[ksera123]

I have an old house with a bathroom where I just tore down the shower/tub surround walls. It previously had plastic tiles with drywall. It's now torn down to the framing.
I see now the tub has no lip, but I was planning on tiling the walls, using cement board. Can I still do that and if so, what do I do with the area between the tub and the wall where the lip would normally be on all 3 sides?
Thanks

 

[Just Bill]

That must be a very old tub, why not replace it while everthing is torn out?? Otherwise, start your tile with a minimum gap at the tub and be very careful about keeping it caulked.

 

[Bob Mariani]

leave the CBU up about 3/8" Leave the tile up about 1/4" Install a backer rod to fill the void and caulk.

 

[ksera123]

tiling a tub w no lip

I did consider getting a new tub, but this old ceramic one is in really good shape and it's deep- better than a lot of those newer plastic types. Plus I'm trying to keep the old budget down.

Anyway, this backer rod just gets 'stuffed' into the space between the bottom of the cement board and the top of the tub? Do you do anything else to install it? Lastly, then you just caulk around to cover the b rod?

It looks also like there are different types of backer rod. Do you have a recommendation?

Sorry, I'm far from a pro, so just learning. Thanks for your help

 

[Bob Mariani]

Buy from a tile or mason yard. Not sure what you are seeing when you say there are many types. Many sizes yes. The reason is that a caulked joint must be sufficient size to allow the caulk to flex, yet small enough to not break the bond. And a joint should always have two and only two points of bonding. (it will not bond to the foam rod.) Leave a 1/4" gap, push in a 1/4" backer rod with a putty knife back a 3/16" and caulk. Be sure to clean the area with denatured alcohol first. Caulked joint must be tooled. Use the back of a old spoon for this.