In order for tiles to lay flat the tile underlayment must be installed correctly.
How to flatten a wall for tiling.
So you ve got that bottom row of tile.
A batten board helps you start your bottom most course or row of tiles.
The mesh lath texture holds mortar on the wall.
If the underlayment isn t in good shape put a 1 4 or 1 2 in.
Chalk off an area of equal width on the floor nearby and lay out the tiles in this space to practice the layout and.
Scrape the wall to remove any texture and to create a flat surface.
Remove any remaining dust oils and grease from the wall with tsp tri sodium phosphate or an ammonia based cleanser.
This will normally provide a surface that will be suitable for installing tile within the prescribed tolerances.
Vinyl tile is a good undelayment if it isn t damaged.
A stiff base will also prevent the tile from cracking.
Cement board underneath the tile to build it up.
Measure the wall where you will place the tiles.
Patch any holes or cracks with spackling compound and sand the entire surface with medium grit sandpaper.
Install the wall tile in a pyramid shape.
Rough plasterwork will suffice as you re covering it anyway.
Check your floor for level and walls.
How to tile a wall.
How to tile an uneven wall.
Vacuum to remove dust.
Scratching horizontal rows of texture across the.
Hang a batten board to prevent tile slippage.
The wall does not need to be perfectly flat you can take out the unevenness with the thickness of adhesive and use the tiles to flatten the wall.
You will lay.
Using a combination of cementitious patching compound either trowel applied or self leveling with the recommended primer fill the low spots and grind down the high spots be aware of and comply with the osha guidelines for grinding.
Find the midline of the wall from ceiling to floor and mark it with a chalk line.
In our example we re tiling a whole wall with square tiles in a linear or you could use a rubber grout float to flatten 24 12 2010 if you are asked to flatten an unlevel wall that is going to be tiled do you flatten the wall and leave it at the existing level or flatten and level wall.