Core Units: Construction Common Skills and Wall and Floor Tiling
What the core units cover
The core units combine general construction induction skills with the tiling trade basics. You need to understand work health and safety (WHS) duties, hazard identification and risk control, manual handling limits, safe use of plant and power tools, and environmental controls such as silica dust suppression, waste segregation and run-off containment. Planning and preparation matter: interpreting drawings and specifications, confirming datum lines, calculating quantities with wastage allowances, checking substrate flatness and moisture, and selecting adhesives and bedding methods to suit the substrate and tile type. Standards and tolerances are a frequent exam theme, so know the difference between surface regularity, lippage limits and joint width tolerances, and be able to explain curing times before grouting and sealing.
Traps to watch
Questions often swap terms: adhesive versus grout, waterproofing versus damp-proofing, uncoupling membrane versus backer board. Another trap is confusing a control with a hazard, or assuming PPE removes a risk when elimination or substitution is required first. Watch for units: coverage rates are usually per square metre, and wastage percentages apply to area, not tile count. Substrate questions may hide a moisture or deflection issue behind a flatness figure.
Worked example
A 4.2 m x 3.0 m floor is tiled with 300 x 300 mm tiles at 10% wastage. Area = 12.6 m2. With wastage, order 12.6 x 1.10 = 13.86 m2, so 14 m2. At 9 tiles per m2, that is about 126 tiles, rounded up to whole boxes.
Rule of thumb
Fix the substrate before fixing the tile: verify flatness, moisture, adhesion and movement joints first, then select the adhesive and bedding method.