Old School?!?!?!

Drockafela

How come everybody on here uses durock, hardibacker or schleuters new system for shower walls? Does anybody actually float their walls with mortor and leveling strips. Am I missing something here, because Ive only been taught how to "float" my walls. Is is a "custom" thing. Dont get me wrong, Ive used the cement boards on a few occasions, but I much more preffer my "true" prep work.
Ive read a lot of helpful topics on here, but this stumps me.

Chris Johnson

I think California is the only place left that floats, everywhere else I read about uses something different. I have seen here they use Hardi or Durock for floors, but walls are still floated...even in tract homes here that I have seen.

Does anyone still hot mop or is that a California thing as well?

__________________
Chris

Bill_Vincent

Hot mop is strictly a west coast thing, but as for mudding walls, there may be one or two of us "east coasters" who still mud a wall or two once in a while!!

__________________
"Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you're probably right."

http://www.creativeceramicandmarble.com

Bud Cline

I notice you didn't float the ceiling you big show off, why not?

Drockafela

Bill,
Just curious about what you used for a steam prep.

Drockafela

Looks like Im gonna need to go buy a tripod so I can post a couple 11 footers on here.

Taranis

Good pictures, Bill.
When I do rendering or screeding I use wet screeds to pull off rather than timber. There's no need to go back and take out the timber and infill.
Much prefer that way of working.

Bill_Vincent

It wasn't spec'ed!! If it were. I'da been pissed, but I woulda floated it!! Groutin Spectralock over my head was bad enough!!



Contractor put up 6 mil poly,. and then 2" foam panels, attached with ready rod, nuts and flat washers, and then once the mud was finished, everything got covered with Laticrete 9235.





There's a whole thread on the project as it progressed:

http://johnbridge.com/vbulletin/show...6&page=1&pp=15

__________________
"Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you're probably right."

http://www.creativeceramicandmarble.com

Magnum P.I.

Hey Bill that is just incredible work on the steamer and also on the hex tile bath showcased on the JB forum. I am envious of your skill. Do you have any special way of handling a 1-foot by 2-foot mosaic sheet on your saw while cutting? Or do you first razor down the sheet so it is more manageable on your saws tray? I will be using spectralock on a floor today on similar tile used in your steamer. Any tips? I have used spectralock dozens of time but I’m always up for new good info. Thanks and awesome work.

Bill_Vincent

I use a Target Supertilematic. It's an oversized saw made for handling large format tiles, and comes with a secondary tray (only one shown in the picture). With the two trays, about 4" overhangs the end of the tray, so what I'll do is slide the sheet along the trays into the blade until the back of the sheet is fully on the tray, and then I'll cut it like any other tile.

__________________
"Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you're probably right."

http://www.creativeceramicandmarble.com

Bud Cline

Forget all that tile stuff, WHAT THE HELL do you do with all that kerosene?

Bill_Vincent

Hey-- that wasn't MY house!!



(I've only got TWO jugs!!)

KEROSENE jugs!!

__________________
"Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you're probably right."

http://www.creativeceramicandmarble.com

ChrWright

Bill,

Do you two coat the liquid over the membrane on your 9235?

I never did until I had problems with a site built soaking tub. From your picture, it looks like one coat on the wall, then the fabric, then one coat over the top.

__________________

Christopher Wright, CR: President @ WrightWorks, LLC/President @ Central Indiana NARI, Named to the 2010 REMODELING Big50
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Bud Cline

OH!!! I thought you were in your own garage practicing!

Bill_Vincent

Chris-- Usually, I do. If you read the directions ( ), that's the way it's supposed to be installed. On this project, though, I actually TRIPLE coated. Because of the roughness of the mud surface, there was only about 1/2 the normal bonding surface, and I had a tough time keeping the fabric up, and it hadn't been figured for skimcoating with thinset (although the next time, there's not going to be a choice for the "powers that be"!!). So I had to coat the mud once, let it dry, and then the next day, coat it again, put up the fabric, and then coat it the third time. That sucker ain't leakin fer NOTHIN!!

__________________
"Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you're probably right."

http://www.creativeceramicandmarble.com

ChrWright

Have you ever done any vessels with it? Fountains, tubs, etc.?

That extra coat makes a big difference, that's for sure.

__________________

Christopher Wright, CR: President @ WrightWorks, LLC/President @ Central Indiana NARI, Named to the 2010 REMODELING Big50
www.WrightWorks.net - Facebook - Twitter - Carmel Remodeling
Indianapolis Kitchen Remodeling Contractor - You Can Get There From Here

Bill_Vincent

No. The only "vessel" I've ever done was a roman tub, and although the base was 1" thick fiberglass, I used Hydroment's Ultraset as a bond coat to grab the thinset I was setting the mosaic marble with:

__________________
"Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you're probably right."

http://www.creativeceramicandmarble.com

ChrWright

Very nice work. I saw that project on one of your previous posts.

I built this soaking tub from scratch on site--wood frame, bending plywood, skimmed mud, 9235, then tile.

Had to re-waterproof after it leaked the first time.

I've used 9235, per spec, on a number of steam showers but this was the first vessel I had to build from scratch.

We went the extra coat the last time as well (a total of three) and that fixed it.

__________________

Christopher Wright, CR: President @ WrightWorks, LLC/President @ Central Indiana NARI, Named to the 2010 REMODELING Big50
www.WrightWorks.net - Facebook - Twitter - Carmel Remodeling
Indianapolis Kitchen Remodeling Contractor - You Can Get There From Here

Bill_Vincent

Man, that is stinkin awesome!! Very nice work!! Just out of curiosity, what kind of tile is that on the wall?

Yeah, it doesn't take much-- just a pinhole, and you've got problems. The very first steam shower I did, I used the Ultraset as the membrane, and the guy I was working for demanded that I put three coats of it all over the shower. This is before they reformulated it, and it made PVC glue look tame. I argued back and forth with him that it wouldn't be necessary. But after that first coat, I got really close up and checked it out, and you could see where little miniscule bubbles had popped and left little holes, so I recoated it, and gave it the third coat without even checking, just to be safe. The only other vessels I ever did looked more like this:



hey Chris, you obviously appreciate good custom work-- check this out:

http://johnbridge.com/vbulletin/show...&page=88&pp=15

from that page to the end. Some real HOLY SH*T work. Actually the whole thread (90 pages) is that good, but these last few pages from today are unbelieveable.

__________________
"Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you're probably right."

http://www.creativeceramicandmarble.com

ChrWright

I told myself "never again", after we finished that project. What's worse it was on the third floor (attic conversion).

I've always wanted to do a really cool pool floor all in glass mosaics.

There's some very cool stuff for pools in Bisazza's catalogs.

__________________

Christopher Wright, CR: President @ WrightWorks, LLC/President @ Central Indiana NARI, Named to the 2010 REMODELING Big50
www.WrightWorks.net - Facebook - Twitter - Carmel Remodeling
Indianapolis Kitchen Remodeling Contractor - You Can Get There From Here