peel and stick tile

I'm going to put some of these down in a small bathroom this weekend. This is a quick cheap fix for a year or so as the whole room will be gutted and redone then. That being said, I want to do this as simply as possible. I am thinking I can pull the baseboard and start by putting them right against the wall, working out to the door. The toilet I'll loosen and just tuck the edges under it, then re-tighten it. Other then the fact I know this is a half-arsed way to do a job, does anybody see a problem with it? Remember, it only needs to last a year (or less), and I have little time right now.

Thanks, Jim

Reply to
jtpr
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I wouldn't pull the baseboard or loosen the toilet. Both of those could result in you having to do a lot more than you planned.

Just get within an 1/8 inch or so to the edges and then use the bathroom caulk to lay down a small bead that covers the crack.

It will look professional and save you one heck of a lot of work.

Reply to
JimL

If you have a vanity, it may be better to start at the outside corner of the vanity. Use that corner point as the intersection of three tile pieces. This way, your trimming will be under the base boards. Also, any irregularity in angles is not as noticable. However, you may wind up with a slight angle at the wall (if things are not "square").

Lay out as many tiles as you can before-hand to see where the trimming will occur.

If you haven't got the tile yet, try to get (or encourage the "boss" to get) a pattern with no lines to connect, etc.

Also, a hair-dryer will help heat the tile to make trimming easy -- get plenty of extra blades.

Cheers, Lee

jtpr wrote:

Reply to
smartobject

technically, shouldn't you start in the middle, averaging the cuts so there are no tiny pieces on the ends? That's what I did in my own small bath 10 years ago, and it looks good now. Mine was 3'9''x ~7, center happened to be in front of the door.Set first tile in the middle with a square and plunk em down

I bought a mid range tile and it is perfect with no lifting.

Bought a cheaper tile for the hallway outside the bath 5 years later and it has several tiles pulling up.

I would not completely cheap out even if you plan renovations, cause we all know what happens to plans.

Reply to
yourname

A cheap remnant vinyl flooring for some bucks will last your year. Trim and caulk. Even pick a pattern for the year.

Oren

Reply to
Oren

loosening baseboard sounds like unnecesary work. Do Not simply loosen toilet and stick tiles undr... This will leave an air gap above the wax seat. If you insist in going under toilet, remove toilet, replace wax seat, lay tile and replace toilet. This will keep sewer gas outta your home.

lee h

Reply to
lee houston

You are correct. Actually, you measure the room and find the center from both directions. The tiles are 12x12. You DO NOT want to mess with thin strips along walls or cabinets. You are better placing a half (or almost half) tile all the way around the border than having to fill in with a 1 inch strip someplace. Once you find the center, measure in 12 inch increments and determine if you will have any thin pieces. If so, go "x" amount of inches away from that center mark (either direction). Once you determine the actual "center of the tiles" (not of the room), run a chalkline in both directions. Use the straigetest wall or cabinet base (usually exterior walls). Be sure your chalkline is the same measurement to that wall on both ends. Then start to lay the tiles from the center marks, and be sure the first tiles are precisely aligned with those chalk lines. This way you will have a straight floor.

Whoever said not to mess with the baseboard is not making any sense. You dont need to remove the whole baseboard, just the quarter round (unless you dont have any). Under normal circumstances, it has a 4 penny finishing nail every foot or 16". Use a small pry bar and lift them, and remove. Label them so you know what wall they came off. I'd sure rather remove the quarter round than have to precisely cut each tile around the walls. Once removed, you can rough cut each time, and know that the edges will be covered with the trim. Dont remove the door casings though. Those you have to spend some time fitting the tiles.

Finally the toilet. I am sorry to say that you will have to remove it. If the tiles are 1/16 inch thick, you will end up with a 1/16" gap in your wax ring. A leaking toilet will cause you much more work in the future than is the extra effort to remove the toilet and install a new $3 wax ring, and maybe some new bolts too. Dont chance it. Do it right. In a year from now that leaking toilet can do a lot of damage. And if you think that cutting all the tiles to fit around the toilet is the solution, I personally think the time it takes to cut all those tiles is far more than just taking the toilet out.

One last comment. If by some chance you think you may end up leaving these tiles for more than a year, I'd highly recommend coating fresh plywood or other underlayment with a coat of varnish, oil based paint, or just a thin coat of multipurpose flooring adhesive. Those self adhesive tiles are notorious for not sticking well to porous materials especially if water gets on them. Why not just spend an extra hour and a few more dollars and do the job right. Plans dont always work as planned, and that floor may as well look nice in 3 years if you dont get to your complete remodel before then. Besides that, you may want to place another floor over that, and wont be able to do so if they are loose.

Mark

Reply to
maradcliff

A year or less? Buy some cheap indoor/outdoor carpet and glue it down without moving toilet or baseboards.

Reply to
Norminn

We did that in the kitchen. Been there SIXTEEN years. Still looks good.

Reply to
HeyBub

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