Ceramic tile installation, one of the most important handyman services!

Ceramic tile installation is one of the most important handyman services, together with cabinet installation/removal/refacing, carpentry, ceiling repair, drywall repair/installation, deck repair, door installation/repair, dryer vent installation/cleaning, flooring installation/repair, insulation installation, window installation, and window screen repair. Considering the complexity of this process, ceramic tile installation needs to be done exclusively by professionals since they have all the experience and tools needed for the job. By reading this article further, you will find out how they do it, how long it takes, how much it costs, and other relevant aspects.

Home & Business Services – HBSOnTime.com in short, is a family-owned local company offering handyman services, as well as professional cleaning, home maintenance, and turnkey services since 2013 in the Greater Fredericksburg Area, VA. They are well-known among the residents of Culpeper, Caroline, King George, Louisa, Stafford, Spotsylvania, and Orange counties for their excellent work ethic, their punctuality, and professionalism, as well as the top-notch equipment they are using, having almost only positive reviews online. Without further ado, here’s what they told us about ceramic tile installation.

Total working time: 4 to 5 hours, that could be split into 2 days;

Skills needed: moderate (not one of the easiest handyman services, but also not one of the most difficult);

Price: 75 dollars per hour (this is how much Home & Business Services charge for all services enumerated in the first paragraph);

Tools: wet tile saw or rail tile cutter (for cutting the tiles), tile nipper, rubber tile float, notched tile trowel, flat margin trowel, tile spacers, sponges, buckets, tape measure, chalk line, bubble level, scrap lumber, framing square, safety glasses, rubber gloves;

handyman services

Materials: tile, thin-set mortar, tile grout, grout haze remover, grout sealer, cement backer board, fiberglass seam tape.

Steps:

1. Preparing the substrate. Without going into too much detail, we will list the steps involved in this handyman service. First of all, you have to install a cement board to lay the tiles on top of it. “Ceramic tile is fragile on its own, but gains strength when laid on a firm, inflexible surface”, said the Home & Business Services employee we talked to;

2. Dry fitting the tiles. Then, the expert in handyman services will measure the surface to create a cross pattern before laying the tiles. This will prevent visually unpleasing sights such as too thin tiles cut against the walls;

3. Spreading the mortar. Next, the mortar has to be spread evenly across the surface, before laying the tiles themselves;

4. Laying the tile. Of course, this is the most important step of ceramic tile installation. It has to be done by gently pressing tiles into the wet thin-set, twisting them back and forth to press them deeper into the thin-set;

5. Cutting the edge tiles. While performing this activity, the expert in handyman services will always wear safety glasses since it can become dangerous;

6. Grouting the tile. The grout will be pressed into the tile seams and then left to dry for about an hour, before removing the excess with a wet sponge;

7. Removing the grout haze. The milky-white grout haze will be removed similarly, by using plenty of clean water, together with a sponge;

8. Sealing the grout. Last but not least, the grout will be sealed by applying sealer to individual lines or by spraying down the entire surface (otherwise, it will soak up water).