Is it reasonable to ask him to show us the details of his quote? let me put it this way-- if he won't, he's hiding something. Get someone else. Let me show you a sample of the kind of estimate I give to any of my customers. This is copied and pasted right off the original estimate: Bill Vincent, DBA Creative Ceramic & Marble 67 Portland Road Bridgton, Maine 04009 Fax: (xxx) xxx-xxx Cell: (xxx) xxx-xxxx http://www.creativeceramicandmarble.com Quote for: MEH/ 150 Kezar Heights Road Garage Entry Furnish and Install Ditra.....................50.00 Install tile 20 sq. ft........................65.00* Order 25 ft. Front Entry Furnish and Install Ditra....................62.50 Install Tile 25 sq. ft.......................81.25* Order 30 ft. Laundry Room/ � Bath Furnish and Install Ditra....................115.00 Install tile 46 sq. ft.......................149.50* Order 52 ft. Upstairs Bath Furnish and Install Ditra....................117.50 Install tile 47 sq. ft.......................152.75* Order 55 sq. ft. (more cutting than in the laundry room� More waste) Master Bath Floor Furnish and Install Ditra.........................215.00 Install tile 86 sq. ft (diagonal).................365.50* Order 100 ft. Shower Install Durock.................................119.00 Furnish and install Waterproofing..............297.50 Furnish and Install 17" Better Bench............75.00 Install Shower Pan.............................420.00 Install Wall Tile 119 sq. ft...................535.00* Order 130 ft. of tile & 20 lin. ft. of bullnose Install shower floor tile 14 sq. ft.............45.50* Order 16 ft. Fireplace Hearth................................50.00 Materials 9 sheets �" Durock..............................90.00 5 gal. Laticrete 333 liquid latex additive......81.24 4 bags Laticrete 317 thinset....................44.00 3 bags Laticrete Multipurpose thinset...........48.00 2 bags Laticrete 255 non-sag thinset............70.00 Kerdi Drain.....................................98.00 Oil Rubbed Bronze Kerdi Drain..................146.86 Garage Entry............115.00 Front Entry.............143.75 Laundry Room............264.50 Upstairs Bath...........269.50 Master Bath Floor.......580.50 Shower.................1492.50 Fireplace Hearth.........50.00 Materials...............578.10 Total..................3493.85 *NOTE- These prices for tile installation are all based on square set soldier coursing (standard grid pattern) ceramic tile, except where noted. If different pattern, or stone is used, price will change.

"The floor has a soft spot (you can feel it give slightly when you step there) and I'm sure that's what has generated the crack." Correct. The shower pan needs a bed of mortar to support it properly. There are ways to fix the fiberglass, but none will hold without the mortar bed. When you install the new shower pan, make sure you put enough mortar down to fill the void. To determine how much is necessary, flip the pan upside-down and place a straight edge across the bottom. Now you can measure the void. Select the type of mortar appropriate for the application thickness. Thinset can be applied as thin as 1/16", Medium bed mortar (the type of thinset used for large tiles) is best for 1/8" up to an inch thickness. Mason mortar (for bricks) is best for thicker applications. Mix the mortar to be workable depending on how thick it needs to be. If you use thinset it should be mixed to a thick consistency. Runny thinset mortar will do no good. Once you set the pan in the mortar, shim it level, force it down in the mud, and leave it alone for at least a day until the mortar dries. You might want to get the speed set mortar so that overnight is plenty of cure time.

This is normal for concrete. A concrete floor with in-floor radiant heat can make it tricky to cut in the expansion joints/crack suppression joints. How many cut joints to you have in your floor? They should be every 10ft or so (even more if you REALLY wanted to stay away from cracking). I would leave this alone for a few more "heating" seasons (winters) to see how it goes. The fix for this: complete redo. The installers are correct, the more you try to patch and fill the cracks, the worse it will look. New concrete does NOT like to grab old concrete - even if it is only a few months old.

Grout shmears over already full grout lines generally don't work with fully cured grout. Open and partially used bags of anything portland cement based, like your grout? While sitting in that basement, the powder is being exposed to atmospheric moisture. It can start to hydrate in the bag. Any hydration prior to being used reduces the strength of the final product. Since you have the bag? Call the manufacturer's tech department. The number should be in the fine print on the bag, if not, you can find it on the manufacturer's website. This is exactly what they are there for, don't at all be intimidated by the idea of calling. Have the photos ready, often times I'll have them attached to an email, and while talking to tech, I'll get his email addy and email them while we talk. Instead of describing the issue, the tech can see the issue with his own eyes while you are on the phone. See what the tech say. Instead of a schmear that will likely flake off over time...and likely be horrifically blotchy in color, they may recommend a grout cleaning, and then the application of a grout colorant. You can get a head start on that discussion by looking at grout colorants by the manufacturer of your grout. Is the colorant a semi-transparent dye that penetrates the grout, like staining wood? If so, because the colorant is somewhat transparent, there may still be shading and color differential in those blotchy areas. Is the colorant a topical film, an opaque epoxy-based colorant? While epoxy-based colorants will be perfectly uniform in color, the result can sometimes result in somewhat shiny plastic-looking grout lines. Epoxy colorants can be tedious to install. Any sort of colorant usually requires a grout cleaning before the installation of the colorant. Have the tech write you what is needed, or refer you to a website. Print out those instructions, along with the emails from the tech, and present those when you have your discussion with the GC. The other alternative, and this one can open up a host of other problems, is removing the grout and reapplying new grout. Because the prep work has to be somewhat meticulous...the cleaned out joints have to be even in depth, and the chance of the tiles being damaged during grout removal, and the chance that they may bugger up the new installation as well? Sometimes the application of a topical grout colorant is the easier path. Regardless of the path you choose, I recommend you discuss your expectations for remediation with the GC ahead of time. Get them in writing. You both know what you have going in. Make sure you're both expecting the same outcome. Lastly, "Should we be buying a new bag of grout for this touch up work?" You should not be buying anything. Here's why. You provide the grout. It fails. Might not be because of the grout, it might be because of poor prep, or the choice to do a thin schmear, and the schmear was doomed from the start. Regardless, the installer blames you for providing old grout. Or for not providing a grout cleaner. Or the wrong grout. Or...(pick your poison). when they do the work and they provide the materials? They own responsibility for the entire chain of materials and labor. Good luck!