Tile a Shower
A tiled shower adds beauty and durability and value to your home. Follow these steps to tile your shower all by yourself. This article covers the basic steps needed to properly prepare a leak-proof shower. If you are tiling a shower for the first time, consult with a general contractor before starting the job.
Contents
Steps
Preparing the Shower for Tiles
- Gut the shower stall down to the studs. You may need to remove the shower pan and ceiling, as well. If you have the chance to reintroduce a new shower pan into the shower area, try to set down a piece of flashing or plastic underneath the shower pan so that any moisture that travels underneath the shower pan doesn't mingle with wood and create rot.
- Choose a vapor barrier to install and introduce according to manufacturer directions. If you fail to install a vapor barrier, you might grow mold and mildew as moisture from your shower escapes through the tiles and into walls. Contrary to popular opinion, tile and grout can allow water vapor to pass into the space behind.
- When installing a vapor barrier on an exterior wall, it may be helpful to seal the plastic vapor barrier to the bottom of the shower pan but not all the way up to the top of the ceiling. With insulation improperly installed, or in colder climates, there's a chance that condensation that forms behind the vapor barrier will cause the framing members to rot. In order to avoid that possibility, install the vapor barrier with space to spare so that the gap behind the vapor barrier can breathe.
- Wedi boards are another option some consider even better than cement board. If you choose a membranous barrier such as Trugard or Kerdi, you can install plain old drywall.
- Put up a sturdy cement board backer. Putting up cement board is just like putting up drywall. You cut it to fit, and then screw it to the studs. Leave a 1/8" gap between panels and then a very small space between the shower pan and the bottom of the backer so that the two don't squeak by rubbing together.
- Use a hole saw to cut the holes where the shower head and handles would come through.
- Make the cement board flush with the tile lip of your shower pan by using shims behind the board to bring it out to the desired thickness.
- Use 100% silicone caulk to seal the seams between the panels.
- If using crown molding near the ceiling, lay down {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} of drywall instead of cement board. Nails used to fix the crown molding in place will not travel through the cement backer; you'll need to use moisture-resistant drywall such as greenboard in order to take the nails and affix the molding.
- Feather any edges with spackle where the backer board meets the wallboard. If there's a gap between the backer board and the wallboard, you'll want to spackle and then feather the gap so that it appears as one continuous back.
- Paint primer onto any spackle over which you intend to tile. After you've feathered the edges to remove the gap, apply a high quality exterior primer over the feathered wallboard and backer. You won't get good adhesion if you apply thin-set mortar over spackle.
Laying the Tiles
- Mark your tile layout on the substrate and mark out your first course carefully. If your shower enclosure walls are not perfectly square, or if you plan to install accent tiles, the layout of these tiles becomes increasingly important. Measure up from the bottom of the backer board the height of a tile minus 1/2". This will give you a 1/2" overlap over the tile lip on your shower pan. Mark this with a sharpie and using a level, transfer the mark across the shower stall. This will be a guide for the top of the first row so that all tiles will be level.
- Another way to plan out the first row of tiles is to measure the high part and low part of the shower pan. Make the low spot a full tile, mark it, and then cut the tiles on the high side down to the level of the uncut tile on the low side.
- Keeping grout lines away from the inside corners of the enclosure can prevent the need for tiny tiles and poor grout joints. Plan accordingly.
- Mix enough thin-set for the bottom row. You want your thin-set to be the consistency of peanut butter — not too thick or it will dry out and not too thin or you'll have a hard time setting the mortar with strength and cleaning
- Use an electric drill and an auger to mix your thin-set mortar. This will ensure even consistency and ultimately a better product.
- Dampen the cement board with a sponge before applying the mortar. If you do not, the cement board will draw the moisture out of the thin-set too quickly, making for a brittle set that is susceptible to cracking.
- Trowel some thin-set onto the back of the tile and spread it with a notched trowel. This process is called "back buttering," and it's usually more effective than troweling the mortar directly onto the backer board and then setting the tiles on top of that. It's a lot cleaner, too!
- Be sure not to apply too much mortar to the back of a tile. A thin, even layer or mortar is best. More isn't necessarily merrier when it comes to thin-set.
- Set the first tile in the middle of the wall (or floor). This will create a pleasant visual effect and allow each tile that is placed beside it on either side seem centered. After back buttering, simply press the tile onto the backer board and apply pressure to make sure that the mortar adhered properly to both the tile and the backer board.
- Wipe away any excess thin-set mortar after pressing the tile onto the backer. Although you'll be grouting and caulking between the tiles, it's best not to leave any thin-set on oozing out from the sides of the tile. Simply wipe away excess thinset with your finger or a Q-tip.
- Use small shims or other spacers to allow a small amount of space between the bottom of the tile and the lip of the shower pan. Small pieces of cardboard work great as makeshift shims. After the mortar is set, you can simply remove these shims and caulk between the lip of the pan and the bottom of the tile.
- Continue laying the tile, making sure to use spacers in between tiles. Spacers will leave you identifiable grout lines between tiles. Small 1/16" or 1/8" spacers (or even bigger) can be placed at several places on the x- and y-axis of the tile to leave adequate space for an even grout line.
- Repeat the procedure, setting each row of tile on top of the last row of tile. Continue until you reach the top of the shower stall. Measure up from top of the last row. Mark the line with a level as a guide for your next row. Spread thin-set onto your tiles with v-notched trowel and place the tile just below the marked line. Use spacers all around.
- Let the tile set for 48 hours. This will make sure that the mortar has adhered properly to both the tile backing and the cement board backer.
Finishing up the Job
- Grout the tile. Mix up a batch of Dye Grout for Mosaic Tiles. Lightly wet the area you'll be grouting with a damp sponge and dump a bit of grout onto the area. Use a rubber float to smooth it into the joints, attacking each joint at a diagonal angle. After 30-40 minutes (check the directions on the bag of grout) you want to wipe the excess grout with a damp sponge and a circular motion. Keep wiping with a clean sponge until the tile is clear.
- Let the grout cure for approximately 3 days before sealing. Then, seal the grout. Run a thin bead of liquid grout or aerosol grout sealer onto the grout line and wipe away. Let dry and then test its water resistance by dropping water onto the sealed grout. Correctly sealed grout will cause the water to bead up on top of it.
- Caulk any needed areas. As you caulk, remember to pull the caulk gun relatively quickly across the joint. Most amateurs caulk too slow and end up dropping too much caulk down on the joint. Other things to remember:
- Keep the tip angled as you run the bead along the joint.
- Match the speed with which you pull the caulk gun trigger with the rate at which you pull the gun along the joint. You don't want to be pulling the gun fast but triggering slowly, or vice versa.
- After applying the bead of caulk, "bed" it by running a damp finger across the bead with light pressure.
Tips
- Remember you are not going to grout at the corners, you are going to caulk, so try to maintain an even spacing.
- Wiping off grout with a damp sponge while it is not quite dry helps making the grout lines smooth and saves tedious scraping later. Also, buffing with cheesecloth (removing the haze after grout is dry) lets you smooth them further (pretty much like sanding in woodwork).
- Pick out the right trowel for your thinset and tile size, also pay attention to spacing recommendations and use the right spacers. Use 1/8” or less spacing so that you can use unsanded grout (easier to seal).
- Make sure you do not use wall tiles on floor. Floor tile can be used on walls. Depending on the size of the tile and its installed location will determine the size of the trowel used for the thinset.
- Do not use Mastic. Use a thinset and stay away from the premixed stuff.
- Place cardboard cut to the shape of your shower pan and taped in place to avoid damaging the fixture.
Warnings
- Don't grout the whole shower at once. You will want to be able to wipe the grout after it sets, but before it is too hard to remove from the tile.
- Make sure the ceiling fan is connected to a ground fault interrupted circuit. These inexpensive safety devices satisfy many building codes.
