Salvaged fireplace tiles
I recently rescued some fireplace and bathroom tiles that were being dumped by a neighbor renovating his house. Some of the tiles popped right off the cement, but most are stuck tight to a 1 1/2″ thick scratch coat of cement, containing sand, pebbles, pieces of brick and wood and whatever must have been lying…
I recently rescued some fireplace and bathroom tiles that were being dumped by a neighbor renovating his house. Some of the tiles popped right off the cement, but most are stuck tight to a 1 1/2″ thick scratch coat of cement, containing sand, pebbles, pieces of brick and wood and whatever must have been lying around the site.
Aside from chipping the cement off, is there any solution I can use to break down the cement that won’t destroy the tiles? Hopefully something that doesn’t eat through household containers or flesh. I’m experimenting with soaking in water, so far, not much action. Any help appreciated.
Soaking in water or muriatic acid won’t do anything. It’s cement, for god’s sake. Also no hammers, no chisles. You need an angle grinder with a diamond blade. And goggles. They’re rentable. Gradually nibble into the mortar from the back of the tiles, and you can preserve them. It sucks, but it’s a lot easier than stripping moulding. You can do it. Been there, done it.
This is what I did ..found fireplace slate tiles encased inside a cement pad in my backyard. I was hammering it apart when I came across the tiles. The pad broke apart in large pieces. I lifted the pieces and dropped them on their ends, and the cement split off the tiles. If that didn’t work, I hammered the ends until the cement broke apart. These were large 12in to 36″ slabs of slate.
Thanks, Rick and Espresso. I’ve got a couple of pieces soaking for about 24 hours, by the time I get home, and I’ll see what happened. Muriatic acid may be the way to go – won’t touch it without much reading and prep work, not to mention disposal. The last thing I need is an acid going through my decrepit plumbing system.
Any other advice?
I’ve used muriatic acid to deal with laitance in concrete, but not to dissolve it off the back of tiles. There is a company called East End Woodstrippers (I know, wood) and the grumpy fellow -Dean?-overthere might have some better ideas. Do keep in mind that all this is quite toxic and should be disposed off properly, preferably not thrown down the drain into what is ultimately our water system.
Really hot water may help, perhaps put the tiles on a low boil. Tap the back of the tiles, the cement may lose it’s grab. If that doesn’t work I would try a watered down muriatic acid. Be very careful using the acid, it’s best to do it outside with gloves & eye protection. Be sure to read up on muriatic acid before you work with it. Letting the tiles soak in the acid may do the trick.