From a very young age, the idea of DIY was ingrained in me. Both my father and his father built their homes by themselves. From laying the foundation, constructing walls, installing windows, and tiling floors, they did it all. I was lucky enough to learn from them, and in today’s article, I want to provide an easy-to-understand answer to what tile mastic is.
Tile mastic is a form of adhesive that is used during the tile installation process and is considered quite popular lately because of its versatility and usability. More often than not, it is sold as a pre-mixed adhesive in a tube or bucket, depending on how much you need, and is applied directly to the surface that is to be tiled.
It can be used on a sufficient number of surfaces, is easy to apply, and is readily available in most hardware stores.
What Is Tile Mastic Made From?
It is understood that most tile mastic is made from a combination of polymers, cement, and water, which is the reason for its unique properties.
More specifically, they are made of acrylic copolymers and calcium carbonate, which are inorganic compounds that provide more durability and longevity than older forms of mastic that were made from organic compounds.
Depending on the surface area and the weather, tile mastic can take anywhere between 20 and 45 minutes to dry, but in some cases, it can take up to 6 hours to fully dry. But, according to industry standards, it is recommended to allow tile adhesives to dry for 24 hours before you grout.
What Are The Pros And Cons Of Tile Mastic?
One of the main benefits or conveniences of using tile mastic or tile adhesive is that it doesn’t require you to mix anything before application.
All you have to do is squeeze it out of the tube or remove it from the container for use. It is premixed and ready for use, which is a great way to save time and reduce the risk of making a cement-based adhesive mixture that is either too thick or too thin.
Another wonderful benefit of tile mastic is that it has the ability or propensity to bond to most types of surfaces, like drywall, concrete, and plywood. If you’re in the DIY space, that can be incredibly useful to you during your own home renovations or projects pertaining to tile installation.
When I was in my teens, we decided to use these pieces of broken tiles to create a mosaic-like surface for a walk area that was cemented. At the time, I had to manually mix a cement-based adhesive.
It was a lot of work and took a lot of time, more so than the actual tiling itself. If I could have used tile mastic, that would have saved me an incredible amount of time and energy.
Recently, what I also learned about tile mastic is that it has the ability to expand and contract due to the presence of polymers.
What this means is that during extreme changes in temperature and humidity, the tile mastic will help prevent tiles from cracking or dislodging due to its flexible property. In rooms like the kitchen or bathroom, this is extremely beneficial due to the high levels of moisture.
The downside to tile mastic is that it doesn’t afford you the ability to adjust tiles due to its quick-grabbing properties.
But, more so than that, it usually has a really pronounced and bad odor that is hard to ignore and takes some time to dissipate.
I think the only other con to tile mastic is that it’s limited to smaller tiles. If you were looking to install long and heavy tiles or marble tiles, they may not be strong enough to hold these tiles, especially in high-traffic areas.
You’d be better off using a thinset mortar for these types and sizes of tiles for that extra strength and hold.
Final Thoughts
That brings us to the end of this article on what tile mastic is. It is quite evident that tile mastic offers an easy, flexible, and affordable solution for tiling a home.
If convenience is of the utmost importance to you and the area that requires tiling fits the criteria for using tile mastic, then it’s a wonderful option for most homeowners.
With that being said, I hope you found this article to be helpful and insightful. If you did, I’d highly recommend that you check out some of our other flooring articles linked below.
Pros and cons of mosaic glass tile flooring