Retiling a fireplace


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Old 04-11-16, 09:53 AM
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Retiling a fireplace

I couldn't find a forum for this exactly, so I thought I'd give it a try in here.

I'm in the process of making my home more contemporary. When I bought it, it was pretty typical dessert Southwest. One of the last things I want to do is retile the fireplace.

This is wat it looks like now.



I'd like to retile it with marble tile. Is there anything I should know? Or is it the same as tiling a floor?
 
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Old 04-11-16, 10:43 AM
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Hi,

I moved your post to the tiling forum. The pro's will see it here.

Are you planning on removing the existing tile ?
 

Last edited by PJmax; 04-11-16 at 05:58 PM. Reason: moved thread again
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Old 04-11-16, 10:52 AM
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Southwest dessert? Pie, cake, doughnuts?

Sorry, couldn't resist.

While there's certainly nothing wrong with re-tiling completely, I would think the whole motif would be changed with just replacing that top center tile.

Do you have any idea what is underneath the tiles?
 
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Old 04-11-16, 11:06 AM
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I'm not sure what's under it. My guess it plywood. We're not really fans on the color. Probably want to go with a light gray marble or granite.
 
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Old 04-11-16, 12:18 PM
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Typically you want 1/2" cement board under wall tiles but that's not an absolute.

I'd start removing the existing tiles and report back when you know more about what's under there.
 
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Old 04-11-16, 05:18 PM
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Yes, take the tile out and send it to the landfill. Then report back on what you have remaining. Optimally, you want 1/2" cement board to within 1/2" of the tile end so you can overlap the transition to wall board. Then you will install your using thinset mortar from a powder not a ready mix. Ready mix mastics will soften in the presence of heat so not approved for fireplace installations. Break out the demo tools and let us know what you are left with. May need some framing adjustments once we open things up.
 
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Old 02-13-17, 01:22 PM
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It took almost a year, but I finally got around to doing this. There was tile under the tile. The tile shop recommended a primer to go over the old tile. Then thinset mortar over that after it dried. I also took apart the fireplace and painted the face with high-heat paint. Looks a little better in my opinion.

 
 

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