I just got done speaking the the GC and tile guy. I hate bringing up issues with the GC, he makes me feel like I'm crazy for saying anything. Of course I know nothing about building a home, that is why I hired him. I stated upfront that I was picky!! I want it to be perfect but I'm a realist and know now perfection is a myth!

Tile guy: "This is not expensive tile so it's not going to be perfect. This tile has imperfections in the glaze which runs over the edge and causes them to get out of line."
"I don't get paid for standing around, it's already 10 and I haven't laid one piece of tile."

Someone please tell me if I'm over reacting and this tile job is fine... I mean, good quality work!

I can't really comment on your tile job (although to my inexperienced eye it looks fine to me), but I think the tile guy's attitude towards you is reprehensible and uncalled for. Assuming you were friendly when you asked questions, there is no reason whatsoever for him to react like that.

Tiles must have a space between them, however thin, for the grout. The function of the grout is to allow tiles to shift a little. Use a magnifying glass. They look OK to me from the pictures, but getting close maybe another matter.

Surprise! most contractors need to take a course in bedside manner.

If you have a level, use it by placing it next to a row of tiles. Or, borrow the tile guy's level. Or, use any straight edge. Or, use a tape measure to measure the distance from the bottom row to row X half way up the wall, in a few places.

Grout lines may be wider and narrower in places, because the tiles are not all that consistent in their shape..

Grout lines may be wider and narrower in places, because the tiles are not all that consistent in their shape..

Exactly. or size. Looks okay to me. As for the tile guy, I'd be talking to the GC about him.... at the very least. What ever happened to customer service? Someone came into my home and talked to me like that, he'd be out the door, and it wouldn't be the DOOR hittin him in the a$$ on the way out!

Just curious as to what is in that bucket in the first picture? Is it just water or is it mastic (tile adhesive)? Hopefully it's not mastic.

Thanks Bill for checking out my pictures. The GC was standing right there when the tile guy made the comment about my tile not being expensive but was not there when he made the other comment. In fact the GC also chimed in about my inexpensive tile. I get it, they are buddies and will be working together again. Who am I but the crazy woman making their lives a little difficult.

Advertguy2 - The bucket has water in it.

Davidro1 - The tile guy didn't have a level so he went in the garage and came back with a piece of trim board to check for levelness. The GC held it up and marked a line but who knows if it was accurate. GC said it was within tolerance so I'm trusting that it will all go away once grout is applied.

The other thing they both said was that the tile guy wasn't getting paid enough to do a perfect job. The GC said he didn't bid the price for that and he (tile guy)only gets paid for laying tile not taking the time to grind each piece. Time is money and we aren't paying him enough!

Bobb - Just had my eyes checked. Some have no gap, they are butted. Some have an 1/8th gap. I guess consistancy is not the key.

Sailorgirl- You are right, attitude sucked. I was very friendly and only questioning what I didn't know. He was very nice the first day I met him. hmmm.

Wow.

Friend just had her bathroom done, many issues, but of all the problems with what was done or not done, the thing that offended me most was:

tile above tub is square tiles, laid straight for lower half, then trim, then diagonal for the top.... but ONLY ON THE BACK WALL OF THE ALCOVE!!! The sides are still laid straight!!! so the upper half of the tile is not the same going around the alcove!! WTH?!?

He said it was a focal wall... ok, then frame out an area of diagonal tile, not just change direction at the corner...

Also, ordered a white tub, with matching white sink and toilet... tub was marked white, but clearly was not white, nor did it match the other 2 fixtures.... she told him not to install, and he did it anyway and tiled and told her it couldn't be taken out when she again protested... wow.

SO... what ever they agreed to do that job for, that includes proper installation- you don't pay separately for straight tile, or appropriate grout lines! If they had a problem with the tile, that should have been discussed, if they thought the labor for your tile would entail more, then factor that into the price! My tile was NOT cheap, hand made, and had scalloped edges, on purpose, and did require that I file some edges for the grout lines I was attempting. That's what I did.

You asked them to to a job... that includes having it done correctly- did you say, "hey, can you do a crappy job if I pay you less money?"

Wow.

The other thing they both said was that the tile guy wasn't getting paid enough to do a perfect job. The GC said he didn't bid the price for that and he (tile guy)only gets paid for laying tile not taking the time to grind each piece. Time is money and we aren't paying him enough!

HORSE$HIT ON THAT!!!!! ANY time someone accepts a contract it's implied that they're going to put forth their pest effort!! It doesn't matter if they're getting paid full value, twice the value, or HALF the value! That's just the amount they're willing to TAKE for putting forth their best effort! They contract it, they promise the effort! I'd LOVE to hear this schmoe say that in front of a judge! Makes me wonder about the GC, too! If it were my house, the tile guy would be history right now, and the GC, as soon as he's done enough work to account for the money he's been paid to date.

Now, in the tile guy's defense, some lines of tile DO have problems with sizing and being square, which might account for the uneven spacing, while trying to keep the tile straight-- even if he IS putting forth his best effort. Regardless, though-- the attitude both these guys have taken with you is completely unacceptable by ANYONE'S standards (except maybe THEIRS).

I agree with all of teh other posters and wanted to add...what tile setter doesn't have a level on hand??? That's nuts! How did he expect to check the level?

Now actually, the tile looks pretty good, at least from the picture.n I like it from what I can see...

Oh, by the way, the other thing your tile setter, and your GC said that would bother me is that your tile is inexpensive. What they perhaps meant to say is that your tile doesn't have perfect edges; that's quite different than not being expensive. Very expensive tile can have uneven edges.

Seems like they are trying to make you feel badly just to shut you up. Yuck!

We just finished re-doing our guest bath (and are about to start on our master bath). We tiled up to the ceiling, around a tub, with a decorative strip of smaller tiles all the way around the walls. My GC -- who we're using because he did such a great job when we expanded and re-did our kitchen a few years ago -- did the tiling. He's not a full-time tile guy, let alone a tile master craftsman the likes of Bill and Mongo who post here. But he knows what he's doing, he takes pride in his work, he wants to please me as the customer, and he doesn't take shortcuts to save time. I know he went a couple of days over his estimate on this job because some days there was a lot of tile cutting, but he never complained nor raced ahead just to get done.

One morning I mentioned how a few of the small tiles in the listello section weren't spaced quite evenly, and in one place the variation in the tile colors didn't seem as random as elsewhere. His reply: "Yeah, I noticed that, too; I moved a few tiles around as I set them yesterday to even out the spacing, but I was going to pop a few more off and reset them this morning." These weren't problems he created; it's just the way the tiles came on the sheet -- yet he agreed that it would look better to adjust, and was going to do so on his own (and at no additional cost for his time). THAT is what I value in a good contractor! I'm sorry, sherwhy, that your contractor doesn't have similar values; we consider ourselves fortunate to have found this guy -- which is why he's slowly getting job after job to re-do most of our house!

-- Eric