Uneven glass tile - is this acceptable?
tedunni
8 years ago
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bathroom wall tiles uneven
Comments (20)I feel for you, OP. The tile work in both of my recently renovated baths is not what I expected (and I even chose tile to minimize lippage and other problems (ceramic, matching grout color, small and common size, tile guys favorite brand) - but still plenty of install issues), despite enormous cost (to me, not for my area). I dont have wisdom to help u fix it, unfortunately, but know this is common - all my friends talk about similar reno issues. Depending what it would cost to change the lighting, compared to cost of redoing the tile with smaller tile, if it was pricey either way I'd do the latter. I wish I had ripped out our master bath tile. Bugs me daily. PS no you aren't guaranteed to get perfectly straight walls with new wonder board. We are finishing 2nd of two new construction or full gut (including studs) master bath size bathrooms. All new studs, floor, walls, ceiling, insulation, durock, etc. Not one wall is perfectly plumb or straight - although most people cannot see that. I can because the 3x6 tile doesn't line up and/or isn't plumb in spots. Turns out wood studs aren't perfectly sized or straight, let alone human margin of error. Even if we had used metal studs, the gc showed why things wouldn't be perfect....See MoreTile shower - acceptable or no?
Comments (4)The uneven tile doesn't mean the shower will fail, which would be a much larger concern as green designs pointed out. If it was built to standards (it is what underneath that counts even more), then this is an aesthetic issue and probably not unusual for a tract home build, albeit not a professional outcome. So yes, you could ask for a credit, but remember that you cannot tear out a shower floor in the future without re-doing the entire shower pan and up at least 6-8" (needs to be above the pan) so the cost is $$$$. Make sure there is plenty of floor and wall tile left for storing in the event of a problem....See MoreIs this acceptable tile work?
Comments (11)Sorry this is happening to you. Here's what I recommend. Hire a certified tile professional to come and do an inspection and give you a written report detailing everything that was done wrong and what it will cost to fix it. If you have “in-progress” pictures, show them to the tile pro. And post them here. Here are 2 organizations with search tools on their websites. www.tile-assn.com Click on “find a contractor” and enter your zip code. Let the miles radius be fairly large, like 50 miles or so. The excellent tile pro that built all my bathrooms was on that site in my area, but about 40 miles away bc he was near downtown and I’m in a suburb. www.ceramictilefoundation.org This site has lots of good information on it. I didn’t find my contractor on this site, but a lot of people have told me that they had luck with it. Here’s where you click to find a contractor: www.ceramictilefoundation.org/find-certified-tile-installers Also, if you are a nerd like me and you like to read, you could download a digital version of the TCNA handbook. It’s less than $40. It’s over 600 pages, but you don’t have to read the whole thing. Read the introduction (about 50 pages) and then read the tub/shower chapters. You can skip all the other chapters such as swimming pools, etc. Reading this helped me to learn about the process and industry standards for water proofing and tile installation; it helped me to ask more informed questions, and helped a lot in my meeting with the contractor who messed up my shower. www.tcnatile.com/products-and-services/publications.html After the pro you hire for the inspection gives you his written report of all the things done wrong, have a business meeting with the contractor at the worksite and discuss all the problems. If it needs to be completely redone, ask them to do that, at their expense. They will either agree, in which case you give them a chance to redo it, or they will refuse, in which case they are effectively quitting. Confirm with them that if they don’t attempt to redo it, they are basically quitting; get them to acknowledge that fact. Don’t pay any remaining balance. After the meeting follow up with an email documenting that conversation, and asking for acknowledgement, so that in the future they can’t claim that you illegally fired them. In that email, say something like “We were so disappointed that you decided to quit the project rather than fix the [ list of problems ]. Because we have to have the shower rebuilt, we are requesting a refund in the amount of [$$$] in order for us to hire a new contractor and for the purchase of replacement materials.” They will probably respond to that email to refuse you the refund, but at least then you have an electronic paper trail that shows that you did not fire them illegally, that they quit instead. You can then go to small claims or district court to sue them if you want, but that’s a real PITA. In the scenario where they agree to redo it, give them a chance. Take pictures of the demo process so you can see the layers under the tile. Also take pictures twice a day (at lunch break, and in the evening) of every step of the rebuild, including all the supplies and tools. Post them here. When/if they mess it up again (and maybe have the inspector come out a second time), then you can legally fire them in most states. That’s how it is in TX where I am. If you want to know for sure you can look up your state’s statues online and read the construction laws. If you aren't sure and you don't want to read the laws, just assume that you have to give them a chance to fix first before firing them. After you fire them, ask for a refund and hire a real pro to start over. Consider hiring the person you hired to inspect. Sorry this is happening to you. It happened to me. It's far too common....See MoreCompany replaced tile floor with wood w/out removing glue. Now uneven.
Comments (4)It needs to be removed, and all the glue removed, and the floor made level, and smooth, and then flooring be put down. Nothing else is going to keep it from raising like that, and their repair does not look good....See MoreUser
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