how do i lay out a floor to tile?

Answer 1

no offense to the others that replied to your answer but i have been a tilesetter for way to long to let you screw it up like they are saying.

1st. clean the floor. do dust paint or anithing can be on it. if there is use a wallpaper scraper as they are called to clean the paint on it off. they are in the tile section at home depot. they have a 4 " razor blade on it. they are SHARP. dont cut your self. i have they bleed a lot.

2. measre your room both ways and then find the most straight and square wall. count on about 3/8 inch grout lines. they are industry standard. unless specified by yourself. so figure out how many tiles to go both ways across the room. you will want the biggest cuts possible for all sides of the room. little sliver cuts look like crap.

3 figure how big your cuts will be along your starting wall. add on tile length and two grout lines to this. one for between the wall and your cut tile and the one between the cut tile and the full tile. mark that on the floor at two ends of the wall. chalk that line with a chalk box. then repeat this all for the perpendicular wallexcept the marking and chalkiing. for this just put a mark on your chalk line from the first wall. then using the 3-4-5 triangle principle mark a square line. then chalk that. where they meet is your starting point.

4. find the length of 2 tiles and 2 grout lines. going from your starting point mark that over and over until you get to the end of the room. repeat on other line. then calk the room out into a gian grid system.

(i know this sounds like a lot but it will help more than you can imagine to keep the tiles straight. )

5. you should now have a bunch of squares all the same size on your floor. only concentrate on one square ata time. you'll feel more relaxed.

6. mix the thinset (get a latex modified one but i wouldn't spend more than 10 dollars a bago on each bag.) ( oh and geta gallon of latex additive. its at home depot with the tile setting crap.) mix the thinset in a 3 gallon bucket with about a cup or so of the latex additive. about a half a bag of thinset with probly 3/4 gallon of watter. you will want it only thick enogh that when spread with your 3/8" notch trowel, it holds peaks but not too stiff that you cant spread it. don't be afraid to take the bucket out and remix with more water or more thinset.

7. spread the square onthe floor only in the square you are working on with the trowel. place the first tile so the two edges are on the chalk lines. this corner will be your starting corner in all the squares. try to keep the tiles level with the ones next to eachother. use your fingers to feel.

8 take your time and place spacers between all the tiles. they are little x's and just put one end in the grout line. put two per side of the tile. on at each end. they come in a box that you get at home depot in the tile area.

only do the full tiles the first day. you will need about a night for the thinset to cure before it can be walked on. a full eight hours in minimum. i threaten to shoot people who walk on my floors before that time. it is way harder to remove a tile later than right when they are stepped on.

then do the cut tiles the next day. to mark them tak a piece of wood like a 1x2 and cut it the size of one tile plus a grout line.
place the tile on the next full tile out from the wall and place it on the two ends and mark with a pencil. dont use a china marker.

mark and cut the first one or two and see if they fit. they should but if they don't see if you need to adjust your sticks length. set them

then grout it. mix the grout with ~1 gallon of water for every 25 lb bag of grout. maybe a little less water. it will be runny but spread faster and not dry up as quick on you. use a grout float and spread at a 45* angle across the tile. give it about thirty minutes then wipe with a tile sponge in the tile sectionat home depot. get a couple sponges. use water in a bucket to wipe it up. wipe only once with once side of the sponge then flip it over and rewipe the part you just wiped. rinse repeat over the whole floor. then wait about an hour and mop the floor with regular water. it will look hazy until you do but it will clean it up with the water. it may take a couple moppings to get it all up. but its worth it.

then wait 1 month and seal the grout with grout sealer.

hope this all helps. if you have questions email me.

heres a list of tools you will need.

3/8" notch trowel.
3 buckets 3-5 gallons
margin trowel(square end)
tile cutter (either a wet saw or snap cutter both should be able to be rented at homedepot)
1/2" drill with thinset mixer looks like a huge beater.
sponges
grout float
spacers
chalk line
tape measure
pencil
and i think thats it

Answer 2

Find the middle point of the room and begin to lay the tiles there. It helps if you put marks on the floor to keep the place. Some people start at one side so they only have to cut tiles on one side of the room.

Answer 3

measure you tiles with the space you will use for the joints and figure the best fit into the room if it doesn't matter i would start in the main hall and send one row on/center down the hall and continue every thing else from that point. Use a string line to keep the first row straight and as needed through the house. try to keep from having small pieces along the longer walls it wil look better to have a full tile or 1/3 and above.

Answer 4

depends upon how you want to lay the tile. evenly spaced rows, diagonally, like bricks (offset grout lines). Also depends upon whether you have a major focal point in the room, like a fireplace. Take a good look at the room, decide how you want to lay it. If you just want a simple layout, start in the middle, mark it with a chalk line, and work your way out. Never start on one side of the room, no room is square and you will end up with a nightmare on the other side cutting diagonal cuts to make it line up with the wall. If you are really unsure...consult a professional.

Answer 5

Begin in the middle of the floor and lay towards the edges

Answer 6

Home Depot and Lowes both have good tutorials on their sites. Here's the Home Depot one:
http://www.homedepot.com/prel80/HDUS/EN_US/diy_main/pg_diy.jsp?CNTTYPE=PROD_META&CNTKEY=Know+How&BV_SessionID=@@@@1748971488.1158705231@@@@&BV_EngineID=cccfaddiljiidjicgelceffdfgidgnk.0&MID=9876&pos=t08

Answer 7

you also have to take into account where the door is and how wide the room is.