I just did a kerdi shower ceiling with 12x24 tiles. I used unmodifed thinset per kerdi directions. I used laticrete 317. I know versabond will work (but its lightly-modified) and would void the Kerdi warranty if used. The 12x24 will stick just fine. It's no different than doing a 12x12 because even though it is twice as heavy, it has twice the surface area to hold it. I did back butter each tile. When I tried to pull one down to check coverage it was really stuck up there! My biggest problem was that I started tiling from the center to the sides and i have a slanted ceiling so the tiles wanted to slide out of postion. if I had started at the wall and used spacers it would have been easier.

Check my bathrooms Gallery: Here is a link that might be useful: My gallery's bathrooms section

Why thank you firsthouse!! My hubby tries to be very practical and functional as well but he also considers aesthetics (or at least he does when I say, that looks ugly!!) My husband tends to choose the more expensive route and I'm more budget conscious and timeline respectful. The fact that this "one week reno" has turned into a month and a half due to logistics and extras (heated flooring), it drove me a bit bonkers but I'll love the results I'm sure. Just as an update to this post, we ended up not tiling the ceiling. The contractors dropped the ceiling in the shower slightly so it is the same height as the bottom of the crown. So we didn't think it would look right with a tiled ceiling.

I've tiled a few ceilings in my day. Personally I don't like the look of tiled ceilings where the ceiling simply transitions from tile to drywall. I feel they look best when the tile is captured by a transom or header over the shower entry. Tiling a ceiling isn't terribly difficult. It helps to have staging so you're not continually going up and down a ladder. Even if the staging simply a few 2-bys set across a few drywall buckets with a piece of plywood over them, it helps. If you're working off a ladder, then a helper would be...helpful. If tiling a ceiling, I'll have backer board up on the ceiling instead of drywall. I burn a veneer of thinset on to the cement board. Then burn thinset on to the back of the tile. Then comb thinset on the back of the tile. If the tile is large, I'll sometimes do a ridge of thinset around the perimeter of the tile. Then when you set the tile in place and push it up on the ceiling, the thinset compresses and some describe it as "suction" holding the tile in place. For typical tile, I've never had a need for bracing or support to hold the tile up. A quality thinset will do the trick nicely. While it depends on the size of the ceiling, I usually use whatever thinset I used on the rest of the shower. If I was hanging a 3/4" thick natural stone tile, then I'd shift gears to a non-sag or some other mortar. But for "regular tile" a modified thinset will do the job fine. You can buy highly modified in a bag, or unmodified and ad liquid admix to it for better tack. If for whatever reason I think the tile might creep, I'll use blue tape across the grout line to tape one tile to another, to bridge grout lines to prevent lateral tile creep. Just a precaution. I do know a few that advocate using a "tie-together" system like TLS. But TLS, when it registers one tile to another, can pull a tile away from the ceiling. That's what you DON'T want to do, break the suction between the tile and the ceiling. Grouting can be more difficult than tiling. It's that thing called "gravity" that tends to get in the way at times. I simply use less grout on the float at a time, so there is more repetition of motion in terms of loading the float and applying it to the grout lines. You simply do less at a time. Same with cleaning. If you use a large tile on the ceiling like the 12x24s, they can work...the issue is pressing them into place over your head to compress the thinset ring (if you did the perimeter of thinset around the tile) or the thinset ridges (if you used the notched edge of the trowel to simply comb out the thinset). The larger the tile, the more force needed per tile. 1) will it be a problem to not tile the ceiling? If you have proper ventilation, "regular" materials can work fine. Add to that today's better materials; paperless drywall, for example, and non-tiled ceilings can work well. A fan on a timer, even better. 2) If I tile the ceiling is there a recommended size? Tile size isn't an issue, but the physicality of installing larger tile can be. With more surface area per inch of perimeter, large tiles, while they my seem more difficult to install, can be easier to install and there is less grouting. So overall, larger tiles are easier. 3) If I don't tile the ceiling, what do I use for the ceiling material? I'll usually use a version of moisture or mold resistant drywall for bathroom walls and ceilings. 4) We will be using a heating lamp and fan, all in one type,exhaust fan. Should I install another fan in the shower or just install the fan/heating lamp fixture just outside the shower (which I would prefer because of the smaller size of the room)? These days it's all about moisture control, and controlling it as best as you can right at the source. For non-steam showers. I prefer a fan inside the shower. If a fan is desired outside the shower and the bathroom is small, I'll install a fan with two ventilation grills, one in the bathroom and one in the shower. If the shower does not have a transom over the door, ie, the shower is somewhat open to the bathroom, then a single fan outside the shower can work. But I prefer to design showers so they contain moisture within that space, and that's why I prefer a fan within the shower. It can also depend on the users. Long, hot showers? Might be best to have a fan in the shower. Get in, get out? A single fan outside might be okay. 5) Can you paint over Hydroban? I never have, It'd be best to call Laticrete tech support and ask them directly. Or they night mention it in the HydroBan literature.