Things You'll Need:
- Palm power sander
- 80-grit sandpaper
- Tape measure
- Pencil
- Level
- Tile adhesive
- Notched trowel
- Tile (including bullnose tiles for the front row of the top, and thin finish tiles for the front edge)
- Tile cutter
- Tile spacers
- Pre-mixed grout
- Grout float
- Sponge
- Tile sealer
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Step 1
Use your palm power sander and 80-grit sandpaper to dull the surface of the laminated countertop. Get it free of all gloss and shine. Clean up the dust.
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Step 2
Use your tape measure, level and pencil to mark a straight line at the very center of the countertop, from front to back. Bring the line down around the front edge of the countertop as well.
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Step 3
Spread tile adhesive on the front edge of the countertop with your notched trowel, for a foot or two on one side of the line. Press your thin front edge tiles into place, twisting them slightly to get them to adhere. Put plastic spacers between them. Work your way to the end; then use your tile cutter to cut the last piece to size. Do the same for the other side of the center line.
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Step 4
Lay your first row of tiles in adhesive along the top of the countertop, above the front edge, using bullnose tiles, with the curve of the bullnose facing forward. Set the horizontal tiles out to the front of the vertical tiles on the front edge, so they meet at the horitzontal corner. Use spacers between the tiles. Lay regular tiles in the remaining rows on the countertop. Cut the partial tiles at the sides and back as needed.
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Step 5
If the countertop has a connected backsplash that's being tiled, do it in the same manner as you did the front edge and top. Pull out all the plastic spacers and let the tiles set overnight.
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Step 6
Spread your pre-mixed grout over the tiled surface with your rubber grout float, pressing the grout into the lines and squeezing it off the tile faces. Wipe the tile down with a damp sponge. Let the grout set for two days; then apply a grout sealer over the lines to seal the grout from moisture.
