How clean do you set tile?

[Higher Standard Tile]

When you are doing floors do you have to do any scraping of the joints the next day before grout?

I leave my work reasonably clean, no globs of thinset and such but usually have a little prep work the next day before tile.

After I set a section, if any thinset is sticking up in the joint I use my knife to scrape it out, and then sponge the section.

The old days of 8 x 8's with 1/4 " joints were no problem but 20" tile with 1/8 joints seem to require a little more clean up as your setting.

I've seen guys who look like the never had to scrape a joint and they don't ever touch the tile with a sponge while setting, and it looks spotless. I just wonder what type of coverage they are getting.

My theory is I'd rather have to do a little cleanup knowing that I have good coverage. But I'm sure some guys get great coverage and their setting work is spotless. What do you do?

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[John K]

Yeah the 20's are hell sometimes. I believe it depends on how flat the floor is. If the floor wavy and I'm practically mud setting with medium bed. Then there is definately cleaning joints the next day.

People will say. "You should have gotten the floor flat before you started setting". Not always possible.:)

[scuttlebuttrp]

I'm pretty messy while installing but almost always have perfectly clean sponged joints. All the thinset ends up on my pants, hands, hair, shirt, inside my ear, etc..

[Bellsfloors]

I keep a stack of Popsicle sticks, sponge, and bucket of water handy to clean out the joints as I am setting tile. Joints are fairly clean but next day I always catch any questionable excess by cleaning out the dried thinset in the joints with a CBU scriber. Like John I would rather know by the excess that I am getting very good coverage.

[Kilauea]

You can see how clean my joints are in the work in proggress thread.Those pics of fresh thinset are from yesterday.Ill post more tonight ofg keepin it clean today.We use a toothbrush.I've been doin that since I worked on the Outrigger in Maui back in 2000 on my first travertine job.

[Muddman]

While my clothes get pretty messy, one thing I have learned to do over the years is try to keep my joints as clean as possible. That does usually involve a toothbrush shaped scrubber and a pointed sponge.

It can definitely be a pain to keep up with it, having to pull spacers out, wipe them off, put them back in, re-adjust tile. But I have found it is easier to spend a little extra time keeping the joints clean than having to clean them out later, especially if I am using modifies thinset.

There are times of course were this becomes hard to do, like when setting small mosaic tiles. Sometimes you have to wait till just the right time for the mortar to set up enough so the tiles don't slide around when you clean the joints. Of course if you finish setting at 6pm, and don't want to wait around till 8pm, then it becomes an issue. Been there.

[Aquera]

I'm terrible - one issue is that I work by myself, and if I have to do a tub surround and bathroom floor in the same day, I can't be taking all the time in the world to clean up.. I'd say it takes 2 times longer to clean the next day as apposed to cleaning as you go... one thing I did that helps is switch to ardex x5 - you almost don't need any spacers when doing walls because it sets up so quick, having no spacers makes clean up much easier

[Shaughnn]

I keep my tile and joints as clean as possible, while I'm working. I find that it also helps to keep my tools and hands clean while I'm working. In addition to have a sponge handy at all times, I keep a cheap 1" chip brush in my bucket and use it to sweep my joints as I'm setting. I use scissors to trim the bristles of the chip brush to about 5/8" so they are stiffer and the wooden handle ensures that it's always floating on the surface of the wash bucket somewhere.
Shaughnn

[ceramictec]

I'm the same way. I don't want a mess on my tile or in my joints.
I keep a bucket of water with a sponge near me and my margin trowel is always there.
if some thinset comes up in the joint I hit it with the trowel and take out the excess and then sponge the tile clean.

[Houston Remodeler]

I agree with muddman Greg,

I keep a sponge with water handy at all times. My tile, my hands, the walls and tools all stay nice and clean. Sometimes I get work done too.

[Hamilton]

Its faster to sponge or brush a joint clean than it is to knife hard thinset, and sweep or vaccuum. There are times when I will miss a joint and find it the next day. Usually from working my way out of a room, it'll be a joint around the corner or such. Always makes me laugh. Try hard to keep my stuff really clean but theres always that one spot!:)

[Higher Standard Tile]

I typically use my knife or margin and a sponge as I go, I used the toothbrush idea too. Works good.
One thing I've found is cut your sponge in half, then you have a sharp edge that can get in the joint.

[java]

I keep a bucket next to me with some half sponges and margin and keep everything as clean as I can as I go but still have to knife some joints the next day. Some tiles and patterns are worse than others but I always have grout joints to clean the next day.

I don't think I believe you guys who say they don't have to clean joints the next day.

[tilejoe]

I try to stay as clean as possible, but there is always something that will need a scraping the next day. You know, a little piece around a floor register that if you touch it when wet, you'll have to dig it out...or a mosaic cut. The cut down paint brush is a great tool!

[Tile Trowelki]

I clean as I go too. Actually I almost don't need to, I tend to use the smallest trowel I can for a given job; that helps. My joints stay pretty clean but I wind up with blobs of thinset on the tile sometimes. Those are easy to scrape loose.

[ob1kanobee]

I must be the odd man out. I always clean most of the joints (which don't happen to be many at all) the next day. Hardly ever use a sponge and water on the tile while setting. Floors really never have any thin-set coming up through. If it was a big glob coming up through or on the tile I would hit it with the margin trowel in the joint (no sponge) and both trowel and sponge if on the tile. Seemed to take less time for me the next day as opposed to cleaning as I went although not too much to clean anyway.

Used to set with another guy who did the same thing, however the next morning/day there was always a crazy amount of thin-set coming up through his joints and for some reason he always gravitated toward my are to clean the next day when I reminded him to clean his own side. Then I had to help him clean his areas......

[Muddman]

I don't think I believe you guys who say they don't have to clean joints the next day.

Definitely. No matter how meticulous I am, there are always spots that I miss. Usually because I cannot see them from the angle I am at when working across a floor. But even when doing a shower wall I go back and find a few spots.

BTW that is one of my favorite uses of my Fien multimaster. The carbide wheel makes quick work of excess mortar in joints, as long as they are 1/8 or bigger. Then I just use a green or blue scrubbie pad to get the little bit left on the edges

[Aquera]

the thing to remember is that its not bad cleaning up within 24 hours or so - if you leave it all weekend, its going to be 10 times harder to clean off...

[alacrity]

I always have a bucket of water and a half sponge next to me when I set, I think it's foolish not to...cement cleans up a lot easier when it's wet. I like to work clean, no wiping my hands on my jeans, I like my tools clean too.

[gueuzeman]

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a150/gueuzeman/112609006.jpg

.

[Muddman]

gueuzeman, were in the world did you get that funky brush???

[gueuzeman]

Denture cleaning brush from CVS, Walgreen's or other pharmacy store.

Triangle sponge, just cut a sponge in half side to side.

.

[tileguynky]

Jason, just take your time and it is possible. I might have an occasional spot here and there to clean up. But as far as going back and having to clean mortar out of the joints before I start to grout. No, I do not do that. I notice that some guys back butter the tile all the way to the edge. I was taught to leave about an 1/8" to 1/4" edge of tile around the perimeter of the tile. This allows the thinset somewhere to go with out entering the grout joint area. I usually comb the floor in one direction and have very little trouble. Do the above method for wall tiles, large format tile, stone and combine the two methods to set with the tuscan leveling system. I can vouch that these tiles are well stuck. Any area that does not get filled with thinset in the squish, gets packed with grout so there are no hollow edges.

[Saldibs]

I always have a bucket of water with a sponge and my hook knife handy to clean out any thinset in the joints as I set my tiles. When it's time to grout I can get right to it, no clean up required except for a little spot here and there.

[Shawn Prentice]

I usually keep my installs pretty clean with minimal work the next day. I use old/retired grout sponges cut into strips to get a sharp edge and a 1-1/2" scraper to clean up fresh thinset. However, I have learned some very slick tricks in this thread that I will employ on my next tile job this week. Thanks to all for an informative thread on a seemingly simple topic.

[Dan Kramer]

I'm like Ben. If I know I'm coming back in the morning I don't get too stressed about cleaning. I find I move tiles around too much or just get too damn slow if I'm constantly cleaning t-set out of the joints. I do however keep a water bucket and sponge but really use it for dampening the substrate before troweling.

[madronatile]

i'm not clean enough for 254

[Chad Deiter Construction]

My tiles are usually fairly clean but I don't obsess over them while setting. My bad habit is wiping everything on my pants. :bonk:

[Higher Standard Tile]

Matt good point. Hard to be clean enough for 254.

Another thing, i never wear gloves while setting (just grouting) I notice that if I wear gloves I don't notice bits of thinset on my hand which invariably end up on my trowel handle and the tile.

And of course the obvious. Use white thinset for light grout colors and grey for dark. Sometimes I think my joints are all clean and then when I grout with a light color I see a little streak of grey thinset on the edge of the tile when I am cleaning up the grout. That is really annoying.

But Laticrete 253 Grey is a really light grey color compared to some others that are very dark grey. So I don't mind using that when I have a light colored grout.

[JC]

One trick that helps is to directional trowel then when you place the tile set it tight up against the other tile then slide it away and into place and as it goes into place it sinks down and gets proper coverage.

I margin trowel and wipe with sponge myself if need be and hardly have any left the next day..cept on me and my pants...and sometimes behind my ear if my pencil gets it...hate that

[LAN1870]

I'm a very clean setter. Of course I do sometimes get thinset on my ear, walkman, etc. I clean the joints and tile as I go along but sometimes have to clean a joint here or there the next day. I really don't use a sponge though because I'm pretty clean but I usually use a knife, etc. to clean the joints as I work.

When I get fresh thinset on my hands, you know what I do with it? Wipe it on the back of the next tile to be set. I also wipe my hands on the back of the tiles if the thinset is fresh. Just seems logical to me. :)