The 10 Most Essential Tools For Tiling

The 10 most essential tools for tiling

If you're looking to set tile with the least amount of tools and monetary investment this is the list for you. 

1) Grinder with a diamond wheel 

A grinder with a diamond wheel will be instrumental for cutting tile in all cases. To avoid having to purchase an expensive wet tile saw, this is a good beginning piece of equipment. If you're going to splurge on any part of this setup (between the grinder and blade) go with the blade. A nice diamond blade will get you so much further than an expensive grinder.

2) Proper Notch Trowel 

The proper notch trowel is needed when setting because you could do everything right with prep, but if you try to install a 12x24” tile with a 3/16” V-notch trowel all of it will be for nothing. So when starting a project it's smart to make sure you are equipped with the correct sized notch trowel. 

3) Margin Trowel 

A margin trowel will help when setting to place and removing thinset from areas, as well as during grouting to help mix the grout. Having a margin trowel is a must, and it's not important for it to be expensive either, a cheap one from Lowe’s or Home Depot will always work perfectly.

4) Sponges

I recommend having more sponges than you think you’ll need for any given project. I think of it in terms of having one dedicated tool and bucket washing sponge, a clean water sponge for various things, a mid-setting sponge to clean up dropped thinset and tile, and a few for grouting. For most small projects 5 sponges are more than enough

5) Buckets 

For a tile project buckets are so so so important and it seems like you can never have enough of them. For setting during a small project I recommend 1 wash bucket, 2 buckets for clean water, 1 bucket for mid-setting cleanup, and at least 3 buckets for grouting. This is a little overkill, but if a bucket breaks or the thinset dries too fast to clean it’s always nice to have buckets on standby. 

6) Mixer for thinset

Having a dedicated drill for mixing is so very important, that you can definitely get away with an old beat-up mixer for this. In fact, I used an old school ½” chuck Rigid mixer that ran like a tank through the many years of using it and it never let me down.

7) Grout Float

This one is self-explanatory, this will be used during the grouting process and you can’t really get around it. I recommend a harder grout float, like an epoxy float. This always you to work the grout into the joints fairly easily. 

8) Pencils 

Pencils are needed during the layout phase and setting phase. It's nice to have a few for every project in case they get misplaced. And for how inexpensive they are, it’s better to have plenty than not enough

9) Tape Measure 

A tape measure is essential for tile setting, from the get-go a tape is needed for layout and measuring the rooms. And during setting it’s needed to get pieces cut to fit. When doing a floor I normally carry a 25’ Stanley Fatmax tape, but when I’m setting a shower I rock a 16’ Stanley that’s smaller and easier to carry in small areas.

10) Level 

I recommend having a couple of different lengths of levels for any project. Namely a torpedo level, for when pitching a niche shelf or curb. A 2’ foot level for small spaces. And a 4 - 6’ level for checking walls and floors for flatness and plumb. They can also be used to map out grids for the floor.