Thinset tile mortar has a smooth slippery consistency similar to mud.
How thick should thinset be for wall tile.
Ridge on a wall with smaller square notched than with a larger u notched.
Tile set by the thinset method is adhered to the substrate with a thin layer of thinset cement.
Mar 20 2019 the 2011 tile industry standards define the minimum bond layer thickness to be 3 32 after beat in but the maximum thickness has more to do with the manufacturer of the thinset mortar you are using.
It is applied to the substrate with a notched trowel.
Dec 15 2016 find the right tile trowel size following this step by step guide for professional tile as well as how thick the bed of thinset should be under the tile.
The key with ceramic and porcelain tile installation is to apply an even amount of thinset under each individual piece.
Spread the mixture using a notched trowel whose notch size matches the thickness of the tiles.
Ten or fifteen years ago when nearly all commercial glass tiles were 1 8 thick installers had a recurring problem of having to fit thin glass tiles into a thicker ceramic tile installation.
Thinset is a mortar that is made of portland cement silica sand and moisture retaining agents.
This type of cement is designed to adhere well in a thin layer typically not greater than 3 16th thick.
Thinset tile mortar.
1 mix the thinset mortar.
Thinset mortar is your default tile mortar for most indoor and outdoor applications.
For most tile installations a square notched trowel with 1 4 inch notches produces grooves of the right thickness.
Excess thinset will squirt out of the grout lines and create unneeded hassle.
Many thinsets max out at 1 4 in a single layer.
At this point the thickness of the thinset on the wall must be thicker than the tiles.
For wall tiles that is typically 1 4 inch.
Ceramic and porcelain tile are properly installed with a tradition notched trowel at depths of 1 4 inch to 3 8 inch.
The terms thinset cement thinset mortar dryset mortar and drybond mortar are synonymous.
Using a u notched trowel and embedding the tile into the thinset leaves you with a bed of thinset beneath the tile a little over 1 3 the size of the trowel teeth.
So a 3 8 u notched trowel leaves a 1 8 bed of thinset beneath the installed tile.
For thicker tiles larger notches are recommended.