Exterior-grade grout

Depending on the weather affecting where you live, you can choose from ceramic, porcelain or natural stone tile. Before laying them, you need to plan accordingly, so that you won’t have to make many cuts and hide them. The process of laying tiles on an existing concrete patio is not nearly as intimidating as it seems – the procedure is the same as in the general case of laying tiles.

You need to prepare the site; clean thoroughly with a pressure washer so the tiles will adhere easily. Arrange the tiles in the pattern you want, with spacers installed, and mark the necessary cuts. Try to place the cuts against a vertical surface to better mask it. Rent a tile wet saw and start cutting according to your marks. Then you can remove the tiles and tile spacers, setting the cut one aside from the rest.

Start in a corner and cover an area of 3 to 5-feet with Portland mortar or an exterior grade thinset with a trowel, using the notched edge to create ¼ inch grooves. Then arrange the tiles one by one with spacers between each tile. When done, spread more mortar and add more tiles and so on until you cover all.

After you’ve let it dry, usually 24 to 72 hours, you can remove the spacers. Then cover with an exterior-grade grout, following the same steps. Force the grout into the seams with the flat edge of the trowel until they are filled, then wipe the excess off with a water dipped sponge.