Easy Steps To Inlay Tile Into Wood Tabletop
You can give your old wooden table a new look by inlaying a tile at the tabletop. If you wish to make your table look more beautiful and amazing you can inlay tile at the tabletop and for doing so you need to go through all the steps mentioned below carefully:
- Firstly you need to check how many tiles do you need for this project and choose the color that suits it best. You can draw your work on the graph paper. Now visit a tile store from where you can choose the tile that you like for your table. You have to use some tools and materials also.
- Now take a drop cloth and place it on your table. Use sand paper and rub it on the surface of the table to remove the old finish. If the sand paper is not available in your home than get a sanding block from your nearest hardware store. It will work well as they are made up of stiff foam of various grades of sandpaper.
- Use a damp cloth in order to wipe off all the dust laid on the table. Now inspect the table in order to find whether large pores or cracks are still present or not. If they are still there, then they can harm your tile and can cause cracks in the tiles. To get rid of this issue you can use masonite which should be 1/8" to 1/4" thick.
- Now you have to cut the masonite to fit your table. If you don't have a saw in your home then you can easily take the measurement along with you to the hardware store, who will help you to cut it.
- You have to use the thin-set mortar for your tile. Now you need to place the masonite on the smooth side down and apply some light pressure on the entire surface. You can use rolling pin for this purpose. Check table edges and clean the excess thin-set from it.
- Now you have to draw your design & pattern on the floor as this will help you to make adjustments with your design. You have to use a pencil, ruler & a divider that divides the masonite down the center and to it's middle so you get 4 equal rectangles or square.
- Now you have to layout, set the tile and cut it which is the most important part of this process. Most of the new tiles provide you a design that does not need cutting. Be careful you don't have to apply the thin-set over the large area it should dry first before you get to it.
- You can also use an alternative approach known as buttering the tile. For this technique, you have to take some thin-set & have to apply on the back of the tile with your trovel. It should run over 90 degrees on the tile.
- Next you have to place the buttered tile on the masonite where the 2 lines intersect at the center. Apply some amount of pressure and tilt the tile horizontally on the masonite.
- You have to place 3 corners of tile at a time to keep the tile away from spacing. After installing the tile when you reach at the ends of the table, be sure that you remove all the thin-set from the edges. To make the joint more precise you can use the grout. Now you have to attach the end molding but before doing this allow the tile to set & dry.
- Now you have to measure the ends of the table and mark carefully the molding. Remember you have to carefully cut the molding joint with the help of nails at the ends of the table. Make sure not to hit the tile. Repeat this process on each side of the table. You can finish this phase of your table by putting masking tape on the edge of your table. This tape will help & protect you during the grouting process.
- Now start grouting process and remove the tile, spacers with the help of sharp, pined objects such as a knife or straight pin and then pry them out.
- You have to use pressure and steady strokes to fill the joint wholly with the grout and squeegee the excess. You can wipe the excess grout with the help of a sponge and allow grout to get set completely.
- This is your final step, finish edge molding and also, remove the masking tape which you've applied before.