Of course you can. Just don't expect good results. I've spent the pas few days scraping up cracked tile someone decided to glue down with construction adhesive.

 

thinset will support 90+% of the tile versus what? Lines of tube glue? Your "fix" might be quick but when you have to remove it because it cracked, you'll wish you just used the proper cement. Also, thinset would be cheaper than the glue to use.

 

The o.p. won't be there to fix it. Not a contractor.

 

Properly applied thinset supplies an even-bearing bed, which helps prevent the tile from cracking. Glue's the hacker's/fly-by-night choice, and might last until the sale closes. If the shoe fits, wear it.

 

I don't get the impulse. You can get a bag of Versabond for 12 bucks. Water is pretty much free. Construction adhesive is like 8 bucks a tube for the 30 oz.

What the effing eff?

 

Further proof that stupid is expensive.

 

I don't get the impulse. You can get a bag of Versabond for 12 bucks. Water is pretty much free. Construction adhesive is like 8 bucks a tube for the 30 oz. What the effing eff?

You can walk into Home Depot, grab a couple tubes and they are not as heavy as a bag of thinset. I've used adhesive before on baseboard tile, not because I wanted to, but it actually works on a vertical surface if you have good backing. But yeah don't do it on a floor!

 

Why not just use ceramic tile adhesive instead. Pretty much the same type of adhesive, but in a bucket instead of a tube. When I started in the business back in the 70's, tile adhesive was widely used. But as they became more & more expensive, thin set became the tilers choice because it became much cheaper and it dries much faster. You will get twice the square foot coverage with thin set for the same cost of tile adhesive. In my opinion, adhesive it is better at holding tile to the floor than thin set.

I prefer using adhesive on bathroom floors when possible because it is oil based and has superior water resist qualities. Problem is, you have to wait 36 to 72 hours for it to fully dry.

It sounds like you want to tile the entryway of your house to prevent your hardwood floor or carpet from rain & snow damage dragged in on wet shoes. If you can wait the 36 to 72 hours of not using the entry door, then I would definitely use the adhesive over the thin set.

 

Oh, Please do not use water based adhesive on a floor---

Placed under large tile it will take forever to dry---and the first time the floor gets wet the adhesive will re emulsify--causing the floor to fail.

 

...

 

He mentioned oil based in his post, the picture might be different

 

Why is this even a question?

 

It's easier to do something that you know is hacky if someone else says it's OK.

 

You can as long as nobody walks on it.

 

The specs on Acrylic Pro says it it latex but not water based. I have seen paint and adhesive in a Sherwin Williams store where it claims to be a combination of latex & oil based. How that is possible, I don't know. Anyway I have used this product many times and have had no problems with call backs. If it weren't for the fact that the 36 to 72 hours drying time is not practical in most cases, I would use this instead of thin set. The jobs I did use adhesive, I never had a tile come loose or crack, unless someone drop an object heavy enough to break it. If it is a solvent/oil based you want, Home Depot sells that also

 

you gotta be ****ting me! a framer giving advice on what products to use for tiling :blink: You have a lot to learn about tiling. stick around and you may learn something. :thumbsup:

this may give you an idea of why no one uses these products who know what they are doing

Limitations
Do not bond directly to hardwood, Luan plywood, particle board, parquet, cushion or sponge-back vinyl flooring, metal, fiberglass, plastic or OSB panels.
When setting moisture sensitive natural stone, cement or agglomerate tile, check with Custom Technical Services; use EBM-Lite™ Epoxy Bonding Mortar 100% Solids or CEG-Lite™ 100% Solids Commercial Epoxy Grout.
Not recommended for installing tile larger than 6"x6" over waterproofing membranes.
Do not use to install resin-backed marble of stone; use EBM-Lite™ Epoxy Bonding Mortar 100% Solids or CEG-Lite™ 100% Solids Commercial Epoxy Grout.
Recommended for interior use only. Do not use for steam rooms, shower floors or underwater. For those installations, use CUSTOM® Polymer-Modified Mortar Systems.
Not for use over radiant heat systems.
Installation dry time varies depending on tile size and density, substrate porosity and ambient conditions.
Do not use to install fixtures, ungauged natural stone, gauged stone thicker than 3/8" (9.5 mm), transparent glass tile, Saltillo pavers or lug back tile on floors

 

There is always some clown on these boards trying to prove how much smarter he is than the next guy.

 

Pot, kettle:blink:

Lets just say there are guys on here who know vastly more about tiling than you could ever hope to know. Im not one of them but i know enough to not make my self look like an idiot.

Pro installers dont use thinset because its cheaper. they use it because its better. It dont matter if its $20 a bag thinset or $70 a bag thinset its better than any bucket adhesive. The limitations of the product will prove that alone.

 

rstarre.....I forgot to mention, always use a primer. Henry's makes excellent products. Like I mentioned earlier, the tiling jobs where I used adhesive with primer on top of plywood, I never had a customer call me back on a broken or loose tile. I remodeled a friends bathroom last month. I did his kitchen floor in 1999 using adhesive on top of primed plywood. He never had a loose or cracked tile. I did the same on a relatives floor 6 years ago. Same results. Use your own judgement on what to use. I'm not here to prove I a smarter than anyone else. I've been a contractor for 38 years and posting what has given me good results over the years.

 

I find primers work well on dusty walls or floors. As i learned here its not really needed if the surface it correctly prepped and i have since stopped using it with zero issues.

My mum laid 18x18 tile with bucket adhesive and a wooden spoon. its still down after 7-8 years. I doubt it would last 20 years but for her it worked. Bucket adhesive is nothing more than a DIY product for the DIY market. yet i see it used all the time in the totally wrong situations. it works but dont expect it to last our perform like a thinset.

Also every single job i ever seen done with bucket adhesive had serious amounts of mold behind the tile. That is not a good thing.

 

Latex but not water based? Was that written on purpose? What the effing fudge?

 

The jobs I did use adhesive, I never had a tile come loose or crack, unless someone drop an object heavy enough to break it.

Ahhh. Unless.

The truth is that properly supported tile will not (and cannot) break from static or dynamic load. Movement can break tile, but impact can't if it's fully supported.

Don't believe me? Buy a bag of the cheapest unmodified crap you can find go to your garage and comb straight with a quarter quarter quarter and stick a tile in it til it farts.

Come back the next day and you won't be able to crack it. You can dig a hole in it with a sledge hammer, but you won't be able to crack that tile.

 

The jobs I did use adhesive, I never had a tile come loose or crack, unless someone drop an object heavy enough to break it.

The truth is that properly supported tile will not (and cannot) break from static or dynamic load. Movement can break tile, but impact can't if it's fully supported.

oh yes you can, and it isn't that hard to break one.
DAMHIK -don't ask me how i know-

 

LMFAO !! You guys actually answered this question ?



Well I will add , that I've used PL on tile base . That's the only time I use a " construction " adhesive for tile.. other than that, I use #LATICRETE 310

http://www.laticrete.com/dealers/products/adhesives/epoxy_adhesives/productid/23.aspx

 

LMFAO !! You guys actually answered this question ?



It was raining---what can I say?:whistling

 

Yeah and I'm that guy that will prove you don't know jack **** about tiling a floor. Show me a TCNA, manufacturer's, or for that matter ANY other spec that lists mastic use on floors as being the preferred method and I'll kiss your ass at the half time show of the Superbowl.

I don't want to see when you kiss his ass, but in case you wanted to know.

Tile Council of North America (TCNA) TCNA Handbook for Ceramic Tile Installation, TCNA Method EJ171

 

EJ171 references movement joints, not the suitability of mastic as preferred method of installing floor tile.

 

It's just getting worst and worst for that fella...

 

And that's another great point, rules , regulations and standards are set to for a reason, with that being said, real world expertise and scenarios make for different approaches to each individual job. It is our duty to correct errors that even governing bodies make.. in this case of mastic , it has it's place. But not on a floor or a shower, or not with large format tiles...

 

Just use fast dry caulk to set the tile, Then use the same to fill in the 1/4" plus gap between the tiles. Foot traffic in a hour.

 

Yep....:thumbsup:

Foot trafic in an hour.... redecorating with new tile in a month... best of both worlds....

 

I demoed a kitchen floor once that was rotted subfloor with 2 layers of linoleum glued on top, then a layer of carpet, then ceramic tile glued to the carpet. Almost every single tile was shattered, and because the floor and carpet had so much give the shards could actually rise up and stab you. The glue was holding though.

 

Doesn't say that it's a preferred method but still lists it as an option. They illustrate bond coat in all of their drawings. If you have the same TCNA copy I have, they define bond coat on page 281.

Bond Coats: The estimated weights assume a 3/16"-thick cementitious, epoxy, or organic adhesive bond coat, and the typical weights for such were calculated based on manufacturers' literature. For uncoupling membrane methods, the weight of a 3/16"-thick bond coat was used in addition to the weight of mortar required to fill the cavities of an uncoupling membrane. For electric radiant heating systems, the weight of a 3/16"-thick bond coat was used in addition to the weight of a 1/4" layer of material needed to encapsulate the heating system.

The TCNA once listed MR drywall as a suitable substrate in wet areas.....

Think about asbestos, UFI insulation, aluminum wiring....etc. They were all approved for use at one time and look how they worked out.

As for the OP.....enough of the hack talk about using mastic on a floor. I'm sure you have your areas of expertise, but, with all due respect, tile isn't one of them. When you've done a hundred tile floors with mastic and not had a single issue, come back and we will talk.