Tub surround - tiling to ceiling question.

[JeffV]

I guess this is a personal preference thing and I'm looking for some opinions how to lay out the tile in my tub surround, going from tub to ceiling. Should I try to keep the bottom course a full tile, or should I use same strategy as for the sides, and go off of center to make the top and bottom courses equal in size?? Any thoughts from those w/ experience?

Thanks - Jeff

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[Shaughnn]

Jeff,
Ceilings are rarely level but I generally like the look of a bigger cut, if not a full tile at the ceiling. First, find the "high" spot on the ceiling of your shower and the low spot on your shower pan or tub. Mark those with pencil on the wall. Now, draw a level horizontal line around the shower as a referance line. Measure from the referance line to the high spot on the ceiling and record the number. Measure from the referance line to the low point on the tub or shower pan and record the number. Add those two numbers together and record the sum. Now, lay out your tile with appropriate grout joint spacing so that it is two tiles longer than your sum.
Using the sum as a guide, measure from the edge of a full tile to see what sort of cut that would leave you at the other end. Is it larger than half of a tile? Is it narrower than a half of a tile? With these referance tools, you'll be able to adjust your layout visually to determine what the best solution is for YOUR situation. Remember that if your ceiling and/or tub/pan are not level then you will be trimming those tiles accordingly. Sometimes, you may find that full tile works almost exactly except that you have a small gap. When I encounter these I think it's an excellent time to reconsider throwing in an accent liner or other design element to alter the layout dimensions just a little bit and improve the overall appearance.
Best of luck,
Shaughnn

[ddmoit]

Hey Jeff,

I think the pros like to start by making the second row from the bottom be the first full course of tile. The bottom row would be slightly less than a full tile to account for any variances along the line where the tile meets the tub.

I think your strategy should be the same, only one also need to consider your top row, where the tile meets the ceiling. You could adjust your grid, splitting the difference between the first and last rows so that neither row is much less than half a tile.

EDIT: Or, you could just listen to Shaughnn. He types faster and knows more about tiling than I do. :tup2:

[rktect]

Top and bottom rows of tile in my shower are both cut. But they are alos greater than half the hieght of a tile.

[JeffV]

That's exactly what I needed. Shaughn - great idea on the accent tiles to adjust for better appearance...that had not even crossed my mind.

Thanks again all...you guys are great!