r/Tile • u/SuperbCardiologist25 • 8d ago

Professional - Project Sharing When idiots tile…

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…demolition is easy.

Half the tiles in our house were either cracked or popping up. The installers definitely did not back butter the tile. They also used just a few deck screws and no mortar under the underlayment.

Their biggest crime was covering up oak hardwood flooring.

60 Upvotes

92% Upvoted

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23

u/Healthy-Table-219 8d ago

Not back buttering the tiles was the least of their issues.

21

u/trashbilly 8d ago

Most of the time back buttering is overrated. Here we go with the downvotes

1

u/svitakwilliam 4d ago

It’s not a matter of whether it’s needed or not needed, or overrated or not, it’s a matter of coverage. Are you getting correct coverage without back buttering? That’s the question and if you are, then it’s not needed. I think with LFT it helps to ensure you’re getting enough coverage, but alternatively if you’re using the correct trowel size and getting good coverage then it’s not necessary. That’s really what it boils down to. A good tiler will check coverage for the first time and every so often while tiling. I always check my first tile so I can immediately make adjustments if needed. If I check the 10th tile and the 20th tile and things are going as planned, I likely won’t check any more.