Another bad joint (uneven) between tiles that will end up under the refrigerator thankfully got me thinking why this floor isn't laying out smooth and flat as can be when everything under it was perfect. My taped seams in the backerboard were the problem and I had gone over them and scraped them flatter after the first bad joint. Then I made more of an effort to even things out near the seams with my layer of smooth coat before the mortar base for the tile. Mostly it is undetectable and no big deal, but a tile floor should not do this.
I read the instructions on the bag of mortar again and DOH! I had been using the wrong size trowel for the entire installation. I was using a 1/4 x 1/4 x 1/4 trowel and should be using one as large as 1/2 x 1/2 x 1/2 for these large 13 inch tiles. I had even bought a new trowel for that specific purpose, a 1/4 x 3/8 x 1/4. That 3/8 would give me just a bit thicker bed of mortar and the tiles would float over the taped seams much better. DOH!!
So I switched trowels. Two thirds of the kitchen and all of the bathroom will be more better. It looks great. We just won't be rolling any marbles around on my floor or sliding around on it like Tom Cruise. Perhaps I will also be better at this when it comes time to tile the shower on a vertical wall. Help!
Things keep growing.
And I kept on tiling. Once it is stuck to the floor there's no going back.
At least I got lucky in the kitchen too. The tiles fit from one from one side of the room to the other without needing to cut tiles.
Some purists might consider it an error on my part to be purposely growing the non-native roadside weed chicory. I have a roadside bed and figured why should I have to drive down the road to enjoy such a pretty sight.
I suspect it will migrate as is the want of weeds. The wildflower surround of the roadside vegetable garden may soon have a dash of blue to go with the yellow, white, red and orange.
It's not so hard to learn to live with the way things are.
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5 comments:
Hi Christopher! Wow...your floor looks great! You are such a perfectionist and only you will know the little imperfections. They surely aren't visible to anyone else. Have a great 4th of July!
Your floor looks fantastic. No one will know the tiny imperfections, only you. They will be hidden.
I LOVE that blue in the first pic. It goes so well with the other colors.
I totally agree with your last statement. That is the ultimate of all.
Living with the way things are is part of being an old fart, or fartess. I love that chicory and will be adding some here as soon as seeds are ripe along the roadside. The tile is lovely and good thing you are now smarter before starting the bathroom wall. I think a boo boo there would be more noticeable, but maybe not since people don't take showers with their glasses on. Happy 4th!
Frances
Did you know the whole plant of Chicory can be eaten?
Isn't that the way of it, learning from experience, but then what sucks is that you'll probably never need to use that knowledge again--in this case laying tiles!
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