I have been building a hearth pad for our new wood stove. I got the substrate and the metal trim around, bought tiles, spacers, and cement backer board. I laid out the tiles and thought, "Wait, I haven't got my KZfaq certification yet!" Thank you Leah for the instruction.

I just bought an old house in September that I'm renovating. I used to paint houses, so that I've got that expertise. Laying floors of all kinds is new to me! I've finished laying hardwood laminate throughout most of my downstairs, and am going to lay down some big slate tile for a boot entry as soon as I post this comment! I'm so pumped to have just discovered seejanedrill. I'll be back for more! Thanks, Leah!

Your video is fantastic! You present the basic, most important points in such a direct way. Anyone who is not confident in trying to do the job can get instant confidence following your directions. Thank you!

yes I kind of knew it.I myself went to trade school in Florida...carpentry. way back in1986 - 1988. and this is where I get my continued education. thank-you so much,you instructors made a huge difference in my life.

Thanks Leah, another fine video. I'm a carpenter, but I still learn things from your videos. The chalk tip for marking tiles that need back-buttering is a trick I'll use.

Thank you so much for the video. Used it to install slate tile on a new hearth and it came out great. My first tile job turned out pro! You rock.

Most informative and helpful video on laying tile I've seen.

what a great video. you do a fantastic job of introducing the basics to beginners in a way that won't scare them off. too many DIY shows intimidate beginners. I've laid a fair amount of tile already but still enjoyed watching this video.

You are so awesome Leah!!

I like Leah, such an encouraging and gracious host.

The most important thing is to choose a mortar that is formulated for use with natural stone. I used "Custom Premium Medium Bed Mortar", from Home Depot. What I like about it is that it is fortified with polymers for strength, and can be laid as thin as 1/8" or as thick as 3/4". This particular brand comes in a light color because a lot of natural stone is light.

You're the best. Thank you so much for your expertise and valuable time .

Awesome Lesson! Thank you for sharing, The "Back Buttering" method is genius.

Yes!!!! You pulled straight lines in your thinset!!! Some full time contractors make circles or waves. This greatly increases the odds that tile will break.

I just purchased some slate tile the other day (75 square feet for $30) for my front foyer and couldn't say no to the deal. I have laid normal tile but never have dealt with slate. After watching this I'm much more confident in doing it. Thank you for the clear and concise instructions!

Thanks Leah,You're a life saver ...

Excellent. Many thanks for this video. Start my project tomorrow, and while I have done this before, it is always good to review. I actually learned many new things from you after watching this (especially "cleaning up" a row, which I have never done and suffered because of it!).

Thank you! This was a great refresher for me!

Thanks Leah you make it look so simple

AWESOME! Thank you SO much for this awesome tutorial!

Great video, very well explained. Thanks for taking the time to do this.

You are very good at explaining things.

Thanks for the this video Leah, the tip about the back buttering is excellent, I was just wondering do you seal the slate tiles before or after you lay them?many thanks, Steve

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Great video! Thank you for taking the time to do it!

you are a great teacher...thanks

Thank you very much for this video. I now have more confidence to go about it.

awesome content

Love the way you show....thank you...just subscribed to your channel.

This is a really good video for DIY beginner. Thanks!

Great Videos, i'm going to tackle my tile job... just not sure i'm ready to re plaster walls

Hi Leah, I would be very interested in how you would go about preparing an old concrete floor to receive new tile. I have tile in my kitchen which I want to rip out and put new tile down. Your comment in this video that removing set-up, thin-set mortar is almost impossible. Do you have any wisdom on how to go about doing this? For background, my floor is wood joist construction with plywood and then 2.5 inches of poured concrete (with in-floor heating), and then tile on that. I will be interest to learn about demolishing old tile, and prep for new tile.Thanks

Hi Jane, I have some beautiful roof slate that I would love to tile over a concrete slab off of my backdoor on which a deck is attached. The problem is I can't add height to the slab or it will create a tripping problem? Right now the slab is level with the deck which I added an underdeck waterproof membrane to. The slate is thin and so beautiful. Is there another way to create the conditions for it to be solidly part of the concrete and hardened enough on top to be walked on?

Great video.. Very informative

Very impressive. I just found your channel to get a refresher course on laying down slate. I'm making a hearth for my pellet stove. I just started a build channel yesterday, you should take a look if you can. I hope to share as others have with me. Thanks.

Jane, excellent video, I'm getting prepared to take on a tile project on my front porch, so I've been viewing a ton of You/Tube videos. I have one post that I will be replacing with a 4x4 post, I've wanted to lay the tile and re-install the post on top of the tile, I would like to know your thoughts on mounting the post after laying the tile or should I mount the post first and notch the tile to install around the post, by the way I love the way you explain things and noticed your background and thought you may have the answer.

Love Ya Fam

Thank you!!!

Thank you.

Hi Leah, Thanks for the great video, super helpful for my kitchen project! I can't find anti-fracture paint, asked around at Menards etc and no one's heard of it. Can you give some more info on what you used and where to get it?

Is it recommended to water proof the concrete foundation ( with any material) before applying the thin set? Your video was a great help.

Love your vid's! I always seem to come across them for my projects! Thanks.

Nicely done!

Can you please tell me what’s the deference between this thinset and the cement looking one ? Is it really just the colour ?

Hey I have a question: I have wood floors and there is basically a ‘hole’ in the ground in front of the fireplace where the fireplace stones need to be laid. I was going to tile but but I bought cement board+tile and it perfectly fills the depth of that space before applying any thinset... I can’t find any information about how the thinset will impact the thickness/depth of my tile? Like if I use a 1/4” trowel is it going to raise the tile by 1/4” higher, or does the weight of the tile squish the thinset down so it barely makes a measurable difference? I am trying to make it even with the wood floors around it and I’m nervous because I’m not sure if I should use the cement board to build it up or if the thinset will fill the gap on its own...

Thank you lady, I needed that !

Super helpful! Thank you!!!

Wonderful! Thank you so much.

Love your video, easy to understand. I've seen that you and others have laid slate onto concrete, but I have a plywood floor that I want to install it on....by myself! In the bathroom, the smallest bathroom you've ever seen! And I'm scared that I'll just make a big ol' mess. I intend to forge ahead, come what may because although I'm single, I'm very capable :>) My question is, can you lay a slate floor on top of plywood?

Hi Jane. I watched the other video where you calculate the location of your first tile to lay. Do you have to take into account the width of the spacers? Surely after 4-5 spacers or so you will have added about 1 inch of space.

Awesome video.

Excellent Video! I'm doing a slate tile on a 3' x 25' wall will the acrylic fortified thinset work?

And THANK YOU, you are amazing!

Thanks for the tips, away I go to lay some slate!

how do you know what thinset to lay?...I seen some dark color and in this video it is white?

Thanks for the video tip!

Would construction adhesive work instead of thin set? II am looking to do the base of my fireplace and there is no weight that will applied to the top as no one will walk on it. TIA

thank you for your videos.are you by chance a professional instructor?

Can you put slate around a electric fireplace and hearth?

On Ceramic tile, can you follow the same pattern like slate tile?

Great Job. The first tile you placed has the image of a mouse.

Thanks!

You didnt back butter the tile?

Your a badass thank you!!!

Never butter a tile, u do ur trowel so u have straight notches so the air can escape, if u butter anything u just shutoff the air to escape

seejane nasty with the slate game, making other installers look like hotdog water

@seejanedrill you did not apply any anti fracture liquid or solid material! But you said you did! Why did you lie!?

Horrible lighting