Cutting a hole through the middle of a ceramic tile for plumbing pipes is not an easy task, but it can be done neatly and without cracking the tile.Probably the best way is to drill a 3/8 inch hole with a masonry bit and then enlarge it with a carbide tipped saw blade in either a jig saw or a cop...
One viewer challenged us with the task of taking a scratch out of a ceramic tile, without replacing the tile of course.Simple buffers didn't do anything. Buffers with polishing compound did a little better. A soft rubber based grinder did the best, but left a rough appearance. A grinding stone...
There is a special knife made to remove grout from between tiles. It has carbide dust on the cutting edge. It does a nice clean job, although it does require quite a bit of elbow grease.For a power version for grout removal follow this link for the FEIN MultiMaster tool. Or for a DIY version y...
Kathy from Kamloops, B.C. writes:We are in a 60 year old house. When we moved in 38 years ago there was hard wood flooring in the living room and you didn't replace boards in the worn out places at that time. So we had a guy glue (which is black) down then felt paper then glue and then a woo...
A Home Depot customer asked how to put an old cast iron bathtub over a terracotta tile floor, without cracking the tiles.My suggestion was to carefully plan the position of the tub so that she could put wooden tiles in the place of the four tiles where the feet land. The wood may dent with the we...
A viewer asks if she can put peel-and-stick tiles on a painted concrete floor or whether she has to build a sub-floor.If the paint is intact, that means that there is no moisture problem pushing up from below and that the paint will work as a primer for the glue. As long as the surface is smoo...
Two viewers have linoleum tile floors. Jerry from Regina, Saskatchewan wants to put ceramic tiles over top while Roni from Bellevue, Alberta would like to cover them with vinyl. Any potential problems?In both cases the existing tiles must be stuck down solidly to the floor. And in both cas...
Lynn from Boussevain, Manitoba has a cultured marble sink that has some dark orange like stains that just won't come out. It may be that they will never come out, but here is what to try.Grease or Oil stains -- Whiting with AcetoneFood stains -- Hydrogen Peroxide and a few drops of AmmoniaRu...
I had the pleasure in this segment of my TV show to work with a great Italian craftsman (I think tiles are in Italian's blood) on a floor tile job.The still picture you see here doesn't do it justice, but this is one of the tips I learned from Fior Paolucci of Trades Unlimited in Richmond Hill, O...
I always had the feeling that caulking from toothpaste like squeeze tubes had less body than caulking from gun cartridges. I recently received a whole array of caulking from Sascho, a manufacturer with a great line-up of products and it included a Mildew Free Sealant for bathrooms in a sque...
