How hard to learn how to re-tile a bathroom?

[acehistr8]

Fiance and I are shopping for houses and we found a gorgeous townhouse we are interested in. The problem is, that while the baths (3 full, one half) are all in great shape physically, the tile is very very out of date and horribly colored - picture lime green! How hard is it to learn how to retile? I went to Home Depot and brushed through a couple of their books, but I dont have near the cutters or tile saws it looks like you would need. I have no problem hiring a GC to do the job on all four of them, but it seems as if its something I could experiment on in the recroom bathroom that no one will ever see, maybe its worth doing it myself.

Anyone ever tackled anything like this? Can these cutters/tilesaws be rented at places like Home Depot? If I had to hire a GC or tile guy to retile 4 baths, whats that going to run?

 

[Mjolnir]

easy to do. the hardest thing is removing old tile and cleaning surface. if the tile is real old the tiles pop off really easy with a little persuasion. all the things you need are at your local home depot. they have large iron bars that are heavy and have a large flat end that is great for busting tile out. then you get a heavy duty nasty ass grout remover, chemical that comes in usually one gallon cans. apply the remover in 2' x 2' area then scrape again with your tile remover. be very careful nasty stuff can get messy. you might want to use throw away clothes. clean surface per instructions.
you can rent tile saws and necessary equip at home depot also.
they also have all the tiles and grout and any other things.
make sure you buy plenty of tile in case you make mistakes. they also have plenty of books that show you step bt step with pictures what to do.
gl

 

[acehistr8]

Thanks mj! Someone just emailed me a link to classes that Home Depot gives at their stores, think I will try to go to one of their tile classes and see how it goes.

 

[Morris]

I'm a contractor, well more of a handyman. I always tell people try it yourself, sure you'll make mistakes but then just fix them. You'll be surprised at how much you can really do. Tackle the project and if you run into problems ask the guy at Home Depot or the place you bought your paint or the guy down the road. GL


Bob

 

[Jaxx]

Not that hard to do. I took the class at home depot then did my kitchen and both my bathrooms. The hardest part is getting your measurements to cut the tile to match. Not to bad though if your bathroom is square. Hard work though. Give it a try very satisfying when you finish!!
GL

 

[SALTY DOG]

Agree, you probably will make some mistakes, but making
mistakes IS learning, and learning and gaining confidence
and taking pride in your work will pay huge dividends when
your done, and when your done, you earned the right to brag.

 

[acehistr8]

Thanks guys, we're pretty excited about buying our first place I am sure I will want to do a ton of projects once we find something.

 

[IX_Bender]

Start with a smaller room, preferably a guest bathroom.

Make sure after you prep the floor that everything you are laying around is out of the way. IE, quarterrounds, baseboards, doors, toilet etc. When laying, dont waste you time/money on hard kneepads. While helpful, they tend to crack the tiles you just laid.
Go with a soft, cushiony support because it is rough on your legs.
Give yourself plenty of time.


Another tip: even if using neutral colors, make a small test run on the grout. Many times it dries different from the mixture or color on the box.