What Makes A Good Tiler

What Makes A Good Tiler

When you are next looking for a tiler to carry out tiling jobs of any kind such as wall tiling, floor tiling, tiling repairs or simple regrouting tiles or applying a new silicone sealant seal to your shower tray, you will want to know what things to look out for when employing the services of a local tiler.  What makes a good tiler?

What Are The Qualities Of A Good Tiler?

A good tiler will often carry a portfolio of their tiling work.  They will have carried out many tiling jobs and will be proud to show you their work.  Bear in mind, using the wrong tiler for your tiling job could prove to be very expensive as, even if you remove the tiler from your job you will still have to pay for the costs of replacing tiles which have been ruined and may even have to pay for a plasterer to replaster the wall when the bad tiling has been taken off the wall.  You could say "I will get the bad tiler to pay for the tiles which were ruined", but this may be easier said than done as taking a tiler through the small claims court for damages and costs involved in a bad job can take several months.  It is far wiser to find a good tiler in the first place rather than waste time going back over the tilers work.

In addition to a portfolio, a good tiler should be able to provide references from previous jobs for their work.  Many websites now have review sections where you check tilers and other tradesmen on jobs that they have done.  Here previous customers tell you all you need to know in order to be able to make an informed decision, but bear in mind if the tiler has just recently registered with a jobs website then he or she may not have any reviews so it is important to take this into consideration.

A good tiler should be patient, have an eye for detail and be able to spot imperfections at every tile so to speak.  Again, these things should be checked with previous customers and on past jobs.

Tilers should be clean and tidy.  Tile adhesive and grout which is not cleaned up and left to dry in the wrong places can be horribly messy so a good tiler should clean up his working area as he goes along.

What Qualifications Does A Tiler Need To Have?

Currently, tilers are not legally required to hold tiling qualifications in order to practice tiling and offer their tiling services to homeowners and businesses alike.  However, there are recognised tiling qualifications which homeowners might perhaps wish to ask tilers giving quotes whether they hold.  There are NVQ qualifications in tiling and also some colleges award CITB qualifications for tiling too.  Whilst many plumbers are either time served from apprenticeships or have built up their tiling skills from working 'on the tools' it is always worth asking what qualifications your tiler holds.

What Should I Ask Tilers When Getting Quotes For My Tiling Jobs?

Nowadays, tradesmen (tilers included) need to be able to provide a complete customer service experience to homeowners when they are giving quotes for jobs.  They should be able to answer most of the following questions:

How long will the job take?
How many tiles do I need?
Are there any other materials which you would need for the job (presuming you are providing your own materials)?
How long will it be before I can use the area where you have carried out the tiling work?  (particularly important if you are having tiling work carried out in your bathroom and you only have the one loo as sometimes tiling can take quite a while to 'go off' and this means that you won't be able to walk on the tiling for some time).
Do you have references or reviews from past jobs from people who have used your tiling services before?
Do you have a portfolio of tiling work that we can look at?
What qualifications in tiling do you have?
Will you provide me with a written tiling quote for the job?
What guarantees on workmanship do you give and will you provide these guarantees in writing for us?
Hopefully that covers most areas which you may want to discuss with your tilers giving quotes.

Please always remember to get three quotes for tiling work from tilers as it is important to be able to compare quotes before committing to or accepting tilers quotes.

Tiling Tips - How to Grout Tiling For Your Tiling Job

Tiling grout strengthens the tile and keeps water from entering the joints. As well as the practical purpose of grout, it also adds aesthetically to the tiling project or job. Usually tiling grout is a neutral color but there are so many colors available now that any tiling grout color combination is possible. In general, it is best not to pick white or a light color for floor applications since dirt will quickly make it look dingy and you will end up with a mucky off white colour or yellowish tinge to your grout. This may lead to you having to repeat the grouting to your tiling job again.

Tiling grout application is actually a fairly simple job after the harder parts of laying and levelling the tile. The tools and equipment you need for your tiling grouting job are tiling grout, bucket, kneepads, tiling grout float, tiling grout sponge and waterproof gloves.

Tiling grout is available in premixed tiling grout form or in tiling grout powder form. The premixed tiling grout depends upon evaporation for drying and therefore is really only appropriate for small wall tiling applications which will not be in contact with water. The powder form of tiling grout is cement based and therefore dries chemically which provides a much stronger and harder joint. Powdered tiling grout is available in sanded or non-sanded mixtures. Sanded tiling grout is appropriate for tiling joints larger than 3mm and usually used for floor tiling applications. Non-sanded tiling grout is for wall tiling applications with a tiling joint width of less than 3 mm. It is possible to purchase a polymer-modified tiling grout or a tiling grout polymer additive, which adds flexibility and provides more water resistance but it is a little more difficult to work with on your tiling job. Polymer additives are indicated when the backing surface onto which your tiling is to be applied is wood since the wood will bend and flex and a polymer-modified grout will flex without cracking.

Tiling Grout Mixture - The first step to applying tiling grout is to mix the tiling grout. It is very important to use gloves, goggles and a mask when dealing with cement based tiling grout powders. The tiling grout bag has the proportion of water to tiling grout for mixing but factors such as heat will affect the mixture so add water only a little at a time to the tiling grout mix. The consistency of tiling grout should be about the same as peanut butter. A watery tiling grout mixture will take much longer to dry and is harder to work with. Once the tiling grout is mixed, it has a working time of 20-40 minutes so only mix small batches of your tiling grout or it will be necessary to throw away tiling grout and you will have to start your tiling job all over again.

Tiling Grout Application - Apply tiling grout to the tiling joints with a rubber tiling grout float. Press the tiling grout into the tiling joints by holding the tiling float at a 30-degree angle and applying pressure as tiling grout is dragged over the tiling gaps. Be sure that the tiling grout is filling the tiling joint to the bottom surface. Once the tiling grout fills all the tiling joints, scrape the excess tiling grout by holding the tiling float almost vertically as you drag. It is helpful to drag diagonally across the tiling joints to prevent digging in and accidentally removing tiling grout from within the tiling joints. Once the tiling grout has begun setting, use a large tiling sponge and wipe the excess from the tiling joints; do not use too much water in this process. Once the tiling grout hardens, go back with a soft rag and buff the tile to remove tiling grout film. Depending on the tiling application, the last step is a tiling grout sealer, which will help it repel stains and prolong the water-resistant life of your tiling grout and your overall tiling job.

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