Remember when we tiled the floor out back earlier this month? It felt forever in the making, thanks to rain and cold, but we finally have a mostly finished floor. Don’t be fooled by the light-looking grout in some photos — it’s actually charcoal gray, and I’ll explain that in a bit.
We’re really pleased with the result, especially compared to the stained concrete that was there before. We debated painting or staining the concrete, but ultimately decided that tile was the better long-term solution for an outdoor-covered area. The process, however, was one of those DIY journeys with a few unexpected hurdles. So lace up your comfiest shoes; there’s a lot to cover, and I’ll end with a budget and time breakdown for the project so far.
We began tiling after prepping the floor with self-leveling concrete. For the installation we mixed mortar powder with a liquid admixture to make thinset. Because we used large tiles, mixing bigger batches and using a paddle mixer and large bucket helped speed things along.
I spread a thin layer of thinset at a toothpaste-like consistency, enough for two tiles at a time so it wouldn’t skin over before the tile went down. After smoothing with the flat side of the trowel, I turned it to the notched side and created 45-degree grooves to ensure an even bed. For large-format tiles I used a 1/2″ notched trowel. We used small 1/8″ spacers to keep grout lines minimal — that width was recommended for outdoor use with our tile and fit our aesthetic.
Leveling large tiles was one of the main challenges. Because we arranged them in a brick pattern, each tile met six others, so keeping everything flush took patience. When a corner needed to be raised, I “back-buttered” the tile with extra thinset so it sat level. Working alone added time, especially when family members were sidelined by illness, but the job progressed piece by piece.
By the end of the first day I had a good start, though cutting tiles with the wet saw, mixing thinset, and hauling boxes all ate up time. I finished the majority of the tiling the following day, working from morning into late afternoon. The slate-look porcelain tile we chose feels grippy even when wet, which was important since the old smooth concrete had been slippery. We also added a tile border that elevates the look and ties the space to the adjacent deck.
After tiling, the weather turned, and a week of rain delayed grouting and revealed dried thinset residue once the tiles finally dried out. Despite wiping excess as we worked, the texture of the tiles held onto splatters and the wet thinset color blended with the tile, leaving larger spots once dry. To remove the haze, a 50/50 water-and-vinegar solution worked well, but stubborn dry spots required a mix of gentle chipping with a screwdriver, rubbing with damp cheesecloth, and scrubbing with a nylon brush. That took a solid morning and some elbow grease. If you attempt similar cleanup, test methods on a hidden area first — delicate tiles like marble may not tolerate scraping.
Once cleaned and fully dry for the required period, we grouted. We chose sanded grout in a charcoal color for durability in the outdoor environment and used a flexible grout admixture designed for exterior applications. Because the grout was only for the narrow gaps, small batches were mixed at a time and applied with a float. After packing grout into the joints, a slightly damp sponge smoothed the joints and removed excess. Grouting can feel like a Sisyphean task at times — you rinse and wipe, and the bucket water quickly turns dark — but the work moved along and the main grouting pass took about three hours.
When grout dried it left a haze over the tile surface, which is normal. I waited a few days before performing a careful rinse and sponge-off to avoid prematurely lightening the grout color. Once we allowed the grout to cure, further cleaning and a final wipe made a big difference and revealed the charcoal tone we wanted. If haze persists after curing, a mild water-and-vinegar rinse or a grout sealer/colorant can help deepen the color without overworking the grout while it’s setting.
With the floor essentially done, the room still needs a few finishing touches: boxing in exposed wires that run down the brick, installing sconces on the columns for eye-level lighting, dealing with an outdated intercom, and adding appropriate outdoor-safe furniture. Even so, this is the closest the space has looked to finished since we began the makeover in August.
Below is a budget breakdown for the project to date:
- Wood to finish raw sides where sliding doors were removed: $194
- Contractor to remove ceiling beams: $200
- Electrician to move wires, create two fan boxes: $318
- Tongue-and-groove planks for ceiling: $297
- Plywood to fill large triangular sections: $85
- Trim, paint, primer and caulk: $197
- Fans and downrods: $260
- Self-leveling cement and supplies: $150
- Tile: $680
- Thinset, grout and other tiling supplies: $490
- TOTAL: $2,871
To put that in perspective, simply replacing the old extra-wide sliding doors would have been roughly the same cost, and that wouldn’t have included the ceiling work or tiling. We wanted to do this properly, so we chose durable, long-term solutions rather than quick fixes like painting the concrete, which would have limited future options.
Time-wise, the project has been time-intensive. Here’s a rough tally of hours spent over the last two-and-a-half months:
- Removing old sliding doors: 5 hours
- Trimming and caulking openings: 3 hours
- Demo-ing the ceiling: 3 hours
- Coordinating with contractor & electrician: 1.5 hours
- Adding triangular panels and trim (two rounds): 6 hours
- Priming, painting, installing and caulking the ceiling: 21 hours
- Installing the fans: 1.5 hours
- Prepping the floor (scrubbing, self-leveler, planning pattern): 2 hours
- Tiling, cleaning and grouting the floor: 26 hours
- TOTAL: 69 hours
Those totals are approximate and don’t capture small tasks like shopping, driving, cleaning tools, or photographing the process, but they give a sense of the commitment involved. Even with time and setbacks, the result has been worth it — the tile is safer underfoot and the space already feels more finished. The kids love it, too, which makes all the work feel even more worthwhile.
Two quick clarifications we were asked about: the metal edging pieces were set in place and thinset was applied over them before installing the border tile. They’re decorative and provide a clean, finished edge — thinset is what holds the tile in place. Also, removing the old metal door sliders slightly lowered the interior threshold compared to the deck, but after living with the new tile for weeks we haven’t experienced any tripping issues. The transition feels more obvious now and seems safer overall.
For now we’re calling the sunroom project paused for the year as cooler weather arrives and we save up for new outdoor furniture. What are you hoping to finish before winter arrives? Have weather or other delays affected your projects recently? We can definitely relate.