Installing decorative tile flooring is challenging. Nursery Rhymes Usage. Even for the experienced contractor, installing tile with the use of dry pack is not for the 'faint of heart,' says the owner of McGriff Tile. Dry pack is a system of tile underlayment using a dry mortar bed of about an inch. This method was brought over from Europe and is not commonly used these days. However, for those experienced weekend warriors looking for a challenge, installing tile with dry pack could be satisfying. Modern contractors, when installing tile, now use 'tile glue' called thin set over concrete or tile backer board over wood.

Using the wheelbarrow, shovel and hulled hoe, mix dry pack with with one part Portland cement and three parts masonry sand. Once mixed, dry pack is used as the mortar between bricks.

The texture of the dry pack is not as wet as mortar, however, hence the name, dry pack. It can be formed and manipulated manually as it is not runny or watery. If installing tile over wood, most contractors lay a 15-lb. Felt roofing paper to the floor. Staple it down. Then staple the wire lath before installing thin set and dry pack.