Can You Tile Sheetrock in a Kitchen Backsplash?

Cleaning

• Kitchen walls are prone to residue from grease and food, and tile adhesive needs a clean surface with which to bond. Whether the paint is flat or shiny, clean the walls in the backsplash area with degreasing cleaner and a lightly abrasive sponge. Don’t saturate the walls. Scrubbing too hard can wear through flat paint and soak the Sheetrock’s covering. It can also scratch glossier latex paints, allowing water underneath that can blister and lift the paint off the Sheetrock. If your countertop has caulk or silicone where the back edge meets the wall, scrape or peel it off. If your walls are papered, you must remove it. Score or cut the paper lightly with a sharp knife, rub a wet sponge over it and peel off the paper. Scrub the wall to remove the paste and paper residue.

Prep Work

• Clean Sheetrock walls need some tooth, or a roughened surface for tile adhesive to grab. Sand the backsplash areas of the wall with medium-grit sandpaper until the surface dulls and small scratches are introduced. If the walls are painted with flat paint, you can skip sanding. However, some abrasion will help prepare any paint to accept tile. Avoid sanding too deep because that can tear the paper covering. If your walls are covered with numerous layers of thick, glossy paint, you should not tile it. The paint will lift off the Sheetrock and the tiles will fall. If you can scrape off or otherwise remove the paint, the tile will hold. If you can’t remove the thick paint, install a layer of cement-based wallboard over the Sheetrock to support the backsplash.

Adhesives and Grout Choices

• Some specialty tiles require a specific adhesive, so ask your retailer before you buy. Pre-mixed tile mastic or adhesive is less messy to use because you don’t have to measure, pour and blend, and small, dry, airborne particles won't be released. It helps you avoid tile bond failure that can happen when adhesives are not prepared properly. Pre-mixed adhesive is available in a tub that is ready to spread on the wall with a notched trowel. Thinset mortar is one of the most common unmixed tile adhesives, and it is also appropriate for tiling over Sheetrock. If the mixing and use instructions on the bag are followed, thinset will hold the tiles securely, and it usually dries faster than pre-mixed adhesive. Whichever adhesive you choose, apply it to a small area of the backsplash, set a few tiles and move along. Only cover an area large enough for you to set a few tiles at a time. Wall tiles usually have small grout lines. Any unsanded grout that you desire is appropriate for tiling over Sheetrock. Sanded grout is used to fill wide grout lines.

Tile Choices

• A tiled backsplash has built-in support from the countertop. Although a Sheetrock wall could tear under the weight of large, heavy tiles and the entire installation could fall, the support of the countertop allows you to install almost any kind of tile on the Sheetrock that you desire. The even, flat surface of the wallboard lets you install small mosaic tiles without the rippling imperfections of a plaster foundation, and larger tiles are more likely to bond fully across the entire surface, unlike some other wall materials. Glazed and smooth glass tiles are easier to clean than porous tiles.

Finish Work

• After the Sheetrock is covered with tiles, it is vulnerable to moisture damage. Apply water-resistant grout sealer to every grout line, and apply a fresh coat of sealer as often as the manufacturer recommends to keep water out. Seal the perimeter of the tiled backsplash with silicone or silicone-enhanced caulk.