Properly laid and sealed tile will keep water from getting into unwanted areas for decades. But sometimes caulking isn’t perfect and it can dry out and crack. Taking the time to make a good seal the first time around can prevent expensive repairs later.

One way to do that is to get tile to fit well during initial installation.

In the shower, the spout and shower head pipe often have to come through tile. Measure carefully and ensure that the hole is no larger than necessary. That will make final caulking easier and more secure.

One good way to do that is to take one or two pieces of tile and lay the pipe onto the tile, then score the tile around it. It’s possible to simply take the stated pipe size as a guideline. But people often get confused between inner and outer diameter. Stated pipe sizes are of the outer diameter and, for threaded pipes, of the threads not the pipe body.

Measuring the actual outer pipe diameter gives an exact answer. It also prevents any errors introduced from using the measurement of the threads rather than the pipe itself. These should be the same, since the threads are created by grooving the pipe, but small differences can occur.

It may be easiest to use a single tile, score it and break it in half, then use a tile saw to carve out a perfect half-circle on each half. The two pieces should fit back together very closely with only a very small gap between the pipe and tile. Using one piece broken in half helps ensure the edges will fit together accurately. Leaving only a very small gap helps reduce any caulking errors.

After fitting everything in place, seal the gap with a thin bead of caulk using a caulking gun. Before it has time to dry fully, take a very slightly damp sponge and wipe away any excess from the tile to leave a nice clean result. A wooden cuticle tool or ice cream stick makes for a handy device to ensure that the bead is even around the entire circumference of the pipe.

After it dries, inspect the results carefully to ensure there are no small gaps anywhere. This is the time when you make the difference between a well-sealed pipe or virtually guarantee a later repair job.

-The Fixie Chick

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Brenna Hartmann also writes for the Democrat and Chronicle’s Living Section in Rochester, NY. In addition she writes monthly for The Property Source Magazine and the Home and yard Handbook which she was the founder and since has sold the handbook entity in order to spend more time with her family and children.

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