Tile And Grouting

How to install glass mosaic tile backsplash, Part 3 grouting the tile


Part 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T46iMEXa7L0
Part 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PB-T5Ohjnik
Glass tile installed on a kitchen backsplash using a high polymer content thinset suitable for glass tile. The glass tile in this video is a mosaic tile and is not transparent, even though full coverage of the thinset on the back of the tile is desirable, it is not critical. This glass tile is mosaic tile and has an opaque baking so the color of the tile is not dependent on the complete coverage of thinset on the tile back, it is still necessary to use a white thinset that is suitable for this purpose. Mastic should never be used for any kind of glass tile, nor should a lower or inferior grade of thinset be used. . I usually use “Tec Superflex”. It is also important that the thinset used is one that has the same color across multiple units, to insure color consistency when installing large projects that require more than one bag of thinset. Using a lower quality thinset can cause variation in color and shading of the glass tile, and also result in tiles not adhering to the mortar. This particular size tile required the use of a 3/16″ v-notched trowel. This glass tile has some exposed edges of the glass tile at the end of the counter top. The tiles that had not been cut could be set in place “as is”, but the tile that were cut at those edges had to be polished to approximate the factory edge to achieve a pleasant consistent finished edge. If polishing the edges of the tile is not possible, then a schluter metal trim of the right color and size could be used, or some other type of transition glass tile is also a possibility. The tile should be allowed to set at the very least over night before grouting. An unsanded grout was used mixed with “Boost” grout additive to achieve a highly stain resistant grout. Some glass tiles will be scratched if a sanded grout is used, in which case an unsanded grout should used. The proceeding is intended as a guide line and not complete instructions on how to install mosaic glass tile, complete installation instructions are usually supplied with the tile at the time of purchase, or may be included in the tile packaging.
All tile installed by Sal DiBlasi, Elite-tile Company, in the Boston North Shore area
Youtube Channel http://www.youtube.com/user/saldibs?feature=watch
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/Elite-Tile-Company/56681633342
Website http://www.elitetileco.com/