DIY Saturday #106 – How To Lay Tile/Marble on Fireplace (Video)

Entry #1368, July 7, 2012

Happy DIY Saturday! Now that the summer is here your fireplace probably isn’t getting used. That means it’s the perfect time to clean it, reface it and beautify it. Today’s DIY Saturday will help you create a beautiful tile or marble surround for your fireplace. Whether you are updating your fireplace or trying to create a decorative focal point, today’s DIY Saturday is for you.

Learn how to tile your fireplace

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Watch a video on how to lay marble tile, and the easy way to determine how tile should be lined up for less tile cuts and a desired professional look. Then see step by step instructions from This Old House on How to Tile a Fireplace.

Video – How to lay a Marble Tile Surround Fireplace

This Old House – How to Tile a Fireplace

A flawless fireplace surround starts with a well-thought-out design and ends with an eye for even spacing. Depending on the tile you use, the design may be as simple as centering the starting position, as with subway tile, or as complicated as spacing decorative tile in the middle of a field, as with accent art tile.

Many art-tile manufacturers will custom-make their tile to match your surround. But regardless of which tile you use, you’ll save a lot of time by making a cardboard template of your surround so that you can lay out a pattern on the floor, space the tiles appropriately, and choose a starting position before committing everything to the fireplace itself.

Start by laying a row of tiles on the template where the top of the firebox would be, beginning with the center tile and working outward from there. Then you can see if you need to adjust the tiles to avoid cutting any slivers at the ends. On the legs of your surround, plan to use full tiles in the field and leave any cuts at the bottom.

Tile fireplace diagram

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Whenever you tile a vertical surface, you have to start from the bottom row and work your way up. For the field above the firebox opening, you’ll need to screw a piece of wood to the bricks to provide support for the heavy tiles while they set. At the bottom of the legs, you’ll have to estimate the size of the last cut tile and rip a piece of wood for a level starting point that keeps the joints lined up from leg to leg.

Keep in mind that tiling requires you to work quickly, and while tile spacers are helpful, it may be necessary to go back before the thinset grabs and slightly cheat the tiles one way or another to make them fit perfectly with their neighbors. As long as your joints look even, it’s more important that you avoid a large grout line at the last tile than worry about sticking to the exact measurement of the spacer.

1. Create a Smooth Surface

Remove the mantel if possible or mask off its edges with painter’s tape where it meets the surround.

2. Install a Temporary Support Ledge

Mark the center of the top of the firebox opening. Using a level, draw a plumb line at the mark that extends from the firebox to the top of the surround. Use this centerline as a starting point to ensure a balanced design.

3. Set the Upper Field Tiles

Mix up a new batch of thinset and additive. Using the flat edge of the trowel, apply a horizontal band of thinset across the center-line above the support ledge. Score the thinset by combing the notched edge of the trowel through it at an angle.

Beautify your existing fireplace

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4. Lay the rest of the field

Work your way up the centerline course by course, keeping the joints staggered by alternating the orientation of the tiles at the centerline. Place art tiles according to your pattern. Use spacers between the courses. Let the tiles set overnight.

5. Tile the Legs

Remove the support ledge. Taking into account the height of each tile plus a grout line, estimate the size of the final cut tile that will sit at the bottom of each leg.

6. Set the Cut Tiles

Remove the spacers and the support ledges.

Measure the distance up from the hearth to the bottom of the tiles. Subtract the width of two grout lines. Using a wet-cutting tile saw, trim a tile to this measurement.

Tile can make your fireplace surround

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7. Grout the Tile

Using a putty knife, clear away any pieces of thinset stuck between the tiles. Place painter’s tape over art tiles that have irregularly shaped surfaces, in preparation for grouting. For more detailed instructions visit This Old House via

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