Anyone used tiles at the bottom of their cham enclosure for drainage?

It looks good but Im not sure how it would work used inside Jim. How would you get it to slope toward the drainage hole?
 
I was thinking, do the tiles in steps downward (very small steps obviously). That way, water would work it's way down to the middle (the point where it's all going to drain to) and it would also give me a flat surface to sit the plant pots on.

So, I'd fix the first tiles in with adhesive/grout. Then, build the next layer of grout/adhesive up to the top of the lowest tiles, and stick the next tiles on top of that. I'd easily be able to use a level and give it a slight tilt to the middle. Nothing drastic, just enough to be off level. That should do it! I hope anyway! I mean, they do it for showers so why not! (actually, now that I've said that, I should probably google it and see what it says as I hadn't thought about that out loud! :p)

The tiles would be pretty large! Wouldn't want to be doing it loads!
 
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I'm in the UK, but I know the stuff you mean (worked last summer as a roofer!)

I quite like the tile idea as I think it would look really tidy if done properly! Wouldn't be that hard either to just mix up some adhesive/grout and slop it around a little! :p
 
I had thought about this myself when I built my enclosure, but it would have made it too heavy to seperate and move it if needed. Make sure you seal your grout, or you'll get stains and bacteria will build up if it gets onto the grout without being sealed. Can't really clean grout well since it is a porous material if it's not sealed. Yes you can just make the mortar slope slightly downward to the drain side, your tiles won't be 100% level, but they'll be level enough to set plants on without an issue.
 
That's the beauty of my design! The base is a separate thing that everything else just 'sits' on top of! :D

What would you suggest I use to seal it with?
 
That's the beauty of my design! The base is a separate thing that everything else just 'sits' on top of! :D

What would you suggest I use to seal it with?


My cage seperates in 2 pieces, base/cage unit, but it was just going be a little heavier, and more time consuming than I wanted so I didn't go that route, maybe next time......


I wish I could give you a brand name or something, but I do know there is a tile and grout sealant made. I 'll have to do some searching and edit this post. I know your in England so not everything here is available to you by the same name/company.

Edit: This isn't a link to a direct product, but it will lead you to a couple different options. Hopefully a product available to you also. http://homerenovations.about.com/od/bathrooms/f/groutsealer.htm

Not sure if you have worked with tile before or not, but here's a good site for info, it also has videos. http://www.hometime.com/Howto/projects/ctile/tile_6.htm

Ok then, you could use aquarium silicon instead of grout.

That is another option, but I don't know how easy it would be to get all the "grout" lines nice and smooth like you would with regular grout. Silicon has always fought with me.
 
Thanks for the information. It was really helpful. I see the stuff you mean, I can't find it from the place I'm going to buy all my other bits and bobs from, but I imagine they'll sell it when I go to get the tiles. What sort of self respecting tile shop wouldn't?

I've done a little tiling before, but I'll definitely call in my old man's expertise on the matter!

It's an option, but I hoping to have some nice channels in between the tiles so a silicone sealant wouldn't look too appealing! Plus, I'm planning to use it all the way around my mesh (as we sadly don't get proper mesh spline in this conutry to protect the chams feet from the edges) so I think I'll be sick of fighting with the stuff by the end of it (as it is a nightmare!)
 
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