Pebble mosaic tile installation

You could also try calling the Mapei tech line and they may have some tips for removing the grout. A word of caution : Depending on the way the shower was waterproofed you may not be able to remove the grout all the way down. There may be waterproofing immediately below the pebbles. Thank you diy tile guy. Thanks again my MAN! Any advice on which grout or apoxy I should use on white standing pebble rock for wall installation?

I find Spectralock to be a decently user friendly epoxy and I like Prism, Ultracolor, and Permacolor for cement grouts. Do you think that would hold up to heat from hot pans And plates? I think it would hold up fine. Our newly installed pebble shower floor pools water quite badly. Installer is recommending installing regular tiles over the pebbles. Pebbles typically should have more slope than normal tiles. My daughter is contemplating purchasing a house with these tiles throughout the kitchen and hallway.

Probably a pry bar or chisel to get going would work fine. Question for a installed pebble stone floor in a Schluter stand up shower. Used top of the line grout mixed with grout once an additional sealer applied several times.

There are hair line cracks here or there in different spots. Is this a major problem and is there a good fix for it? It sounds like it might be a cement grout which is usually fine but it depends on which one and which kind hopefully not unsanded. The reason being that the pebbles are under the size requirement which is usually 2-inches. What this can do is cause too much pressure to be concentrated in too small of a spot. If you used a foam Kerdi pan then this could be what the cause is.

Excellent post about how to do pebble floors correctly. I need to put it back in place how do you go about that? Just moved into a house and hate the shower floor. We cant stand on it because it is so rough. I also cant get it clean.

Any suggestions. Renting so cant pull it out and landlord says just use a mat but that seems to be causing mold. The floor is more of a spray in type of stone. Very small pieces. The only thing I can think of would be some sort of mat that has holes in it for air and drainage.

Use a mat, but when done showering always remove the mat and hang it up somewhere. I had to do this with a bathtub mat that wanted to get moldy underneath. I can see pros for each. Thank you so much! Thank you for having a site like this to help everyone out. You offer some great advise.

I thought I would share a technique I came up with while doing my kitchen backsplash. Going to save my knees when I use it again on my shower floor. Started with ripping the pebbles off the mesh. When I had a good portion done, I laid out clear contact paper on top of the pebbles. Once this was done, with a marker I outlined between the pebbles approx.

It made the job a breeze. Now for my question: I have a regular mudset shower pan, modified or unmodified thinset?

Best [non epoxy] grout? Thank you. I prefer modified thinset but unmodified is usually ok also. Best non epoxy grout is a high performance cement grout: Prism, Permacolor, Ultracolor are three names but definitely not the only three. We installed river stone sheets and it looks horrid. This was last night should I tear it up quickly will I be able to use the torn up sheets or buy new??? Probably sooner is better than later. Thank you so much for sharing your experience! The sales person advised to lay the pebbles, seal them, grout them, and then seal again.

Do you agree? What sealer do you recommend? As far as a sealer recommendation, it really depends on what you have a access to. The only way to get a stain proof grout with pebbled is to use an epoxy grout. For cement grout Prism if a good choice. It should be sealed. If the pebble has left a perfect fit pocket in the grout, use polyurethane glue Gorilla Glue to seat the pebble back in its pocket.

Excess glue that seeps around the stone after hardening can be easily snapped off. I hope you can help. I did a cheapo diy from Pinterest, using individual pebbles over my existing shower floor. Thinset, a crapton of grout, and several layers of seal have been applied. Although I spent days sifting through pebbles, many are sitting uncomfortably high. So much so, that my husband is showering in our guest bath. He hates it. Although it looks good, I think I need to remove it to save his sanity lol.

Any advice for removal? If you see over drypack concrete then just do the best that you can. Screwdrivers, chisels, and scrapers are still the best tools. Have you thought about pouring a self leveler on top of the pebbles? It would save your waterproofer. Then just tile over that. Thank you so much for the information! You have me seriously rethinking the installation process of a pebble floor in my shower.

We are getting ready to gut the bathroom and start from scratch and I was going to use a tile ready shower base for ease of time and solid base.

We are not professionals but have laid our share of tile throughout our house and the walls in the guest bathroom. Just never a shower floor. Since that is foreign to me, any sound advice for prepping a base from scratch to accommodate pebble tile?

I originally came to this post to read about smooth vs. I am worried the natural rounded pebbles will be too funky to stand on while showering and the smoother surface would be better.

So much to research before we install!!! Look into the Goof Proof system for installing a mud pan shower base. They have some products for getting the slope flat and consistent. People that like pebbles tend to like the unevenness of them.

But definitely check them out and look at pictures of grouted pebbles. The grout changes the appearance of them quite a bit. My thought was floor first so wall water cannot end up under the floor tiles? Is there anything I can put on top to increase the slope and will I have three same point load concerns as Kerdi? Thank you! If you have a foam shower base then I would just leave it as is and tile over it. And, yes, the point load issues are still the same.

With a residential shower the likelihood of point load problems are reduced from a more heavy duty environment but they still exist. With that being said, the caulking of the corner is awkward with the varying size of joint. So one way to do it is to install the floor first, then install the walls, and scribe the bottom row around the pebbles a little bit.

That way you keep the caulk joint consistent in size. Some installers will install the walls first then the pebbles and just grout the entire shower pan to the walls and not caulk. Thank you for the reply and advice.

I learned a lot from this thread especially the tip on eliminating the pattern lines. I have a pebble floor in my master bath shower.

The whole bathroom has the Schuler orange grid thing with heated floors… including the shower floor. I hate the pebbles and cleaning the grout constantly. There is always mildew growing a bit between some areas and in the corners. Because of the heated floors, I was told it would be very difficult to tear it out and replace with tiles.

What are your thoughts about tiling over the pebbles? Any recommendations? It will be a challenge because the current floor will have to be flattened and smoothed out prior to installing another type of tile over the top.

If you hire someone to do this, I would require that they consult a manufacturer that they like to deal with and have a written plan to proceed. There should also be a way to extend the drain higher but it will depend on the manufacturer of the drain.

I had a resin pebble tile installed in my master bath shower floor 3 months ago. The thin set is pretty deep between the pebbles so the grout is thin and has since eroded away. The thin set in one small area has softened up and left a hole. Tech power grout was the grout. It might be a case of too much thinset between the pebbles and it not getting cleaned out prior to grouting. I just spoke with a Schulter Customer Service rep and he told me that if you are using the Kerdi shower tray and membrane, it is OK to use pebble tile.

I need help! I just installed river rock pebble tile on my shower floor.. I used the thinset, let it sit for 24hrs, grouted and let it sit for 7 days. Looked great and had no issues for 2 weeks while using. Then the grout started cracking at an alarming rate and rock just came loose, then the entire sheet.

What should I do now? Do I need to rip up the old tile and start over? Please help! Also, existing tile needs to be clean and existing sealers removed. You may have to grind the surface of the tile or put on a bond promoting primer like Eco Prim Grip. With more information I may be able to help further. Thanks for your response. I used custom building product, simple set premix thinset. Im thinking I can use the eco prim grip and then a better thinset? Should I use an epoxy instead?

Get ready for sticker shock but it grabs and it works. Hey tile guy. Stone prep, setting, grouting, etc. If redgarding onto a PVC Oatey adjustable clamp style drain ring, is there anything I should do to prep the drain ring?

Scuff, scarify, acetone, etc? Will fiber mesh onto plate. Also, curious about the area where cement board meets drywall. Is it best to just thinset tiles on to drywall same as on cement board, or should something different be done? Using 4 x 12 tiles and I expect a single row to extend above the top seam. Yes, I would definitely scuff and make sure the drain is clean. I like the fabric and the drain and would also add it to the corners.

Hopefully, you are connecting Redgard to the bottom of the drain and not just the center adjustable part. Redgard will be going over the top of the bottom flange, which is already secured to the floor. Thanks for the insight. Thanks for the reply, but my inquiry was for advice in what to use to set them to the redgard floor modified thinset? Sorry for the continued posts. Thanks again. Your site is an invaluable resource. Starting a new thread because the comment margin became too thin to read.

Please reply here rather than above. Thanks for the replies, but my inquiry was for advice in what to use to set the stones to the redgard floor modified thinset? Yes, modified thinset if what you want to set them. I believe Home Dept carries either Versabond flex or Flexbond. That and Fusion Pro would be the worst choices that you could make for pebble tile on a shower floor.

Prism if a good choice but will have to be ordered in to Home Depot. Epoxy grout is another good choice but can be more difficult to install. Regular sanded grout will work too. Also you should be able to find something in the Aqua mix line which is carried at Home Depot. Nothing needs to be done to the stones in preparation to install unless the instructions on the stone call for it.

No need to apologise for the questions. Good luck on this project! Anyway, my reply if below. They are individual, uncut, unpolished river rock stones gathered from a landscaping supply company.

Thanks again for the other tips. Now I understand. What concerns me is the thickness of the stones. Boy, I wish you were working this job! The installers failed to apply any sealer to the surface of the stones. Then grouted. What to do? Any help would be appreciated. If they left too much grout haze on the surface then that can be cleaned off with a grout cleaner and elbow grease. Otherwise, please let me know a little more about the issue. Now I have two concerns:.

Current spacing between stones on net sheets varies considerably. Do I have to remove stones from net and set them individually to make grout work effectively? Can I leave any sections on net? Is grout more likely to crack or release stones now that sides have been sealed? ALSO, — Many of the stones seem large over 1.

Typically, weight per sq. Then just do the best that you can with getting grout into all the joints. Usually, installing pebble tile still mounted on the sheets is fine. My preferred method is to install the sheets about 2 inches apart and then fill in the space with individual pebbles.

Pre-sealing the pebbles is probably a good idea and it would be very difficult to apply sealer only to the tops and not the sides. So I would think that you probably will be fine and using a water-based sealer, as opposed to a solvent base, is in your favor. Hey Tile Guy! The shower has about a two foot knee wall for glass shower wall and bench seating on the side. I have two problems that have begun recently. The second issue is that the grouted pebble floor has started to wear away exposing some mesh below.

The wearing seems to be in the common areas where the shower stream mostly hits the floor leaving a slight depression. I know the grouted mix is sanded just based on some sand residue observed in corner of shower and in drain when cleaned.

Is this the common culprit for such issues? I plan on cleaning out tile joints that are cracked and regrouting with similar grout. Guess I can just reseal after I finish and this will solve my joint issue. Are there grout and sealer products you recommend for that? In regards to the shower floor…is it as easy as removing some grout between pebbles and regrouting and resealing?

Do i even have to remove any grout or can i just grout over top of whats there and reseal? Did not know if there is a minimum grout thickness required before it just debonds later.

Also looking for approved products. Sometimes cracked grout is just cracked. There might have been a little movement or settling and the grout joint cracked. Another possibility is the grout is weaker than normal which is generally caused by improper mixing.

But sometimes the cracked grout on the half wall under the glass is cracking because the wood framing in the wall is swelling.

So the best that I can tell you is to regrout it and keep an eye on it for continued expansion and cracking. Also, keep on the watch for more cracks. Typical areas that are prone to problems if not waterproofed properly are the bench and the curb. In regards to pebble tiles this, again, could be a weak grout issue. If the grout is a urethane or another single-component grout then that would likely explain the issue. Probably the best way to tell is to see if the grout turns dark when it gets wet.

If this happens then it is a cementitious grout. Additionally, grout sealer is a good option and one that I would recommend but it is not a waterproofing and it is not a water management solution. Thanks a bunch for the info. As everybody else has said thanks so much for your time and explaining everything thoroughly! I stumbled on this website but man it has lots of good stuff. Great advice!

Some of the spaces between the rocks I installed are wide and grout cracked in some areas. Can I add more grout over top? I just installed earlier this week. We did seal them first. First thing that I would do is check your grout.

For cleaning, a grout cleaner is what you want. It takes some work and the longer it sets the harder it is to remove. First, thank you so much for such an extensive article. It was luckily before grouting, so I chipped up around the joints and tried to orient the rocks so it obscured the seams. I finished the rest of the floor using your article.

My mom loves it. My question is, if I had to quote a price by square footage, what is a range to quote? Keep in mind that the grout lines showing is a product flaw- not an installation flaw.

As far as installation costs- these are widely different and hand installing would pay more than installing full sheets. I hope i can explain well enough my roblem! We have a black stone shower floor with grey grout I think? The shower floor was in the master bath shower when we bought the house. I clean the stone floor regularly with Mr.

I jus read a couple articles about sealing stone shower floors. With natural stone, such as marble or granite, you have to be really careful what you use for cleaning. I would recommend a cleaner in the tile section of your local home improvement store. Stay away from the acidic cleaners.

There should be instructions on the back that say the product is safe for natural Stone. We are getting ready to put a pebble tile floor in our bathroom. Not in the shower, but it will still get water from splash etc. The last time we did this, we sealed and enhanced the pebbles and then thinset, grouted, and sealed again.

Would it be better for the sealing of the pebble to be done after the thinset? Do the unsealed pebbles adhere in the thinset better? Just curious before starting this project. Your advice would be appreciated! Also, what do you typically use as a between room edge? We will be putting the tile in right up next to a carpeted hallway. Should we lay a wooden threshold? What do you typically do?

The way that you are sealing them should be fine. I think a decent thinset will grab the pebbles without an issue. For transitions, I do have a post on tile edges. Metal profiles are very popular for this application.

Depending on the thickness of the materials involved you may need one that does double duty as a reducer. Your suggestions are practical and obviously backed by some great experience. Now to my dilemma. The existing shower base is terriza concrete with flecks of color throughout but the base has a sloped outer perimeter lip that makes laying the pebbles tiny irritating pebbles almost impossible. Also, it matters how porous the base is and if it will accept a leveler.

Your best bet would be to call the tech like of one of the companies that makes leveler products and explain what you have and what you want to do. Custom building products, Ardex, and Mapei all have floor leveling products. I would try one of them and hopefully they can help you out. Hi Tile Guy-Thanks for providing great info! Our contractor installed our 2 yr old flat cut pebble shower pan floor on Wedi with Fusion grout and it has some issues.

It looks like the grout shrunk in places. What about skim grouting a new layer to even out surface? Pebbles are going to have some unevenness by nature. Fusion grout is the wrong grout to use for pebble tile. So that will have to be removed and regrouted with either a cement or epoxy grout. You might be able to skim over Fusion with another grout.

Thank you for the great tips. Sure wish I could have seen this prior to my tile layer installing my shower pebbles. Unfortunately, I have gridlines. The stones have not yet been grouted but they are stuck on the mud pan with thinset. Is it a viable option to pull a few stones off within the gridline areas and replace them, or would this damage the mud pan too much?

If the shower is built so that the cement pan is directly underneath the pebbles and the waterproofing is underneath the cement layer then you should be ok to pull some out. This post may be helpful to understand which way your shower is built. Thank you very much. I have Wedi walls with a Chloraloy liner and mud pan on top of that, so the cement pan is directly underneath the pebbles. What is the risk of pulling up everything and redoing the whole floor?

If this is the chosen course then I would recommend a flood test of the liner once the mud bed is removed. Hello, I have gutted my bathroom down to the joists and started new, including sistered joists and all new wood. The Schluter Ditra and Kerdi board is my plan,. I already have the foam pan and curb cut,and almost everything is ready, except for me. I am the sole DIY, and at 63 am thrilled to find your site about this particular thread on pebbles! I have just purchased Botany Bay sliced pebbles for my home shower floor, to go over the Kerdi preformed neo angle foam pan and orange membrane, as directed by Schluter.

There is Kerdi board on the walls and on top of the Kerdi curb will be quartzite stone curb slabs and three glass shower walls with entry door. There is indecision on my part with the shower Kerdi curb regarding what tiles to use inside the shower and outside where the curb rises up from the floor.. Do you suggest placing the pebbles along the vertical shower floor curb on the inside of the shower? The glass doors will go on top of the quartzite stone curb top and the curb is less than four inches higher than the foam pan.

I would appreciate your view on this. Tiling the curb has me guessing. The inside of the curb is a design decision. But if you have any questions about that particular aspect of your installation then you may want to call the Schluter tech line and see what they have to say. My installer set the tiles without checking with me now there are the seam gaps and I want to tear it up, actually just get strips up to do the details of mosaic to make it fit together as you said.

How to I get the pebbles up? Note; they are beautiful Porcelain 5 mm deep pebbles ranging in sizes and color and surfaces. A chisel or screwdriver or something should work OK. However, you do have to be very careful if the waterproofing membrane is directly underneath.

Am installing pebble tile floor and in the process have handset stones in seams with thinset. Do I need a different kind of thinset? Pull rubber float across the top of the pebble to remove the majority of the grout.

Sponge off grout, exposing the pebble, until desired look is reached. When grout completely dries see grout instructions seal the tile a final time. If dirty, clean tile before sealing. Additional applications may be required in areas where there will be water. To maintain ease of maintenance of natural stone, it is recommended that sealants be applied every 2 years. Apply with a stiff bristled brush and then rinse off thoroughly with water.

The porosity or water absorption in pebbles natural stone varies, and therefore staining will occur in different degrees if the stone is unsealed. Consequently, any spills should be cleaned quickly to lessen the degree of the stain.

Sealers are highly recommended. Here's what our customers say Added to cart! Residential installations include pools and pool decks, patios, landscaping, fountains, water features, kitchen backsplash , flooring, shower floors, bath and powder room floors, entryways, fireplaces and BBQ areas. DIY Network gives you step by step directions on how to lay pebble mosaic tile.

Installation of these tiles is similar to any other natural stone product for best results, we recommend a qualified tradesperson who is experienced in the laying of natural stone product the tiles are sold in 12 inch by 12inch all tiles interlock on all sides sort tiles before installing to ensure an even color layout for a vertical or contoured surface, smaller pebble sizes should be considered as well as a polymer based adhesive with a short hydration period, i.

For wet areas the use of reinforced waterproof membranes is suggested. In the case of flooring a fall to the drainage point of no less than two inches in required. Need some pebble tile inspiration? Take a look at these on Houzz. Mosaic tile adhesive — Use only a high quality thinset mortar. It is important that each pebble is embedded in adhesive, however they should not be pressed deeply into the adhesive.

It is recommended that the stones be sealed before and after grouting. For the best results use a good quality penetrating sealer. These types of penetrating sealers ordinarily do not change or alter the color of the pebbles. In order to enhance the color of the stones to a deeper matte or glossy finish it is suggested you use natural stone color enhancer or natural stone color and shine enhancer prior to applying the penetrating sealer.

A sanded grout that is suitable for external or internal conditions which ever may be the case is recommended.