Tile adhesives work by crystallising when it sets.
Should you prime walls before tiling.
If you are using a cement based adhesive then you will need to prime the plaster with a suitable primer i personally only use weber pr360 it is a acrylic primer and i use this type of adhesive on all walls now apart from on kitchen walls with small tiles then i will use tubbed adhesive.
Prime the area to seal the new drywall.
Prime an area larger than you plan to tile to minimize the cut in work when you paint the rest of the room.
You should not tile over wallpaper glossy surfaces lead paint or plywood.
Or prime and paint the entire wall room before starting with your tile project.
However tiling over tile can add quite a bit of thickness so make sure your wall can handle the weight.
When you spread tile adhesive onto a wall the water in the adhesive makes the pva live and stops the adhesive from penetrating the substrate and providing a mechanical grip.
This is generally after you have ripped up the carpet or installed the dry wall etc.
A tile primer should be used after the substrate has been deemed ready for tiling.
If you re not sure if you have lead paint test kits are available.
If you can t remove the wallpaper your options are probably limited.
Basically your tiles grout and adhesive are being held in place by a thin layer of pva.
You can apply a tile primer onto floors or even walls.
I would guess that your best option is to prime things really well to give the tile something less slick to stick to.
Then once the dust and general debris of building has been cleaned up the best tile primer for your task can be used.
Or for painting again either primer or a thin skim coat.