Thanks, pepperidge farm :) Sounds like you have the response I always used to have when I saw mosaics before I started doing them...if you get started you won't stop, I'll warn you :) In this case, I got the tiles as seconds at Pratt & Larson (see above post), and then have just been playing 'organize-the-dishwasher' (as my family likes to call it--I'm a bit obsessive about that too :)) until I like what I see. Most of them have some degree of sparkle to them, opalescence, and I didn't use any crackle. I have three long pencil tiles going through each 25" span to keep some sense of direction--now that I see it I'm wondering if I should have put in more...not too late, actually, and I have some more...hmmm, it's not finished until they take it away from you, right? :) So mongo, I am waiting to order until I hear what your thoughts are--would you share? Or were you just curious whether I'd bought one yet? You know I will wait for your thoughts on any issue, so TIA as always :)

The vertical wall seams crack more readily because the house shifts and moves. Ive tried grouting only and going back to caulk with sanded grout caulk or silicon only after a crack develops, hoping in some cases it will not. Sometimes it does not crack. Some contractors caulk all seams as a matter of course, no callbacks, safer. I liked the idea of sanded grout caulk to match your grout color It has not held up for me in wet conditions, such as the top of the bathtub where the wall tile starts, etc. , definitely not along the shower floor where the wall tile starts. It has held up in other areas though, and looks nicer when it all ties in. I agree, mildew on silicon is unsightly. Every bathroom has different conditions, including ventilation, moisture, etc. Some people have to clean out and recaulk the silicon every year or two. Whether its allegedly mildewproof silicon or not.

Agree. For thin slabs or soft stones I prefer full support under the slab. Plywood is pretty stable, it really doesn't expand or contract in its thickness. Slabs are usuallly set over the ply base using dollops of silicone. Just have the stone setters spread silicone around the location of the plumbing so when they set the slab you'll have a thin setting bed of silicon between the slab and the ply. The silicon will lock the ply to the marble, preventing any vertical wiggle that might cause the plumbing to unthread and loosen. Only other concern would be the length of the threaded nipples on the plumbing fixtures, they'd need to be longer than the thickness of stone and plywood so a nut can be threaded onto the nipple. If the nipples are too short, there are extensions that could be used. If I have to cut the ply away? I'll not remove an entire section, just what is needed. Example, if I needed three holes, each 1-1/2" in diameter and centered 8" apart. I won't cut a large rectangle away. I'll cut three holes in the ply, say 3" diameter holes, centered 8" apart. Then drill three 1-1/2" holes in the marble. Soft/thin stones need all the support you can offer.

Hm, I had been wondering if you'd taken the past surround *down* or just put the new surround over it. If you've *taken it down* and you didn't see any rot behind the sheetrock when you removed it, then I'd venture to say that you're safe. There was *no* black or otherwise unpleasant anything where the low point was? Checking downstairs will eliminate the other one possibility, which would be that the rot went straight down and didn't communicate upwards at all into anything you removed. Which would be odd, but I guess possible. Maybe you just had *really good* sealing. We don't.