing that.

If going with a laminate, how do you deal with the gap between the wall and the floor? Do you still use skirting, and then tile from the skirting board upwards?

2) Windowsill

And I'm not sure what to do about the windowsill, it's already cracked and shoddy looking. If I pull it out (assuming this isn't a major job) I'm probably left with a substantial gap. Not sure if tiling over it will close it.

I can tile around it and use a bit of polyfilla and give it a new paint job. I'll probably be looking at it in disgust for years.

I can maybe cut it off so that it's level with the wall and then tile over the whole lot (wall and windowsill). Not sure if this is such a good idea though.

3) Bath cover

At the moment the bath is covered with a diy job of wooden planks which aren't sealed in any way and we're not comfortable using it. When I get rid of all that I'll be left with a gaping hole hehe. Should I just go with some sort of plastic cover, or try to get some plywood to cover it and then tile over that?

Considering that it's supposed to be flexible I'm not sure how that's gonna work out. I can see it all getting cracked after the first bath.



Any suggestions are more than welcome. I'm dreading and looking forward to the job at the same time!

builditwell

Hi Netman,

Sounds like you got a lot on so I will give you best advice i can

• Use floor tiles they are far sturdier and much longer lasting than any laminate I dont care what stores say this bathroom proof stuff can do but its still laminate as such will absorb every drop of water on it.
• You can use 6mm marine ply screwed down @ 200mm centres and even closer if you feel the need . Be sure the floor thats in place now is rigid and doesent move and be sure to use the right length screw and mark pipe layout on floor if possible. (save you giving downstairs a shower)
• Take out the sill if pooible use a bit of bonding to correct the gaps and try to leave reasonably level across it. 99% of jobs ive seen or have had to do have the sill tiled. It looks great.
• The bath cover is always an issue. If you are positive your plumbing is up to scratch .Get a sheet of plywood and tile it. Then lightly grout edges or use a very fine silicone joint. This would stop grout from cracking where it comes into contact with the bath. If you need to remove for whatever reason later just use a blade and run along the edge. Good luck with renovation. Its a tough road ahead but will be worth it and add serious value to your house.

Regards
Builditwell