How to Install Cement Tile

How to Install Cement Tile

Proper installation and protection of cement tile is key. Please ensure that tile is laid by a licensed tile installer. Zia Tile is not responsible for any issues that arise due to improper installation or care. DO NOT LET THE BOXES GET WET! Moisture can seep into the tiles, which may result in staining or efflorescence in which a residual powdery limestone layer is deposited on the surface of the tile.

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07 / 09 / 2021

We do not recommend installing our tiles outdoors in places that experience frost/freeze in winter. Care must also be taken in areas that may get wet as the surface may cause a slip hazard. Cement tiles are unable to withstand the weight of vehicles and therefore should never be used in driveways.

Wall tiles can be affixed to plaster, drywall, cement block, and cement backer board.

The installation surface should be flat and dry with any loose paint removed and cracked surfaces patched. New construction foundations should cure at least 30 days prior to installing any tile.

We recommend 511 Porous Plus by Miracle Sealants for all cement tile installations. This penetrating sealer protects the original matte finish of the tile. For commercial projects and high traffic areas, a matte finish topical sealer such as Fila Surface Solutions Matt Wax can be used for an additional layer of protection. Always test a topical sealer on a sample or small area first to ensure that the desired finish is acceptable.

Required materials

For placing the tiles:

  • Sponge

  • Bucket

  • 1/16” tile spacers

  • High quality medium-bed thin set mortar

  • Trowel with ½” semi-circular notches

  • Un-sanded, neutral color grout – We recommend Mapei Flexcolor CQ

  • Grout float

  • Water-cooled tile saw with diamond edge blade

For cleaning and sealing cement tiles:

  • pH neutral cleaner such as Miracle Sealants Heavy Duty Cleaner (Acid Substitute)

  • Paint roller, paint tray, sponge and water bucket

  • Lint-free cotton cloth

  • 511 Porous Plus Sealer from Miracle Sealant – A gallon covers approximately 200-250 sqft, a quart covers 150 sqft

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Installation

  1. Please inspect your order thoroughly as Zia Tile cannot be held responsible for tiles that have been installed.

  2. Ensure that the subfloor or sub-surface under the tile is completely dry and free of moisture. Any moisture underneath the cement tile will surface over time and can create a chalky white deposit known as efflorescence. Efflorescence can permanently damage the tile, so installers must test and verify that sub-surfaces are completely free of moisture before installation begins. If moisture is detected in the sub-surface, the installer must use a waterproof membrane. Once the subfloor is even, dry, and in good condition, a high quality medium-bed thin set is sufficient to set the tiles.

  3. Evenly apply the thin set mixture to the subfloor using a trowel. Wet the back of each tile with a sponge before applying the adhesive to the back of each tile, making sure to apply the mixture in the same direction in order to prevent air pockets from forming.

  4. Using only the palm of your hand, press the tiles into place. Use of a rubber hammer or mallet will result in small cracks that will grow over time. Ensure the tiles are perfectly flat during installation as uneven tiles cannot be ground down.

  5. Immediately wipe off any residual thin set from the surface of the tiles. It can be incredibly difficult to remove without damaging the tiles if left too long.

  6. Use 1/16” tile spacers to separate the tiles.

  7. All saw cuts must be made with a water-cooled tile saw. After the tiles have been laid, allow the thin set at least 48 hours to cure before sealing and grouting. Grout in small 2’x2′ sections removing the excess immediately using Mapei Flexcolor CQ grout in a NEUTRAL COLOR ONLY. Neutral grout colors are lighter shades of white and light grey from the Mapei grout color range.

  8. Cement Tiles must be sealed on-site. Use a pH neutral cleaner before sealing; products made to clean natural stone are usually suitable.

  9. We recommend using 511 Porous Plus Sealer from Miracle Sealants or other high performance cement tile sealers. After laying the tile and prior to grouting, apply sealer in thin layers until the tiles become saturated, wiping off any excess sealer before it dries. Thick or excessive application of sealant can dry unevenly, and result in an undesirable waxy film on the surface of the tiles. Allow sealer to cure, typically 1-2 days; always follow the sealant manufacturers application instructions.

  10. Using only standard, neutral colored un-sanded grout, fill in the gaps between the tiles with a rubber grout float. DO NOT grout the entire floor at once, as the tiles can stain and excess grout is extremely difficult to remove later. Instead, grout small areas and immediately wipe away the excess grout as you go. Dark grout can stain lighter colored tiles and should be AVOIDED unless hand grouting or using a grout bag.

  11. Before resealing, allow the grout to cure, usually 48 hours.

  12. Clean the tiles with pH neutral detergent, removing any residual mortar or debris. Never leave spills, drips, footprints, or any other marks on the tiles prior to sealing.

  13. Completely clean and dry the tiles before applying a second coat of 511 Porous Plus sealer over the tiles and grout.

  14. Always cover the tiles during and after installation with RamBoard to prevent damage and/or staining of the tiles until construction is complete.


The guidelines above are for directional use only. Each customer is responsible for hiring a skilled installer that has both experience and expertise in installing cement tiles. Zia Tile is not responsible for installing, ongoing care, or problems arising from any orders after receipt of product.

Cleaning cement tile

Regularly clean the tiles with acid-free, pH neutral detergent. A natural patina can be expected to develop over time, as the floor begins to wear and age. Water spotting can be avoided with a regular cleaning routine, which includes resealing the floor every two to three years, depending on the conditions of wear. With interior high traffic areas and commercial spaces, discuss applying a topical sealer with your installer. We recommend Fila Surface Solutions Matt Wax sealer to bead water and provide an extra protection layer to the surface of the tile. Recommended Cleaning Products: General cleaning – Always use pH neutral cleaners such as Miracle Tile and Stone Cleaner. Heavy cleaning and stain removal – use Miracle Heavy Duty Cleaner -Acid Substitute and follow instructions on label.

An installation of cement tile from one of our clients who chose Los Feliz.
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Order & shipping

We’ll ship handmade cement tile and zellige anywhere that FedEx, UPS, DHL, and any LTL carrier can reach! If you live in Alaska, Hawaii, or anywhere outside of the continental United States, please email or call us for a custom freight quote as those are high cost delivery areas that will incur additional shipping costs.

All normal tile orders will deliver using LTL carrier service and are curbside delivery. The LTL trucking company that is contracted to deliver your order will contact you to arrange a specific date and time for curbside delivery.

During delivery, all customers are responsible for inspecting the shipment for shortages or damages against the packing slip and noting those damages with the driver on the Bill of Lading. Any issues with the delivery must be photographed and noted with the delivery driver on the shipping documentation in order to initiate a claim. The claims agents for the shipping company will request photos and written documentation to process the claim. Please take the time to ensure that this is done effectively during delivery in order to avoid any costs associated with replacement material for your order. Ensure that you have someone on-site to accept your delivery as any missed deliveries or delivery refusals will result in storage and redelivery fees to the trucking company. Contact us within 48 hours after your delivery and we will work to replace any items damaged in transit as quickly as possible! The Successful

Delivery Checklist:

  1. Check all items against packing list during the delivery

  2. Take photos and note any damage with the delivery driver on the BOL

  3. Contact us immediately if needed

Ordering samples

We encourage all customers to order samples through our website by clicking on the Request a Sample button each tile page. It is important to evaluate tile selections by first placing samples in the actual space where you plan to install to evaluate color, texture, and lighting in your space prior to placing an order. All cement tile and zellige sample orders are limited to up to 4 per tile design, and customers may order up to 10 samples total. We make every effort to ship all samples within the same shipment, but some samples may ship separately if specific samples are out of stock at the time the order is placed.

Some samples of special order tiles may be available and are limited to 1 sample per customer due to the limited amount of special order tile samples we have on-hand. Frequently, special order sample tiles will have a lead time that matches the order lead time listed on each individual tile page. All of our solid color cement sample requests are fulfilled in 4×4 solid sample color tiles.

The first 5 samples in our online cart are complimentary. Subsequent samples are $3 each and shipping is $8 for every 3 tiles shipped. Our samples typically ship out 2-3 business days after order receipt via FedEx, UPS, or USPS ground. For questions regarding samples, please email info@ziatile.com.

Terms of sale

All tiles are hand made with inherit variation from tile to tile. These standard characteristics enhance the beauty and wear-ability of the product. Understanding how tile colors are achieved and wear over time is critical to appreciating the beauty and performance of the tile. All customers are responsible for sealing and protecting cement tile ordered from Zia Tile to ensure that the tiles are maintained correctly. Zia Tile is always here to advise on how and where to successfully install cement tiles but makes no guarantees on performance or maintenance after installation.
In stock tile orders ship within 2 business days of order receipt. Custom cement tile and zellige lead times vary depending on the design and schedule needs of clients. All lead times provided are estimated arrival times to our warehouse in Los Angeles and can vary depending on customs inspections and port congestion. Once orders arrive to our warehouse, additional transit days (typically 4-7 days) are necessary to ship pallet wrapped orders to our customers via LTL trucking carriers. We will make every effort to meet or reduce lead times where possible, but there are no guarantees due to the custom nature of the manufacturing process and inherent challenges with international logistics. All customers are solely responsible for providing measurements and quantities needed for each order. In addition, all customers are strongly advised to order 15% more tile than necessary to ensure that enough product is on-hand to successfully complete installation. Please consult your tile installer to ensure that your take-off quantity and overage calculations are correct. Keep in mind that the price of the overage quantity is minimal in comparison to the cost of rush product and one-off shipping in the event that more product is needed after the original order due to site conditions, mistakes in order quantities, or installation errors. Trying to save a few hundred dollars by decreasing or eliminating the standard 15% overage is the most common mistake customers make when placing orders. This mistake can end up costing 5-10 times more to place small incremental orders AND significantly delay projects by weeks or months! Our website automatically generates a 15% overage calculation by separate line item in the ordering cart. We cannot advise strongly enough to ensure that you have 15% overage on all of your orders to ensure your project is successful!
All orders require 100% payment at time of order placement. Payments are processed online or via phone. Invoices are provided and copies are sent via email as well as available by accessing the Sign In function on our website. Sales tax is applied at the time of payment and paid as part of the original order. Shipping costs are charged with each order. Any changes to orders, shipping dates, and/or shipping methods will result in change order costs that will be determined at the time of the change request.
All sales are final once payment is received. There are no refunds or exchanges after 6 hours of order receipt as inventory is allocated to each customer based on the time the order is placed. Made to order tile cannot be cancelled or exchanged and an order for tile that is marked “in transit” is considered final after 6 hours as inventory is allocated to each customer at that time. Zia Tile does not accept any returns of unopened boxes of tile as we would never sell returned tile that has left our possession to other customers.
All of our orders ship throughout the US and Canada using LTL trucking providers. The LTL trucking company that is contracted to deliver your order will contact you to arrange a specific date and time for curbside delivery. All deliveries are made on a pallet, and each tile box weighs 35-55 lbs, so it is very important to coordinate your tile delivery with your contractor or installer in advance so that you have the proper labor on-site at the time of delivery to move the boxes from the curbside. During delivery, all customers are responsible for inspecting the shipment for shortages or damages against the packing slip and noting those damages with the driver on the Bill of Lading. If there are any issues, please contact Zia Tile as soon as possible but no more than 48 hours after delivery. We will work to replace any items damaged in transit as quickly as possible! Any issues with the delivery must be photographed and noted with the delivery driver on the shipping documentation in order to initiate a claim. Zia Tile must be contacted about any delivery issue or damage within the 48 hour window that North American shipping companies allow to process a freight claim. After that timeframe, customers have accepted their tile and no freight claim, tile replacement, or refund for damage is possible.The claims agents for the shipping company will request photos and written documentation to process the claim. Please take extra time to ensure that this is done effectively during delivery in order to avoid any costs associated with replacement material for your order. Any missed deliveries or delivery refusals will result in storage and redelivery fees paid to the trucking company. The Successful Delivery Checklist: 1. Check all items against packing list during the delivery 2. Take photos and note any damage with the delivery driver on the BOL 3. Contact us immediately if needed!
Zia Tile strongly recommends that all customers heavily leverage a tile installer in the up front planning, measuring, ordering, sealing, and maintenance of cement tile, zellige, cotto, or ceramic products. Leveraging an installer with specific experience who will closely follow the installation and sealing instructions is strongly encouraged. Zia Tile is not responsible for installation, on-going care, or problems arising from any orders after receipt of the product. Detailed installation guides and tile specification sheets are available upon request. Recommended Cleaning Products: General cleaning – Always use pH neutral cleaners such as Miracle Tile and Stone Cleaner. Heavy cleaning and stain removal – use Miracle Heavy Duty Cleaner (Acid Substitute) and follow instructions on label.
Our supply chain is lean, which is why we are able to price our tiles approximately 20-30% cheaper than other suppliers. We will warehouse your product free of charge for 4 weeks. After that time has expired, each order that is held due to customer receiving delays will incur a $300 charge per week. All customers acknowledge and accept the terms and conditions of sale outlined above by placing orders.

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