Torn gyprock - prep required for spashback tiling?

[mafelix76]

Hi I am after some advice, I am in the process of removing and replacing the old tiles in my kitchen (spashback). During the removal process, some of the old adhesive pealed the paper off the gyprock (Thin layer left, no chalk exposed) , some small holes occurred and few small minor dents. I have filled these in with Selleys Spakfilla Rapid and sanded. Picture below - the white plaster above the PowerPoint and stretching right across is previous filler and not exposed gyprock. Dark brown paper is the deepest the exposure goes apart from the wholes and dents.

Do I need to / should I prep the wall before using the Dunlop Wall Tile Adhesive. Ie  Do i need to prime/paint the wall before tiling with a multipurpose primer such as the Dunlop Multipurpose Water Based Primer?

Also I will be tiling over the previous painted surface, short of cleaning with sugar soap is there anything I should do to the wall to prep for the adhesive/wall tile?

Many Thanks Maf.

[EricL]

Hello @mafelix76

Thanks for sharing your question about preparing your wall for tiling. The gyprock looks to be in fair condition as there are no large gouges in the plaster which means that it is relatively still flat. You'll probably need to remove any loose paper that's still attached. Your objective is to get a surface with no loose parts free of debris. Your choice of using Dunlop 1L Multipurpose Water Based Primer is perfect. There is no need to paint the wall, use the Dunlop Primer directly on the wall.

The Dunlop Primer will seal the wall and it will improve tile glue adhesion. Please make sure that the wall is as flat as you can make it. If there are high spots, I recommend trying to sand it down and fill in any low spots that you feel are very noticeable.

Let me call on our experienced members @TedBear and @diy_hausdesigns for their recommendations.

Here are some handy step-by-step guides:

• How to tile a splashback
   
• How to grout wall tiles
   
• How to silicone a gap

Please keep us updated with your progress, we look forward to seeing your splashback tiled and ready for use.

If you have any other questions we can help with, please let us know.

Eric

[TedBear]

Hi @mafelix76 

the only suggestion I can add to @EricL 's good advice is - I wouldn't worry about filling those shallow gouges with filler since there is a risk that this could become a weak point of attachment when the tile adhesive is then attached to the filler.   The tile adhesive should go on thick enough to fill in those points and provide grab onto the wall instead of onto the filler. 

(But, I suggest this without seeing the actual job, so you will need to decide if the gouges are deep or wide enough to require extra attention.)