Installing Tile Countertops

Steps 1 - 8

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1. Measure your cabinets from the wall to the front edge of the face frame, then measure left and right.
Install support cleats along unsupported edges.
2. Cut your plywood and screw it to the tops of the cabinet with 1-5/8 in. screws. Keep the front edge even
with the face frame.

3. Glue and staple another layer of plywood (1/4 in.) over the 3/4-in. plywood if necessary to build up the
thickness to match the edge tile.
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4. Center the sink in the sink base cabinet and trace the perimeter. Draw another mark 1/2 in. inside this
mark, radius the corners and cut it out with a jigsaw.
5. Set the cement board onto the plywood and trace the shapes with a fine-tip marker or carpenter’s pencil.

6. Cut the cement board with your jigsaw outfitted with an abrasive-cutting blade.
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7. Spread a thin layer of thin-set mortar over the plywood with a 1/4-in. notched trowel. Embed the cement
board into the mortar and screw it to the plywood with cement board screws.
8. Score and snap thin strips of cement board and embed them into thin-set mortar along the edges. Nail
the strips with 1-1/4 in. galvanized nails.

Steps 9 - 16

9. Reinforce the outside corners and edges with strips of fiberglass tape. Embed the tape with a thin, even
topping of thinset mortar.
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10. Snap chalk lines for your layout, then precut some of the field tiles to fit. Spread a bed of thin-set
mortar with your 1/4-in. notched trowel and lightly press the tiles into place.
11. Cut the tiles to fit with a wet-cut tile saw. Push the tiles gently through the diamond blade; don’t force
them.

12. Cut the webbed backing on the decorative trim tiles and fit them around the front of the sink. Make sure
they sit flat in the mortar.
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13. Clamp straight 2x2s to the front edge of the face frame to support the weight of the marble edge until
the mortar sets. Set the edge pieces. Then draw layout lines on the backsplash and lay in tile according to
your design.

Electrical Box Cutout

Hold the backsplash tile in position and mark it directly for height and width to fit around the receptacles.
Cut the opening with multiple passes on your wet saw.

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14. Coat the face of the porous tile and stone with a sealer before grouting to prevent the grout from
sticking to the tile surface.
15. Mix the grout to a toothpaste consistency and push it into the joints with a grout float. Mix enough for
6-ft. square sections and then wipe each section down as you go.

16. Wipe the excess grout from the tile with a clean, wrung-out sponge. Several passes are necessary to
clean the grout from the tile. Polish with a cotton towel.