Remodel day 34: Tiling Project #1

After a considerable amount of talk and research into tiling, we took on the first tiling project at the house. We started at noon at Home Depot picking up a few tools (rubber gloves, trowel, grout float, sponges) and finished at 9pm... Novices.

At the house we first had to scrape the remaining adhesive off the floor with a razor edge. It was terrible but a great workout. That was the first hiccup. The second hiccup was that the wet saw a friend lent us did not work. We mixed up the thin-set mortar which was a lot harder than it sounds. We did a small dry lay of tiles while we waited. Finally, we were ready to spread the mortar and begin laying tiles. It was very hard work!

After the initial tiles were laid down minus the ones that needed cuts, we took a much needed lunch break before hitting Home Depot again. Brandon rented a wet saw while I gave Ashton and JP (who had met us there) a tour of finishes we like for the house. Then it was time to make a few cuts and finish the floors! The hardest cut was the hole for the toilet. Well done Brandon! (Brandon's add in: Jenny did an awesome job on this project and it wouldn't have been completed without her. So thankful for her!)There are some minor imperfections with a few grout lines being slightly wider, but it looks great for our first time!

Also pictured is a piece of the closet shelf that Brandon removed this week. It was a small serendipity to encourage us on this journey and to let us know that not all the former residents were sad and hopeless like the ones who created the "mural" art. It says, "Ken Deaton 11/28/81 added shelf. This house is about 7 years old now. We sure do like it, had thanksgiving turkey yesterday need this exercise today". Another meaningful part of the inscription is the date, 1981 is the year Brandon was born and November 28 is our anniversary. Thank you, God for that encouragement.