Simply follow these steps to plan your floor tiles...

Preparing the existing floor

n
n

Concrete - clean with detergent mixed with water and if

it is uneven, level it; then lay tiles directly on the floor.
Timber - must be strengthened with 13mm-thick exterior
grade plywood fixed with countersunk 25mm screws
(4mm gauge) or ring-shanked nails at 300mm intervals.
Tiles - new tiles can be laid over old vinyl tiles after
coating the old tiles with primer.

Calculating quantities
Tiles are sold in packs and the size and number of tiles
they contain will determine the area of floor they will cover.
When you calculate the area of your floor, remember to
include the dimensions of any alcove or bay. Round up the
total to the nearest whole number to establish the number
of packs of tiles you need. Always buy 10% more tiles than
you need to allow for breakages.

Starting Out
The first tile, the key tile, determines the position of all the
others, so it is very important that this tile is in the right
place. Because rooms are seldom completely square, and
the walls may not be straight, you cannot start by laying
tiles right up against one wall and working your way out
from there - you would end up with an untidy mess. The
best way to ensure you have a symmetrical design is to
start from the centre of the room and work out to the walls
in each direction.

Finding the centre of the room

1 First measure one
wall, calculate its midpoint and mark this on
the floor. Repeat with the
opposite wall. With a
helper, stretch a chalk line
between the two marks
and snap a line across
the floor. Calculate and
mark the mid-point of this
line. Tie about 1m of
string to a pencil, and while your helper holds the end of the
string firmly on the mid-point of the line, pull it taught and
scribe an arc on the line either side.

Making it easier

Project essentials:

2 Now get your helper to

hold the end of the string on
the point that one arc intersects
the line, and with the string
pulled taught draw arcs at a
roughly 45 degree angle either
side of the centre line. When
you repeat this from the other side, the arcs should intersect.
3 Stretch a chalk line between these intersecting arcs and
snap a line across the floor. You now have two lines
intersecting at a perfect right angle in the centre of the room.

Line 1 drawn
between the
mid-point of
opposite walls
Line 2 intersecting
mid-point of line 1
at exactly 90

Tools

tape measure

wall or floor tile

spacers

pencil

spirit level

guage rod

pipe and
power detector

chalk

claw hamer

chalk line

string

Materials

how to...

plan your wall

and floor tiling

three 50mm x 25mm

softwood battens

50mm
masonry nails

tiles

PVA-based
adhesive

Positioning the key tile

Ideal for the job

Having found the centre of the room, start

at one of the centre lines, dry-lay a row of
tiles from the line to the wall. When you
reach the wall, make sure that you are not
left with a narrow gap because a very thin
strip of tile at the skirting will look very odd
and may not stick very well. If necessary,
move the line away from this wall the width
of half a tile to create a larger gap. Repeat
the dry-laying from this centre line in the
opposite direction and then in both
directions perpendicular to it. Adjust the
key tile position as shown right, until there
is an equal gap of about half a tile at all the
edges of the room.

Detecting hazards
Never drill blind into a wall or floor, you might
hit gas or water pipes or electrical wires.
A battery-operated pipe and power detector is
inexpensive and essential for making sure it is
safe to drill.

Levelling
A good-quality spirit level, designed to show you
a true horizontal or vertical, is a must-have tool
when lining up tiles. Spirit levels come
in all lengths and prices.
Printed on 9lives Offset 100% recycled paper

Tiling awkwardly shaped rooms

If the dimensions of the room are irregular, the chalk lines
will need to be snapped from a different place - the first line
centred on a strong focal point such as a fireplace or patio
doors. The room will still be divided into sections but they
will be different from one another.

A summary of this leaflet can be made available in

Braille, large print and audio cassette. Please ask for
details or email us at diversity@b-and-q.co.uk

Making it easier

Making it easier

All information correct at time of going to press

2010 B&Q Plc. Hampshire, SO53 3YX
HOWT0152

project essentials on the back

diy.com

Making it easier

Successful tiling relies on planning.

To achieve a symmetrical design you
must centre the pattern, with cut tiles
of equal size at the end of the rows.

Wall tiling
Before you start
n

Make sure the surface to be tiled is clean, dry and flat.

Strip wallpaper back to the plaster and fill any holes.

Allow new plaster to dry out completely.

Prime porous surfaces with a PVA-based adhesive.

Vertical rows

Horizontal rows

Part-tiled walls

The first job is to establish the position of the vertical

rows. This will allow you to find the starting point,
which should be near the centre of the area to be tiled.
Measure the width of the area and mark its centre-point
with a pencil.

Having established the positions of the vertical rows,

you can check where the horizontal rows will fall.

When part-tiling a
wall, set out the
horizontal tile rows
so that the top row
consists of whole
tiles; this will look
much better.

1 Hold your gauge rod so

that one of its marks aligns with
the centre-point on the wall.
Step off the tile positions
across the wall.

Calculating quantities
The size and number of tiles in a pack can vary. Check the
pack to find out the area each pack will cover in square
metres, then measure the height and width of the area to be
tiled and multiply to obtain the area in square metres.
Allow 10% extra for breakages.

Simply follow these steps

to plan your wall tiles...

2 When you reach a corner,

you will see if you need to cut
the last tile in the row to fit. If this
will be less than half a tile wide,
it is best to reposition the
starting point.

Making a tiling gauge rod

A gauge rod allows you to work out the
positioning of the rows and the size of any cut tiles.
Use a 50mm x 25mm wooden batten and make it 1.8m
long for tiling a wall, shorter for a small area.
1 Lay out a line of tiles
with tile spacers between
them. Place the batten
alongside, lining up the end
with the edge of the first tile.

2 Mark the positions of the

tiles and gaps on the rod to

give you a quick means of
working out how many tiles
you will need in each row.

3 Reposition by aligning the

rod with the centre-point as
before, then pencil a new mark
on the wall so that it falls halfway
between two tile marks on the
rod. This will be the actual
starting position for tiling and will
ensure that the cut tiles at each
end are more than half a tile wide,
and that the centre-line of the wall
passes through the centre of a tile.

4 Hold the gauge rod

against the new wall mark,
using a spirit level to ensure
that it is truly vertical, and
draw a line in pencil from top
to bottom.

1 Position the gauge rod

against the vertical pencil line, with its
end touching the floor (or skirting).
Put a pencil mark on the wall in line
with the top tile mark on the rod. Now
move the rod up the wall, still
following the vertical pencil line until it
touches the ceiling. If you are lucky,
the pencil mark on the wall will align
with one of the marks on the rod. If
there is no alignment, look at the
mark on the rod below the wall mark;
halving the distance between them
will give you the size of the cut tiles required. It is best if these are
at least half a tile deep. If they will be narrower than this, make a
mark on the wall in line with the next mark down on the rod.
2 Measure the distance
between the two marks and make
a third mark halfway between them.
Hold your gauge rod so the end is
just clear of the skirting or floor and
move it until one of its marks aligns
with the third mark. Make another
mark on the wall, level with the foot
of the rod. This will be the starting
point for the first horizontal row of
whole tiles. Draw a level line across
the wall at this point. Nail a batten
with its top edge aligned with the line.
Nail on another aligned to the vertical line.

our top tip

n Rather than remove old ceramic tiles, you

can simply tile over them. Check that they

are all firmly fixed in place and re-glue
any that are loose. You must use a specific
adhesive for tiling over existing tiles and
make sure that the joint lines of the
new tiles do not lie directly over those
of the old. However, this process isnt
suitable for natural stone tiles, as the
weight may pull the existing tiles
away from the wall.

you can do it...

Mark the position of

the top row on the
wall and use the
gauge rod to
determine the
position of the lowest
horizontal row.
Fill the gap between
this and the skirting
with cut tiles. Move
the top row up or
down so that you
dont have to cut
narrow slivers of tile.
You may even be
able to avoid cutting
tiles altogether,
although if the
skirting is uneven,
some trimming
will be necessary.
In this case, you
will need to start
from the lowest point
of the skirting. Find
this by holding a long
straight batten along
it, levelled with the aid
of a spirit level.