Countertop Installation

Countertop Installation
t i l e s h o p. c o m
Coutnertop Installation
Be sure the
vanity or cabinets you are installing
tile onto are clean from debris or other
agents.
1. Remove & Clean
4. backerboard Place your
measured and cut cement board onto
the troweled adhesive. Firmly push
down the cement board.
Depending on the tile edging of your
countertop you will use either 1/4” or
1/2” cement board.
Trim the tape so it is the
same length as all of the seams.
7. TRIM
2. plywood Measure and cut a
piece of 3/4” plywood to the size of
your countertop. Use construction
screws to adhere the plywood to
your cabinets or vanity.
3. thinset
Don’t forget to cut out sink or other
counter openings.
SEE THE HOW TO MIX ADHESIVE
GUIDE FOR MORE INFORMATION
5. backer screws
Screw the
cement board down to the plywood
using Backerboard screws. Screws
should be 8” apart throughout the
entire board and along the edges.
6. Fiber TaPE Use fiber tape on all
of the cement board joints. Firmly
press the tape down with your
hands.
Using the flat end of the
notched trowel, skim over the fiber
tape. The thinset should be smooth
and just thick enough to cover the
tape.
9. plan Measure and draw out your
countertops tile design. After you
have planned your layout, make all
of the tile cuts and dry lay the entire
counter so you are sure the layout is
perfect.
8. SKIM
ALLOW THE COUNTER SUBSURFACE
TO DRY FOR 24 HOURS
Use a 1/4”notched
trowel to apply mixed adhesive to the
plywood.
SEE THE HOW TO CUT TILE GUIDE FOR
MORE CUTTING INFORMATION.
G e t i n spi r e d at t i l e s h o p. c o m
10. thinset Use the proper notched
trowel to apply mixed adhesive to
the cement board. Work in 10 minute
sections. Spread enough thinset for 10
minutes of tile installation.
11. Back Butter Using the flat
side of your trowel, apply a layer of
thinset to the back of your tile.
SEE THE HOW TO MIX ADHESIVE
GUIDE FOR MORE INFORMATION
Temporarily
screw a guide board to underside of
your counter lip. Be sure the guide
is level and the tiles are flush with
the edge of the cement board and
plywood.
13. profile guide
Continue the tiling steps on the entire
countertop.
Using a caulk
gun, apply a liberal amount of
construction adhesive to the
backside of your tile counter edge.
14. adhesive
OTHER HELPFUL HINTS :
-- To minimize tile lippage and
uneven tile joints be sure to check
the tiles often with your level. All
tiles should be level horizontally
and vertically.
If the edging needs
to be moved up or out a bit use
wedges to create perfect alignment.
16.top edges
ALLOW THE TILE TO DRY FOR 24
HOURS.
NEXT : GROUT, see the how to grout
guide for more information.
Lay the tile into the
troweled thinset. Start snug to the
last tile, then slide the tile away and
push firmly into the thinset. Use
spacers to keep the tiles evenly
spaced.
12. Set tile
-- If you find that your tiles are not
level use suction cups to remove
then from the thinset, then add or
remove thinset from the high or
low areas.
15.SET Starting with the bottom side
of the edging, adhere the edging
onto the counters raw exposed edge
using the guide board as a ledge so
that the edge does not slip.
Countertop Installation Checklist
348317 Pro caulk gun
343207 giant sponge
348230 scrub pad
spacers - multiple sizes
347992 steel 48” level
348315 chalk line
348513 nippers
348310 rubber gloves
066880 backer board screws
348309 sucton cup
347969 mixer bar
348312 cement board cutter
348202 rub stone
347990 Triangle square
pro notch trowl - various sizes
347811 6 gallon pails
342845 pro line fiber tape
347995 pro notch margin trowel
347996 pro margin trowel
347953 pro float
347998 pro margin float
utility knife
ceramic tile cutter - rental
026025 construction adhesive