Dominoes Table (who Needs Broken Tiles?)

Intro: Dominoes Table (who Needs Broken Tiles?)

We had a nicely constructed, found, end-table with an aging surface, and I've wanted to do a broken tile mosaic for a long time. However, finding cheap or free (broken) tiles is nearly impossible. Called tile stores looking for broken or leftover pieces. Went to Menard's; broken tiles are cataloged as right-offs. Searched online and found prebroken tiles by the pound = $$$.

I was about to give up until there was a dominoes sale at Target. Who needs tiles? Dominoes are much more fun!

STEP 1: Materials and Testing Layout

Luckily, when we tested the layout to see if we had enough dominoes and what patter we would need to use, it worked out perfectly. Except you will need one half domino for the center!

NOTE: One thing you might want to consider is that once you have your layout, you might want to construct a frame around the edges of the table. (We couldn't do this "easily" because we had a slight overhang to all sides.) In the end, we were a little off in one direction and the spaces between dominoes increased on that direction as we reached the center. The frame, perhaps nailed in place, will insure that your layout is tight-fitting.

Materials:

+tube of construction adhesive (we used about half a tube): $3
+about 250 dominoes: $20
+time: 2-3 hrs

STEP 2: Begin Placement

We started from the outside and moved around the edges -- wrapping towards the center.

STEP 3: Finished!

As mentioned, we began to have larger and larger gaps along one axis as we reached the center -- up to an 1/8 inch. We used the construction adhesive to fill the gaps and wiped excess away with a rag.

Note: Unlike with smooth-faced tile, you can't simply spread grout to fill gaps and wipe away. Whatever is used to fill gaps can end up in the domino holes. You'll need wet Q-tips for clean-up.

You might also want to paint the table surface white. Where the adhesive doesn't fill gaps, the dominoes have rounded edges, so you'll be able to see between even the tightest fitting pieces.

If you go with a overhang, you might make it large enough to edge the table with more dominoes.

Comments

[sytse]

Great project. We ended up doing it with poker themed domino tiles and we are very happy with the result.

[deedavison]

I also seen broken tiles at a salvage store and boxes for real cheap at auctions.

[cmanasco]

I absolutely love it! If you were to add a thick clear coat to the top like some restaurants use, what would be good? This way clean-up would be easy and dominoes would stay fresh looking I would imagine.

[ChrisVincent]

you don't want to just use a paint on clear coat - that will just leave a thin layer. If you want a thick layer 'like some restaurants" then you want to get an epoxy mix. They make them specially for making that thick protective counter coating.
here is a how to link... epoxy table top

[deedavison]

they have a resin and hardener polymer coating mix , its one part resin to one part hardener. Mix thoroughly for two minutes , pour as soon as mixed over the surface you wish to coat let cure. It available at menards it's kind of pricey but it goes a long way and last forever if you follow the directions. It may take a while to cure but have patients it works great!!!!!

[deedavison]

OH IM sorry the name of the polymer coating i used is called Envirotex Lite.

[crowdsourced]

That looks like a good solution. Because the middle tiles ended up having small gaps, I could fill them with the construction adhesive, they ended up looking like bathroom tiles -- so they will be easy to clean. But I'm definitely considering epoxy now for the rest of the table (the whole table)!!!

[Schtaunkton]

You can buy a clear acrylic coating at most craft stores.

[chuckr44]

Oooh. Mahjong tiles would have been nice. But where do you get Mahjong tiles in the US? Chinatown?

[Plasmana]

That is really cool! Did you cut a domino in half to fill the center gap?

[bad ass pope]

Yeah, I think they did. In roughly the middle of the table, there is a pink 3-spot which doesn't have the black separator line that all of the other dominoes have. It's above the purple 9 and below the yellow 6.

[RadBear]

I did something similar with broken promotional CD's. It was a lot more time consuming as there were very few straigt edges and you had to fit it as you went, but it was fun. Except when I glued my fingers to the table that sucked. And the surface was a little uneven in the end but still functional. I sealed it with clear coat to keep the images from getting scraped off the CD bits. Great job!!!

[Scott_Tx]

Why not start in the center and work your way out for no gaps?

[thinkdunson]

because it would be nigh impossible to make it perfectly square that way. starting on the outside, you know for a fact that the tiles will line up parallel with the side of the table.

[Scott_Tx]

Guess its not the same as doing floor tile. Harder to get the little things parallel

[GorillazMiko]

You could get gaps on the edges..

[ThinkBeforeYouSpeak]

No, just, no.

[Scott_Tx]

True but nothing a little creative edging couldnt fix. Maybe a border of half tiles or some form of wood trim.

[davidglinski]

what exactly is construction adhesive ?????

[crowdsourced]

It's extremely strong "glue" for construction. Example