Mixing-Bucket Grip
Say goodbye to spinning buckets while working on your tiling projects.
When installing tile, I used to mix the thin-set in a bucket wedged between my legs. I finally got tired of the bucket spinning between my boots and the handle getting the best of my ankles and calves, so I designed and built a grip for mixing buckets out of some scrap plywood. As shown in the drawing above, the bucket grip is simply two pieces of 3/4-in. plywood cut to the diameter of the base of the bucket. One piece is hinged to the base and moved 1/4 in. closer to the bucket to force the grip up the side of the bucket. Push down on the hinged section, and the bucket is wedged in place.
— Bob Carli Custom Design, Unionville, CT
From Fine Homebuilding #209
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View Comments
THAT is a good idea.
I remember asking the instructor in a tile-setting class how to restrain a bucket full of thinset while I was mixing it. He looked at me kinda sideways and said, "Well, I usually just put one foot on the rim of the bucket."
The rig pictured above would be useful to a crew tilling a mall, but for a few buckets, your foot does just fine.
I like it ... the only thing I'd change is that I would cut a quarter inch off where the hinge piece contacts the fixed part so it folds completely flat