TIL my neighbor was right about back-buttering tile

I've been putting up subway tile in my kitchen for the past 3 weeks and was getting frustrated with hollow spots. My neighbor Bob came over last Saturday and said I wasn't putting thinset on the back of the tiles before setting them. I thought just troweling the wall was enough but after trying it on a small section the difference was night and day. Has anyone else skipped that step and regretted it later?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_john1d ago

My dad always said "the extra 5 minutes of prep is what separates good from great" and he was RIGHT.

kai8391d ago

Oh man that's so true. My grandpa used to say something similar but way more annoying - "measure twice cut once" and he'd say it EVERY time we did anything with wood or even just hanging a picture. But seriously I think about that extra 5 minutes thing all the time when I'm rushing to cook dinner and then burn the rice or something.

aaronroberts1d ago

Burned so many pots rushing dinner that now I just set a timer and walk away.