How to set out tiling the right way
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This tutorial shows how to set out wall tiling correctly.
In this article, I would like to share with you some very simple techniques on how to set out for correctly tiling bathroom walls. The first things to consider when tiling a bathroom, is how the room is going to look when it is finished and the tiling is of course going to play a large part in this. To optimise the best possible way in which to tile the bathroom, certain things must be considered. Firstly, what size and shape are the tiles, if they are square tiles, then simply they will be fixed to the wall in a standard square next to square pattern. If the tiles are rectangular, there are numerous ways in which they can be fixed to the wall. There are two variations of fixing rectangular tiles to a wall, being either landscape or portrait. Position the tiles on the wall and decide which way you think they look best. Also consider whether to fix the tiles in a staggered pattern i.e. brick bond (like bricks are laid) or square and level with each other i.e. side by side so that all the grout joints line up. The next thing to decide is how to set out the tiling and where to start. The most common and correct way of setting out tiling is to measure and mark a centre point on each wall. From this centre point, position the tile on the wall next to the mark you've made and mark another point where the edge of the tile comes to and repeat this process until you've reached the corner of the room on each wall to be tiled. When you have reached the corner of each wall, you will be left with a tile to cut in which will either be large or small. If the cut tile will be large, then great, but if it is small they you'll need to adjust the setting out. This is achieved by marking a point on the centre of the top edge of the tile and then position the mark on the tile directly on the centre mark of the wall. Repeat the process of measuring where the tiles will finish in the corner of the wall and you will find that the corner tile will now be large instead of thin, whilst still maintaining the tiling dead centre of the wall. The measurement of each wall will determine the size of cuts in the corner of each wall. Opposite walls will normally be the same measurement in length, so its common practice to try and mirror the tiling so the cuts are more or less identical on opposite walls. There are two different ways in deciding how you would like tiles to look in the corner of the room. Some tiler’s will set out the tiling to achieve the biggest possible cut in each corner and others will try to set out the tiling so that the cut tile in the corner looks like it has folded itself on to the next wall. The latter of these two different ways of setting out tiling, is in my opinion, the correct way of tiling. Next, you will need to consider how to set out the tiling from floor to ceiling. This decision will be determined by many things such as trying to avoid small cuts around baths, window reveals, ceilings and floors. If a border tile is to be used, then the height of this, (usually around 1.2 metres from floor level), will determined how the tiling from floor to ceiling will be set out. The larger the cut tile against main obstacles the better it will look so it’s worth taking the time to consider all features of the room. When you are happy with your decision on setting out, it is important to draw a vertical line on the centre of each wall where you have decided to start tiling from. Next, a horizontal line must be drawn all the way around the room ensuring that the drawn line is continuous and meets at every corner. If the floor is to be tiled, you will also need to consider how to set it out. If the floor tiles are the same size as the wall tiles, then try to ensure the wall tile joints line up with those on the floor. This can easily be achieved by accurately mirroring the wall tile setting out of each opposite wall. You are now ready to start tiling! Please look out for my next article on how to install tiles the correct way.
The video below follows on from the first video. This video shows the completed shower tiling and the finished result of how I've set the tiling out. You can see from the video how it pays to set out tiling the correct way in order to get that professional finish.
