How to Use Marble Tile for Countertop
- 1). Measure the length of your countertop to find the middle. Mark it with your pencil. Use your carpenter's square to make a line across the surface, from front to back. Bring the line down around the front edge of the countertop as well.
- 2). Measure the front edge of your countertop (most styles will have 2-inch deep front edges). Use your wetsaw to cut marble tiles at that width, enough to span the whole length.
- 3). Spread thinset mortar along the vertical front edge with your notched trowel. Starting at the center line you drew, set your cut marble tiles on the edge, pressing them into the mortar. Set 1/16th-inch spacers between the tiles. Cut the pieces at the ends to fit, as needed, on your wet saw.
- 4). Hold a level over the tiles and press firmly, to get the surfaces of the tiles even with one another.
- 5). Spread thinset mortar over the top surface of the countertop. Lay the first row of tiles along the front, starting on either side of the center line. Set the edges of the front row out far enough to cover the sides of the vertical tiles that you hung from the front edge.
- 6). Lay the rest of the tiles over the top of the countertop, working your way back and to the sides. Put spacers between all of them. Cut the pieces at the ends on your wetsaw as necessary. Stop after every few tiles and lay the level over them, pressing them down so the top surfaces are even.
- 7). Take out the spacers. Let the tiles dry for 24 hours.
- 8). Use a grout squeegee to spread unsanded grout over the tiles, forcing it into the thin spaces and squeezing it off the surface. Use a damp sponge to wipe away the excess grout. Let the grout dry for two or three days before using the countertop.
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