Lesson 1Cutting and shaping tiles: wet saw, angle grinder, nippers and proper edge finishingThis lesson teaches safe, accurate tile cutting and shaping. You will compare wet saws, angle grinders, and nippers, learn edge finishing, dust control, and neat cuts around fixtures, niches, and floor drains.
Using a wet saw for straight and mitre cutsAngle grinder techniques and blade choiceTile nippers for small notches and curvesEdge smoothing, arrising and polishingDust control and personal protective gearLesson 2Application of waterproofing: number of coats, wet film thickness, curing, lap details around joints, penetrations and drainsThis lesson covers applying waterproofing membranes in wet areas, including coat numbers, wet film thickness control, curing times, and proper lapping at corners, joints, penetrations, and drains for a watertight barrier.
Calculating required wet film thicknessNumber of coats and recoat intervalsLap details at corners and wall-floor jointsSealing around pipes, mixers and drainsCuring conditions and protection from damageLesson 3Inspection and testing: bond tests, hollow-sound detection using a mallet, waterproofing continuity checks and flood testingThis lesson teaches inspecting and testing waterproofing and tiles. You will perform bond tests, detect hollow tiles with a mallet, check membrane continuity, and conduct flood tests in wet areas.
Visual checks of membranes and detailsSimple bond and pull-off field testsHollow-sound detection with a rubber malletFlood testing shower bases and floorsDocumenting defects and repair proceduresLesson 4Tile layout and set-out: dry layout, symmetry, grout joint width, tile orientation and reference linesThis lesson covers planning tile layout in bathrooms. You will do dry laying, ensure symmetry, set grout widths, orient tiles, use reference lines, and manage cuts at corners, niches, and drains.
Reading plans and measuring the bathroomEstablishing control and reference linesDry layout to test pattern and cutsChoosing grout joint width and alignmentCentering tiles on key visual featuresLesson 5Tile fixing methods: back-buttering, butter-and-bedding for floors, wall adhesive application methods and correct trowel sizesThis lesson explains tile fixing for bathroom walls and floors. You will learn back-buttering, butter-and-bedding, correct trowel sizes, coverage in wet areas, and void prevention techniques.
Choosing trowel notch size and patternBack-buttering large and dense tilesButter-and-bedding for floors and fallsAchieving minimum coverage in wet zonesAvoiding voids and air pockets under tilesLesson 6Substrate preparation for waterproofing: primers, fillets at wall-floor junctions, surface profile requirementsThis lesson covers preparing bathroom substrates for waterproofing. You will clean, prime, form fillets at wall-floor junctions, treat cracks, create falls to drains, and meet surface profile needs.
Cleaning and decontaminating substratesSelecting and applying suitable primersForming cementitious fillets at junctionsTreating cracks, holes and surface defectsChecking falls, flatness and surface profileLesson 7Waterproofing strategies: sheet membranes, liquid-applied membranes, cementitious waterproofing — selection criteria and compatibilityThis lesson compares sheet, liquid, and cementitious waterproofing for bathrooms. You will evaluate performance, substrate compatibility, failure modes, and select systems per codes and manufacturer specs.
Sheet membranes: types, uses, limitationsLiquid-applied membranes: key propertiesCementitious coatings for wet areasCompatibility with substrates and primersChemical resistance and service conditionsLesson 8Tile adhesive selection: cement-based thinset, flexible mortars, rapid-set adhesives — selection by substrate and tile typeThis lesson teaches choosing tile adhesives for bathrooms. You will compare cement thinset, flexible and rapid-set mortars, matching to substrates, tile types, porcelain density, and movement/moisture factors.
Cement-based thinset classificationsFlexible mortars for movement-prone basesRapid-set mortars: uses and limitationsAdhesive choice for porcelain and large tilesAdhesive compatibility with waterproofingLesson 9Assessing moisture-damaged masonry and block walls: cleaning stains, removing failed render, and drying strategiesThis lesson covers assessing moisture-damaged masonry and block walls. You will diagnose sources, remove failed render, clean efflorescence and mould, and use drying strategies without causing further cracks.
Identifying moisture sources and pathwaysTesting masonry moisture contentRemoving loose render and contaminated layersCleaning efflorescence, mold and stainingDrying strategies and re-rendering timingLesson 10Grouting, sealants and movement joints: grout types, joint cleaning, silicone sealants at perimeter and fixtures, and expansion joint placementThis lesson teaches grouting and sealing tiled bathrooms. You will select grout types, clean joints, mix and pack grout, apply silicone at edges and fixtures, and place movement joints to prevent cracks.
Selecting cementitious and epoxy groutsJoint cleaning and preparation before groutingCorrect grout mixing and applicationSilicone at perimeters, corners and fixturesMovement and expansion joint placement
