So long as it's something that'll go with the other tile, I don't see why not. I've never done it before-- usually the wall tile is also the shower tile-- but it sounds like it'd make for a really nice design element, if it's done tastefully. As for choosing beadboard over anything else, that's a personal taste question. You're actually asking the wrong person because I'm kinda biased!! :-) I've already said that come this summer, I'll be doing my OWN master bath, and when that time comes, I'll be tiling up to the ceiling-- not necessarily all the same tile, but it WILL go to the ceiling.

If that's the case, then yes you CAN tile right over it, although it's recommended that you start fresh. The reason being then you don't have to worry about the laminate parting, or "delaminating" from the base underneath. However, if you want to go over what you have, scuff it up good with a sander, and then use some thing like Laticrete's 317 thinset mixed with their 333 liquid latex, or Mapei's Kerabond thinset mixed with their Keralastic additive. You want something strong that's not going to lose its bond, and those are about the two strongest thinsets I know of.

KellyEng, this is the usage history since moving into this house January 2005. More details are provided when they were recorded in my records. Period 1/21/2005 to 2/xx/2005, 1,004 KWH Period 2/xx/2005 to 3/xx/2005, 696 KWH Period 3/xx/2005 to 4/15/2005, 727 KWH Period 4/16/2005 to 5/17/2005, 34 days, 655 KWH Period 5/18/2005 to 6/18/2005, 32 days, 1,296 KWH Period 6/19/2005 to 7/18/2005, 30 days, 1,471 KWH Period 7/19/2005 to 8/18/2005, 31 days, 1,521 KWH Period 8/19/2005 to 9/18/2005, 31 days, 1,651 KWH Period 9/19/2005 to 10/18/2005, 30 days, 1,384 KWH Period 10/19/2005 to 11/16/2005, 29 days, 833 KWH Period 11/17/2005 to 12/18/2005, 32 days, 1,263 KWH Period 12/19/2005 to 1/17/2006, 30 days, 1,103 KWH Period 1/18/2006 to 2/19/2006, 33 days, 1,083 KWH Period 2/20/2006 to 3/19/2006, 28 days, 760 KWH Period 3/20/2006 to 4/19/2006, 31 days, 831 KWH Period 4/20/2006 to 5/19/2006, 30 days, 1,075 KWH Period 5/20/2006 to 6/20/2006, 32 days, 1,523 KWH Period 6/21/2006 to 7/19/2006, 29 days, 1,756 KWH Period 7/20/2006 to 8/20/2006, 32 days, 1,877 KWH Period 8/21/2006 to 9/xx/2006, xx days, 1,476 KWH (haven't yet received this bill, but I know what is the usage) Note the significant increase in usage since the 5/20 period. My air conditioning had a problem in early June, a circuit board went bad and the blower wouldn't run. The repair tech wired the blower to run continuously while waiting a replacement part, which took about six weeks (fixed on 7/21). I expected the bills during that time (for periods ending 6/20 and starting 6/21) to be a little higher than usual due to the blower running, but not that much higher! AFTER the repair, usage increased even more. I even INCREASED my A/C setback period by a couple hrs per day. After some investigation I discovered on 8/29 that the system either had another problem that got missed the first time or had gone wonky again, and one of the HEAT STRIPS was running whenever the blower was OFF. The repair tech said it was stuck on continuously, but I don't think that's the case or usage would have been even higher. It'd run for a few seconds until it overheated (due to there being no airflow) and shut off from the limit switch, then when it cooled to reset the limit switch, it'd come on again for a few seconds. The longer setback period I used for cooling, there was more time during which the system didn't otherwise run which made for MORE time during which the heating element kept cycling on and off.

cheri-- it depends. For installing terracotta tile (which is what you're talking about), you actually use TWO different sealers. The first is a grout release, which should be a water based penetrating sealer, such as Aquamix's Sealers Choice. The second is a top coat sealer, unless you want it to have the raw look to it, in which case, you'd just seal the whole thing after it's grouted with the same water based penetrating sealer. If the grout gets dirty before I seal it, do I have a problem? Or can I clean out the dirt before I seal or color it? OMG, yer gonna hafta rip it all out! (just kidding. :-) Did I get your heart racing?) Seriously-- if it gets dirty, hitting it with oxyclean and then rinsing it well will take care of it-- either way, for the colorant OR the sealer. Bill do you think it wasn't mixed correctly or used to much water when cleaning it? Or I heard tap water could make the grout lighter. Positano, there are more reasons for the grout to come out lighter than stars in the sky, starting with it being a chronic problem that grout charts are sometimes printed more "vividly" than the actual colors. Without analysing a piece of the grout, it would be impossible to say for sure, although your assertions are all possibilities.