How to tile an outdoor shower, bathroom and laundry?

[softwareburnout]

Looking at trying my hand at tiling an outdoor shower/toilet (and if it goes well a laundry) which need some attention. There are 2 coats of some kind of thick waterproofing paint (I assume) on each, which has held up much better in the shower than the toilet. They are both external to the house, on a concrete slab, with rendered/painted brick walls.

My current thinking is hitting the toilet floor with a pressure cleaner to see how much loose paint I can lift, and then just tiling over the concrete/whatever paint is left (after scratching it up) with something like Davco SMP Evo Tile Adhesive and a 10-12mm thick travertine tile, grouting, then painting the walls.

For the shower I was thinking of leaving the existing paint in place as a waterproofing layer, maybe scratching it up slightly (possibly defeats the purpose of using a waterproofing layer) or using some kind of primer, raising the drain, and then doing the same tile as the toilet (but with a row around the base of the walls too), maintaining the slope towards the drain.

Just wondering if there are any thoughts around this approach?  Things I could do differently?  Any other primer/waterproofing products I should use in between the existing floor and the tile?

The stakes are low here, the shower is rarely used (might get used more if it was nicer), and it is all on concrete/brick with no timber involved in case of leaks etc (plus it is external).

Thanks!

[MitchellMc]

Hi @softwareburnout,

That appears to be more of a paint than a waterproofing membrane. I'd recommend you remove the paint from both areas to reveal the cement rather than tiling over the paint, as tile adhesives are not designed for that purpose. Once you are back to cement, you'll be free to tile the toilet area. For the shower, typically, you'd paint a waterproofing membrane that covers the floor and up the walls. Once the membrane is in place, you'll be able to tile. Something to watch out for is that the shower recess floor tapers up significantly at the sides, which would make it difficult to tile. 

I recommend you consult construction codes before deciding whether to treat the shower as a wet area of your home that requires proper waterproofing.

Here are a couple of helpful step-by-step guides: How to screed a shower tray and How to lay floor tiles.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

[softwareburnout]

Thanks for the advice Mitchell.  I think I'll start with the toilet side and see how the full paint removal and tiling goes, and if that works well I might continue on the laundry.

And in about 5 years time I may circle back round to the shower and having a go at doing it all properly, or just leave it as a dog wash!

Appreciate the resources, will come in handy for my novice attempts at tiling.

Cheers

[EricL]

Hi @softwareburnout 

Please keep us updated with your progress, we look forward to seeing the start of your tiling project.

Eric