Hearth Make Over
Supplies
- Measure and choose your tiles
- Grout (I chose Flexcolor in Frosted Glass) and Grout sealer
- Mortar (I choose premixed)
- Mortar Sheets – Adhesive tile glue sheets
- Trim Molding (optional)
- Caulk (Choose a color to compliment your project)
- Float; Trowel; Small Putty Knife; Notched Trowel; Paper Towels; Water; Small Bucket; Course Scrubber; Sponge; Measuring Tape and Utility Knife
- Cement fill if applicable
- May need a tile cutter
- Tile spacers
Our fireplace is a traditional direct vent gas fireplace. Our surround was nothing more than painted wood and the hearth slab is simply a thin piece of slate. If you are replacing existing tiles you should remove any you plan to replace. My application was over a cement slab floor. I did have to remove the existing hearth which was a 4 foot by 2 foot piece of slate painted black. We started by trying to get a pry bar under it, but it broke up as we started to pry. It ended up being easier to break it up with a small sledge hammer. After the pieces are picked up, sweep and mop the area. I filled and leveled the area as needed. Your application may require more than cement fill.
Because I had a specific look I was going for I had to figure out how to execute my vision. I wanted the tiles of my hearth to look like they were floating into the floor. The flooring option I choose is a luxury vinyl plank. I love the look of wood but we foster dogs, have a 75 gallon saltwater aquarium, and live in our house. Our home is used, not a museum. My floors get a lot of wear and tear. Therefore I had to plan this project while taking into consideration: how the floor would lay; knowing the fish tank would have to be moved; the time involved; and how everything would eventually line up. I knew I did not want to cut tiles. I knew I wanted something different. I originally was inspired by several images I saw on Pintrist where they used a hexagon tile. My husband did not like any of the hexagon tiles and felt they would be too big for the hearth. I wanted a subtle color but defiantly a color. Also keeping it slightly neutral because I tend to change the colors and look of each room regularly.
I wanted something I could use in other applications like the kitchen and master bath, when I get to those projects. I lucked out and found tiles I liked at Lowe’s on clearance. This was great!! Loved the price. But it forced me to chase down every tile in a 100 mile radius so I would have enough for future projects (kitchen and master bath). Then finding a coordinating tile…..the tile search took months. I would buy samples or individual sheets and put them in place. Live with it for a bit, take pictures, and look at it in different lights. I finally got feed up with the search and picked a surround tile because of price, size, and shape. The night I decided on it Lowe’s was putting out their new season tiles and I fell in love with one. Since the one I choose for the surround was a “new” item I wasn’t to concerned about not being able to get more at a later date.
With the tiles chose and the area prepped it’s time to lay out your tiles for a dry run. If you are planning a design or want the floaters you may want to put a piece of craft paper or cardboard down first. This will allow you to trace a pattern when you find one you like or try multiple different ideas. Also take pictures as you go. Because when you remove the tile to lay the mortar down you may not remember the layout. This method also allows you to try a variety of options before committing to one.
When I finally found a design or pattern I liked I traced around it on the cement floor. I also numbered my tile sheets as I removed them and traced around each remaining sheet numbering the spaces. It left me with something that looked like paint by numbers.
This was my 1st attempt at tile work so I was more than a bit nervous. I watched tons of YouTube videos and looked for tutorials. I was looking specifically to find out if I needed to do anything extra because of the fire element. I came up empty. I did find a lot of older videos that were interesting, I was less impressed with the newer ones that I came across. My tiles are not very thick and are attached to each other on a mesh sheet. All the videos and tutorials on laying tile were for large floor tiles.
As I was about to begin I made sure I had all my supplies around me; mostly because once I got down on the floor I didn’t want to have to get up and down 100 times. I tried to use knee pads; personally I found it easier to sit on my butt or cross legged. Being on my knees was too much pressure for them.
I used a small putty knife more than the trowel because the area is small and surrounding the tile area will be a different type of flooring. Therefore I felt I needed more precision with my application of the mortar that the huge cumbersome trowel did not offer. Because I had my pattern drawn out on the floor I was able to start in the center and work out. Which allowed me to keep the tiles centered to the fireplace. My pattern was two sheets deep and 5 ½ sheets wide. I had my tile sheets upside down with the numbers visible, for easier placement.
Using my small putty knife I spread out the mortar I needed. Using the notched trowel I created the channels. Making sure my mortar wasn’t thicker than my tiles but deep enough to seep up through the mesh and really grip everything.
All the advice I found said you needed to rock, twist, or rotate the tile to get it to set in place well. This action is very hard to do with small sheet tiles. But you can move each tile a small amount to get them really set. Once each tile sheet is set insert spacers into the gaps. This may seam redundant because the tiles are already attached to one another. Trust me you still want to use them because during the twisty turn move not all of them expanded back to their full social distance. Also as you add your next sheet you need to make sure they have the same uniform distance or when you’re done you’ll have a bunch of randomly spaced tiles. You can pick up tiles and re-notch the mortar for a short time if you need to. But try not to as this gets messy.
I like to have water and rags nearby for any run away mortar. You will need to clean off the fireplace, the floor outside your design or anyplace else the mortar sticks before it hardens. After it hardens you may need to chisel it away which could cause more work for you in the end.
To get my floaters properly positioned I used an extra loose tile to help with positioning. Remember I have my design drawn on the floor, very helpful but not always perfect. After laying all the main tiles in the design and using the spacers to get everything uniform I used an extra loose tile as a guide. I put the mortar on the back of the floater tile to be set which reduces any mess since I was now working with a 2” by 2” piece at a time. I put the tile into the appropriate drawing/number place and twisted slightly to set. But before finished I use the spacers and the loose tile to verify the floaters are in the correct place they would be if still attached to each other on the sheet. Once happy with your placement remove the extra tile.
Clean up any loose mortar and let cure. With these float tiles you want to work from one side to the other. I worked from the side closest to the wall to the side open to the doorway. This method also helps prevent you from accidentally nudging your freshly set tiles. Since they are floaters even slight contact can cause them to move out of line.
Let your floor tiles cure for at least 24 to 48 hours before starting your fireplace surround. If you are not doing the fireplace surround proceed to grouting the hearth tiles.
For my surround, again I choose tiles on a mesh sheet. I also decided to use an adhesive sheet to adhere the tiles to the wood surround. This product does not specify that it can be used for this application. It claims to be used in kitchens and bathrooms including inside the shower. We do not use our fireplace as a source of heat. It is decorative and used some in the winter for ambiance. Our thought was if it works, GREAT!! If not we’ll do it the old fashion way. But because we did not want to tear out the whole surround and redo it with cement board and mortar we choose to try this route.
I started by taping the tile up to see how it would look. Making sure I didn’t have an obvious repetitive pattern or two of the exact tiles next to each other. The tile I choose has metallic parts to it and I wanted to make sure they were evenly distributed. If your tile is uniform you just need to make sure everything lines up. I would recommend going up one side then the other then going across the top. I recommend doing it this way because you can tweak the tiles or lines if your surround is not straight and square without the flaws being too obvious. As you work, you again want to use the spacers. With this method of sticking tiles up it is much more difficult to pull them back off and reposition once stuck. It’s not impossible but it’s not easy. Once you’re happy with the placement apply pressure to set. You will want to twist each, just a fraction not much. The point of this is to get a really good grip. Once happy move along. Using this type of adhesive method is quick and easy.
Grout!!
Look at your options out there; there are tons!! The one I choose was special because it has ground silica to pick up and reflect the colors in the surrounding tiles. Most grouts are tinted. So you want to choose something that matches or accents your tiles. The one I really wanted claimed it was colorless, in the end I could not get it. It was a special order and always seemed to be out of stock plus it was 3x’s the cost of any other grout. I do have to be practical once in awhile.
Ordered the Flexcolor in Frosted Glass. Love it!! Its sparkly and ready to use. Since this was my 1st time laying tile….. you guessed it 1st time grouting. I was surprised at how sticky it was. It was like trying to work with a congealed honey. I used my small putty knife to apply the grout to the float and then worked it into the cracks. The opening of the tub is to small to get the float in to scoop out mix. I tried a trowel but felt it created to much of a mess. If the application area was larger that may have been a better option. Working in small sections using pressure and a swirling/ circular motion pack the grout into your spaces. Every so often use your coarse scrubby pad to clean the tiles and the sponge to wipe off excess and residue. Because this product is so sticky I felt I had to rinse out my water bucket and sponges after cleaning each section. When I was happy with the grout I scrubbed and cleaned off the whole surround. I then moved on to the hearth tiles. Since my tiles butt up to and are integrated into my vinyl floor I knew I did not want the grout between the vinyl and the tile but I had gaps to fill. SO I used a combo of two different colored brown caulks. I caulked around and between my tile/vinyl areas. However I had not considered the caulk shrinking. So when I started to grout my grout was covering and mingling with the caulk. I did not want or like this look. So BLUE TAPE to the rescue. I covered all my previously caulked seems to prevent the grout from filling them. Grouted. After grout was fully dry I taped on either side of my caulked seem and refilled the spaces. The last step is to seal your grout. Please don’t skip this step. After all the hard work you have done you don’t want your grout to get discolored or stained. This is an easy although, time consuming step. It’s time consuming in the clean up and drying time.
The final part to finishing my fireplace was a bit of trim. I choose something small, thin and subtle. I debated on what color to paint the trim. Options were white, pearl white, silver, or light silvery white. I decided on the light silvery white. I cut each piece with a molding cutter first. I choose to paint the molding without priming to keep the color light. Using tape and E6000 glue I attached the molding to the tiles.
As part of this project I replaced the flooring also. To accomplish the floating tile look I wanted. I had to create custom templates to use as a guide for cutting the vinyl. Using craft paper, I cut sheets the same size as the vinyl planks. I was then able to line up the paper like a plank and trace the outline of the tiles. I cut along the lines and then remeasured, tweaked if needed. Then I placed the paper on the plank traced it and cut. I used a scroll saw to cut the vinyl. I suggest practicing on scraps. Go slow and make sure you have good lighting. A vacuum or suction to remove the “vinyl dust” would be very helpful.
More information on laying the vinyl plank floors under DIY and Around the House/Vinyl Plank Flooring.