Installation of stone tiles – a manual
Are you dreaming about a stone flooring in your living room or kitchen but the services of professional tile fitters are too expensive for you? Simply buy the products and make the flooring yourself! With our manual you will do it well and the effect will surely meet your expectations. Enjoy your reading!
Stone flooring – manual
- First, buy adequate tile adhesive and tile joint filler. The first product should be appropriate for the type of stone, size of tiles and type of surface on which you will be installing your flooring. The second one should be a cementitious substance, especially if the tiles do not handle moisture well.
- Start the installation from leveling and smoothing of the substrate. It should be even, clean, stable, seasoned and dry. If need be, remove all irregularities, stains, scratches etc. You can use a fast binding putty. Why is it so important? It will make the whole process faster and you will use much less adhesive because it won’t sink into irregularities. Moreover, the adhesive will bind to the material much better.
- Prime the substrate. Cover the surface very precisely with a primer – it will increase substrate’s absorbency and will guarantee perfect binding of the adhesive. Leave to dry for about 24 hours.
- Once the substrate is adequately prepared, you can start with the installation. Evenly spread a small amount of adhesive on the substrate and on the bottom of the tile. Use a notched trowel. Try to spread the adhesive evenly and be careful not to dirty the top of the tile. Remember that for light-colored tiles you should use a lighter adhesive so that the colours match well.
- The next step is installing the tiles. Arrange them slowly, leaving small gap for the joint. Special spacer crosses are helpful in achieving the effect of even joints. Each of the tiles should be carefully placed on to the substrate and pressed gently, but firmly. After installing a tile, check it with a level to see if it is flat.
- After installing the flooring, you can start filling the gaps with a joint filler. You should however wait several days until the tile adhesive dries and all materials bind. Use a fast binding, plastic, cementitious joint filler. Choose colour that suits your tiles. Apply the filler with a rubber trowel. Fill all the gaps precisely and remove excess product.
- The next step consists of cleaning the tiles and profiling the joints. You can start when the paste looses its plasticity and becomes matt. Use moist cellulose sponge.
- Lastly, apply silicone. First cover the edges with masking tape to avoid dirtying the tiles. Use neutral silicone without acetic acid. Cover all the joints precisely – this will make them more resistant to dirt.
