‘Tear it all off’: Biggest Block disaster ever
A last minute tiling disaster leaves two teams high and (not so) dry as one contestant is caught blue-handed breaking the rules.
With just 40 hours left until tools down, Britt and Taz and Alicia and Sonny were informed that they would have to pull their freshly laid tiles off the wall.
The reason? Both their tilers had used a slow-drying glue, which – as Foreman Dan foreshadowed earlier in the week when he spotted a tub of the stuff – is banned on The Block.
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In the normal renovation world, tiles can be left several days to dry on a wall or floor before they are grouted. On The Block, that window can be crunched to a matter of hours, hence the need for a fast-drying glue. The only exception to this rule is ceramic tiles, which are porous enough to allow even the slower-setting adhesive to dry.
Taz’s tiler, after putting in a valiant effort to defend his craftsmanship, was crushed to be told to start again. As was Taz.
Taz’s realises he’s going to have to remove every tile and start again.
“You put in a good shift, you put in the work and you see all your beautiful work up on the walls, and they tell you that have to tear it all off,” Taz said.
Poor Alicia and Sonny faced an even worse situation. All of their tiles needed to be washed by hand before they could be reapplied. And some of their waterproof membrane lifted off with the tiles and would also need replacing. Channelling his inner football coach, Sonny gave his exhausted tradesmen a rousing pep talk, urging them to carry on.
Sonny discovers the tiles are all going to have to be ripped off his bathroom walls.
Meanwhile Mat and Robby were off shopping for bathroom decor, blissfully unaware of what was going down on site.
There, Mat discovered Robby’s indifference and indecision on soap dish selection was the kryptonite to his “gay styling superpowers”.
They may be the least experienced team on The Block, but Robby and Mat have proven they are a force with which to be reckoned. The pair were the first to pass their waterproofing inspection (despite having to blow dry their floor the day before).
And they were the first to begin tiling.
And now their potentially game-changing wine cellar plan has been approved, the boys have shown they are not just here to play.
“Dark horse baby! Neigh, neigh b***h!” Mat declared.
Upon their return to site, they learned their own tiler had also used the banned glue.
But unlike the other teams, Mat’s choice of undulating ceramic tiles had saved them from also having to start from scratch.
They just had to remove the grout.
“Compared to everyone else, we got away with murder,” Robby said.
While Robby and Mat dodged a bullet, Han found herself in Foreman Dan’s crosshairs when she blatantly ignored his instructions and sneakily tried to make a start on the second coat of waterproofing without professional supervision.
Han’s can-do attitude has her in hot water with Foreman Dan after she ignores his instruction not to do the waterproofing herself.
Caught roller in hand, blue waterproofing splattered all over her fingers, Han first claimed the plumber was with her when she was applying the second coat (even though he was nowhere to be seen) before then tearfully telling Dan she hadn’t understood his instructions.
“I’ve lost trust because you’ve just gone behind my back,” was Dan’s response.
“He thought I was being dodgy so that hit hard,” Han worried.
“You’re just handy Han,” reassured Can.
“It’s a really high pressure environment and she is a really hard worker who likes to get in there and get her hands dirty.
“At home we would be doing all of this by ourselves.”
Dan springs Han waterproofing without permission.
Han’s can-do attitude paid off with Scotty Cam and Shelley Craft (who rolled into town in a red sports car to survey the sites). Deemed the hardest worker on site, Han was rewarded with five plants of her choice (as long as they were no taller than Shelley).
Nonetheless the hosts had grave concerns the girls had bitten off more than they could chew with their ambitious design and one-man tiling crew.
It wasn’t to cut costs, the tiler is a perfectionist who insists on working solo. No mean feat when there’s floor to ceiling tiles and a curved feature wall of finger tiles to complete in small space of time.
But hey, at least he knew what glue to use!
English (US) · 