I tried using a heat gun without success so far; the heat works well to remove the mastic after tile is removed but does not seem to be much help as I try to remove 4" by 4" tiles from the wall without breaking them. I was hoping to remove whole tiles in one area with the goal of using them to fill in an area where I am removing a vanity and replacing it with a pedestal sink. Any suggestions?

I don't think removing them in one piece is an option you have to look forward to, ceramic. They are fired clay, just like a plate so they break very easily.

This commodity is fairly inexpensive now anyway and come in different grades.

Tick

Can you post a picture of what you are doing? So you are saying the ceramic tile is glued with mastic to concrete block, right?

Yes

Yes

Yes

Thank so much for advise for cleaning back of tiles. What we did was got a large bucket and soaked the tiles for about an hour. We then used a meat clever and hammer to scrape the back of the tile. Wow it softens the paste on the back. It takes a bit of time but relatively easy process and no worries about breaking tiles and not as long as trying to grind it off. Great great great thanks