DIY'er - 1st Time Kitchen Counter Tile - Need Help

[cm4401]

Hello all and thanks for having such a wonderful place for "us" to go.

This will be my very first tile experience. I'm doing my kitchen counter and backsplash. I have the old laminate ripped off, down to the plywood and have some questions/confirmations:

1. The backsplash still has the "lined" glue marks on it. I should scrape it all off huh?

2. I should also fill-in any holes left when I ripped out some plaster by accident too? Right?

3. After reading about a gazillion threads, I'm seeing words I have NO idea what they mean. Should probably do a little more reseach but it seems as though naive me thought I could just mud and tile right over the existing counter plywood. Can't do that huh?

4. Finally, my biggest question is what to do with the sink. Currently, I have an over-mount double stainless steel sink. Do I remove it, lay tile and mount the sink directly over the tile and then caulk?

ANY info ANYONE can provide would be sooo appreciated. I feel like the biggest dumb blonde over this, nonetheless proud of myself for even considering it.

Thanks again - Christine :)

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[bbcamp]

Welcome, Christine!

I have a couple of questions:

1) Was your backsplash laminate glued directly to the wall, or a sheet of plywood? If you have a piece of plywood still firmly tied to the walls, you can go from there. Scrape as much glue off as you can. You will be adding a layer of backerboard, so it doesn't have to be spotless.

2) You got real plaster walls or sheetrock? Either way, you oughta fix the holes. They'll detract from the beautiful job you'll be doing on the countertop. Your neighbors will say things like: "Hey, didja see Christine's countertops?" "Naw, all I could see was those big ol' holes in the wall!" "Wasn't that the biggest dumb blonde thing you've ever seen?!" :D

3) Well, yeah, you could do that. But we'll go over a few things you might have missed, or give you a few ideas to make this easier. You can do a search on countertops and find a number of threads dealing with this subject. Then ask your questions. We aren't like your neighbors, we don't care if you're blonde. :D

4) Removing the sink, setting the tile, and replacing the sink is the right way to do things, especially since yours is a drop-in sink.

Good luck with your project!

Bob

[cm4401]

Bob - You're a doll. Thanks for your response...

1) The backsplash was glued directly to the plaster (not sheetrock) was and I'm left with hard troweled glue on the wall. Thanks, I'll be scrapping a way this weekend. :) Hmmm...backerboard? Just learned what that meant this morning (thanks to this wonderful forum), however, can you explain to me the purpose of the backerboard. Again, this naive blonde thinks, "Why can't I just mud the tiles right to the wall?"

2) Gotcha - will be patching holes this weekend as well. You made me laugh out loud with your comment about my neighbors and the holes. I needed that.... thanks.

3) So I can mud and tile right over the plywood? Kinda goes with #1 above. Any expense that I can save, however small it may be, would be great. What started out as just wanting to install a dishwasher (which I've done..) has turned into a new floor, new counter, new trim, paint... and an empty wallet! :)

4) Thanks for the info on the sink. My only concerns was the possibility of cracking the tile by placing the sink on top of it.

~ Christine

[bbcamp]

Ok, I had a blonde moment...

I read what you wrote about mud, then tile and I'm thinking "Deck Mud," and you're thinking "thinset." My thought was to let you read about backerboard and discover for yourself how quickly you could do the countertop with it, instead of mud...

Anyway, let's start calling the stuff you set the tiles with "thinset" so I won't get confused anymore. 'K?

You do need the backerboard for the countertop. It provides a substrate for the tiles that isolates the expansion and contraction of the plywood from the rigid tiles, as well as provides something that really bonds well with thinset. You can install the tiles directly on the plaster if it is in good condition (clean, tightly adheared, no loose paint, etc). If you have to repair holes in the plaster where the tile goes, do that soonest to give the plaster time to cure, and to see if any cracking at the repair occurs.

When you set the sink, you first place a bead of plumber's putty (or silicone caulk) around the perimeter, drop in the sink, then tighten the sink clips until the sink finally bottoms out. Clean off the squeeze out, and you're done. You can't hurt the tiles doing this.

Bob

[cm4401]

*Whew* Glad I'm not the only "blonde" in the room. :)


Thinset it is.

Thanks for the explanation about the backerboard. I'm the type that needs to know WHY I'm doing something, or else I skip it. :) Back to the store I go...

Thanks for the info on the sink. I stared at it all morning over coffee not knowing what to do (boy, do I need a life or what).

You've been tremendously helpful and I'd give you a great big hug if I could!

Thanks again and have a great weekend.

Christine