Run your thinset lines parallel to the direction you will lay your tiles so the ridges collapse for full coverage.

When spreading thinset for bathroom floor tiles use a notched trowel of the correct size and hold it at a consistent forty five degree angle to form uniform ridges. Spread a flat key coat first to fill gaps and then apply the notched pass in the same direction across the subfloor so the ridges are all aligned. Butter the back of each tile with a thin layer of thinset and then back butter the full field edge to ensure full contact and to avoid voids under large format pieces. Press each tile into place with a firm downward motion and a slight left to right wiggle to collapse the ridges and achieve one hundred percent coverage where required. Check coverage by lifting an occasional tile after placement to confirm a continuous thinset bond and adjust trowel size if you see excessive voids or uneven transfer. Keep working time and open time in mind for the thinset you selected and mix only as much as you can use within the manufacturer specified pot life.

Three common mistakes are using the wrong trowel size which causes poor coverage, not back buttering large tiles which leaves voids, and running trowel lines in multiple directions which traps air and prevents ridges from collapsing. If you use too small a notch switch to a larger trowel sized for the tile dimensions and substrate so you get proper transfer. If you skip back buttering do a full thinset butter on the tile back before placing it especially for tiles larger than twelve by twelve inches to ensure consistent bedding. If you comb in multiple directions keep both field and back trowel lines parallel so pressing and wiggling collapses the ridges and eliminates air gaps.

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