Why start tiling up high

I have just about finished putting the plywood and backerboard on the floor and the backerboard in the shower area and green board in the rest.

I hope to start tiling as soon as my wife finishes deciding on a pattern. Anyway, looking at different sites on the internet, they do not have you starting at the floor and working up. Instead many sites have you starting up a foot or two by temporarily putting a 1 inch strip of wood and start tiling on top of that.

What is the purpose of this? Why not start on the bottom.

Secondly, my wife may go with a base that is about 3 inches tall and made of I think granite, and then we will on top of this and then have a top plate when we get there. If we do go this route should we still start with the 1 inch strip of wood or go ahead and lay the base first then use the spacer and then start tiling up from there?

I hope I am not confusing. I will try to get pics and post when she makes up her mind.

Thanks.

If you are installing floor and walls, I would install the floor first. Make sure you get the floor completely level and leave at least at least a 1/8" around the perimeter for expansion contraction. You then start doing your layout off of that sanitary base. Remember, the rules of building is level, plumb and square so use your level and square. As far as the sites that have you start a foot or more off the wall; not sure of the circumstances for those installs.

The reason to start with the stick is if you have a cut at the bottom or your floor is not level. If you can get a level flat floor great, if not then start with the stick and cut in the bottom row last to achieve a uniform grout line, cuts will change. Like Kelly I to like to tile the floor first but if your floor is not level you may want to tile the floor last.

Also, if you arent using one of the newer nano-tech thinsets, your tile will slide down on the wall so setting a ledger board will support the bottom row of full tile and you build up from there

Install the walls first to within slightly less than one full tile for the bottom row after considering what will be the finished height when the floor tile is installed. This way you won't be working on top of the new floor tile. Set a ledger for the starter row and use spacers as the tile progresses upward.

After the walls are in then install the floor tile.

Go back and cut to fit the bottom row of wall tile to the floor leaving a 1/8" gap for caulk. At this time any irregularities in the floor can be considered when cutting-in the final wall tiles.

Grout everything and be sure to dig out any grout that gets into the wall/floor juncture. When the grout is dry, caulk that juncture with grout-matching caulk.

In the case of cove-base tiles they can be done using more than one method. One style tile allows you to tile the floor up to the cove base after it is installed. Another style cove-base dictates that the floor tile be installed first.

If the base tile is to be installed on top of the floor tile, the wall tile can be installed first leaving out (two) bottom rows. Then the floor tile, then the cove base. Then the remaining second row up of wall tile can be cut to fit the cove-base that is sitting 1/8" above the floor tile. Not all tiles lend themselves to this method.

There is a lot to be considered and some accurate math is involved sometimes.

Thanks guys (and girl) for the reasons and suggestions!

I didn't think about leaving the tile closest to the floor last to help take care of an uneven floor - but it definitely makes sense.

I am amazed at how much goes into the thought and planning process of tiling! Once I get the tube out I I will be able to determine how level the floor actually is.

If it is not exactly level I guess I will have to research here on tips of leveling the floor. The good thing is the floor is only foot foot wide by 6 foot long (not including the tub area) so there shouldn' be too much disparity.

Thanks again.

John

I'm not sure on this one but I believe Kelly Marston is a dude. I guess I will be corrected if I'm wrong here. If you are a dude Kelly, that is cool, no disrespect, I like the name