How to repair wall for tiling?

Liu

Hello! 😊

I'm new here, but this community has already been an amazing source of knowledge—so thank you all!

I'm currently renovating my laundry. I'm keeping it simple and not removing the floor tiles since they're in decent condition. However, I did have to remove a few awkwardly placed wall tiles behind the sink to install a new benchtop and tile a backsplash.

Following the great advice from the workshop, I tried to remove the tiles as carefully as possible, but the wall started crumbling beneath them. This is my first time doing something like this, so I’d really appreciate some guidance.

To prep the area for painting and tiling:

• Do I need to re-render the whole section of the wall?

• Can I just chip away any loose or damaged material and patch it up?

• Should I plaster and prime before tiling?

Thanks so much in advance for any tips—and sorry for the barrage of questions!

MitchellMc

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @Liu. It's fabulous to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about tiling.

The most important step here is to make sure there’s nothing proud or sticking out from the surface, as that’s what will stop your tiles from sitting flat. Your tile adhesive will easily fill the small voids or uneven spots, but any raised sections need to be removed. Since the damage is fairly shallow and mostly uneven patches, you can do a skim coat of tile adhesive over the area and let it dry before tiling to even things out. 

Here's a helpful guide: How to tile a splashback.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell