Installing Tiled Mosaic Mural: Days 1 & 2
José Orantes and I are back at the Luther Burbank Park playground installing mosaics on the 5′ high x 38′ long concrete wall. Here’s the progress we’ve made on Monday and today working from 7 AM – 3PM.
~ Day 1 ~
1. Build Tarp Canopy for our workspace
Materials:
~ 16’ x 20’ tarp (cut into two to 8’ x 20’ lengths)
~ Four bar clamps to attach to the top of the concrete wall
~ Eight 1” x 2” wood strips to create structure.
~ Canvas drop cloth (9’ x 12’ cut to 4.5’ x 9’) to cover ground
2. Paint the wall with Red Guard to reduce cracking
We applied a coat of RedGard® to provide a flexible barrier between the concrete and the mosaic installation as a precaution to reduce the effects of cracks in the concrete. We’ll also be install several expansion joints in the affected area and every eight feet as recommended by tile experts.
Materials:
~ 3.5 gallons of RedGard®
~ Rollers and extension rod
~ Paint pan and disposible liner
~ Tape to protect surfaces
Day 2
Another busy work day that included lots of measuring and remeasuring, creating a gridded prep table to set out our tiled mosaic art in position before installation, installing stainless steel schluter edging and beginning to install the mural.
1. Create Tile Prep Table
Our prep/set-up table is carefully measured, gridded and labeled to hold our mosaic panels in position before installing them onto the concrete wall. Numbers along the top are marked on blue tape so that we can update the columns as we move across the wall in our installation process. The letters A, B, C, D, E represent placement from top to bottom.
Materials:
~ Three work horses to hold plywood table
~ plywood cut and assembled to fit 5′ x 7′ of mosaics
~ Roller and paint pan
~ Primer
~ Ruler, pencils and Sharpie markers
2. Installing Schluter and mosaics!
We’re feeling brave!
We’ll be back again tomorrow at 7AM.
playgroundmosaic 