Hire the $1300 Pro next time instead of the $300 Craigslist guy. But your problem is exacerbated by the position of your under cabinet lighting.

Fix the lighting and see if you can live with it. The only other option is to rip it out, redo the wall to utterly flat, and redo with the much more skilled and expensive Tile Professional.

I think it’s a redo. Who hired your tile setter? Your GC? If so, I would start with your GC.

@ctrl_ Yes, the GC. The contractor emailed me two pictures(above), and this is what he had to say-

" Also I didn’t have a level to check but doing a quick glance at the baseboard you can tell that the frame of the house is definitely not straight

We will do the best we can with the backsplash but that is the reason why some of those pieces are out more than others —remember we are working with existing framing we are remodeling not building a new kitchen
Big difference "

The contractor actually opened up the walls to upgrade the electrical. They did the patching, taping, texturing and priming before installing the backsplash.

@annied75 the 3-switch plate is also bothering us a lot. Here is the 3-gang box used for it. I've asked him to swap it out with a 2-switch plate with a stacked switch(dual single pole switch). He gave me two options just before installing the backsplash. The first option was to go all the way to the to door trim with the backsplash. The second option is what we have now with a third of the switch plate sticking out. He said the second option is better, so I said okay. Now when I asked him to swap it out to a 2-switch plate, he says it was my personal preference; and it's going to be a change order. He's already charged us upwards of 20k in labor / rough material for the remodel.

The backsplash goes go all the way to the edge of the cabinet. The under cabinet light is close to the edge, which makes it reflect off the tile making it look like there's a gap.

The project was supposed to take 5 weeks, we're already into week 10.

how do I go about resolving this?

@Hilliside House he dropped by on his way to another project site, he came by because I asked him to go check on the backsplash. I must not have been carrying his level with him He has 5-6 projects that he's working on at the same time; he's been here only a handful of time.

What design specs for electrical locations were included in the design elevations? What about the spacing on the tile? Who planned and documented this kitchen refresh? And why weren’t the electrical location of both the lights and the switches discussed and documented during the planning stage?

And the too narrow tile spacing that was done? Why wasn’t a wider grout line chosen to minimize the issues with the wavy wall? Why wasn't it noticed in the beginning that the wall was wavy, and a design plan developed to deal with that?

Would you have paid for a the upgrade of a drywall tearout, and to have the studs shimmed/sistered to be absolutely flat? Or accepted a wider tile grout line? Or the bit of wave that you have, for a cheaper cost?

I’m assuming this to be a refresh rather than a redo, because 20K is the approximate price for that.

Sorry folks, but $1.98 workers with no design plan give $1.98 unplanned results.

Have them tear it out and redo! I can't understand how many messed up tile jobs I see on this site. DH and I never worked with tile before and after some videos and a 15 min demo at the tile store we did our back splash. We were very apprehensive, but was surprised how easy it is to install tile. It turned out great. Later we even tore out some of the tile and replaced to put in a pot filler. It is by no means brain surgery to install tile, All you need is the right tools, yes a level is one of them (geeze you can buy one a the dollar tree), and a flat wall to install tile. How can someone mess it up soooo bad? PS there is no such thing as plumb wood framing. Some are straighter than others, but wood framing settles, constricts/expands and sometimes twists. It's just the nature of wood. I guess he never heard of caulking the baseboard where the wall isn't plumb either.

@annied78 pictures of the whole wall with the 3-plate switch

@Sophie Wheeler 1) the electrical plan was added by the GC before submitting it the city building dept. for approval. We did not have a chance to review it, but the spacing of the outlets and switches is per code.

2) The subway tiles come in 16"x 8" mesh, therefore the spacing between the grout lines is fixed.

3) The dry out was indeed torn down first, as you can see in the pictures.

What a mess! I hope you have not yet paid for this. It's a total re-do.

Just fix the darn lighting first. Sheesh.

@ Sophie Wheeler - do you mean the undercabinet lighting?

Yes, she means the undercabinet lighting ...

" ... your problem is exacerbated by the position of your under cabinet lighting."

Is the under cabinet lighting towards the front or back of the cabinet. It should be towards the front where you actually do work.

A skilled tile person can deal with uneven walls just fine. If the walls are superbad, the tile person insists it's addressed before tiling.

Except for the weird switchplate position, it won't be that bad with the lighting towards the front. Like you said, it doesn't look bad with the undercabinet lights off. I think it looks quite nice--good color selection.

(Sophie frequently blames the homeowner for not paying enough, but otherwise is often correct. :P )

How likely is it that you will ever have anything plugged into that outlet next to the light switches. It sits so close to the edge of the cabinet and right next to the door, that I cant even imagine any appliances plugged in there. That outlet should have been moved over to the right, and the row of switches where the outlet is. I think the tile is a do over, but, before it is done over, have that electrical done. It takes a lot away from your brand new kitchen. Also, like the others said, have that under cabinet lighting moved to the front of the cabinets. I cant believe that whoever installed that, wouldnt have known it belongs in the front, not the rear. You are not workiing up next to the wall, you are standing in front of a cabinet and working there, and thats where you need light.

I think possibly you should have the tile come all the way to the door frame so the entire 3 switch plate is on tile.

@cpartist @cat_ky pictures of the undercounter led striplights

Move the lights to the front edge where they belong and I bet it looks fine. Or at least good enough.

@grannysmith18, having the backsplash go all the way to the door was one option, the other was this. neither option is optimal.. I'm asking him to switch the 3-switch plate with a 2-switch plate and to combine two switches with a double rocker switch like this one.

This would take the switch plate all the way to the trim, but it should end within the backslash hopefully.

Wrong position for the lights. Wrong color temperature. Wrong lumen output. No dimmers. And no light rail.

All design issues.

My wife and I toured a model home recently. I thought this switch abomination could not be topped:

Having seen that backsplash switch, I stand corrected.

Before your kitchen reno was started, the electrician should have discussed with you where the switches and receptacles should go. As Sophie said “why weren’t the electrical location of both the lights and the switches discussed and documented during the planning stage?”.

Undercabinet lighting should be installed toward the front of the upper cabinets, not the back. That is so that the center of the counters will be lit evenly. When UCLs are installed toward the back like yours, the light is mostly falling on the backsplash, not on the counter workspace.

The position of the light switch - incredible that no one said anything before it was done. Furthermore, an electrician who is knowledgeable and current would have suggested that with subway tile, the receptacles should be installed horizontally and lower. The receptacles are then less obtrusive, and you would have had room to move the light switch over. If you decide to re-do the backsplash, see if you can make those changes too. But you may have to hire tiler and electrician separately yourself, as that appears to be beyond the skill set of the crew you have now.

See where the toaster is plugged in?

the part where your contractor didn't have a level.

I have had the experience several times over the years that the OP had where the head guy coming over to check work of his crew didn’t bring a level. The first time that happened I was green. But you only need that to happen once. I bought a commercial-grade 4’ level, as well as a handy 1’-long level for seeing if receptacle boxes are level and the like. You know how many times I had to whip that thing out? The level I mean. Lots o’ times. And the contractor’s response was either relieved I had it, or disappointed I had it. That told me a lot.

@Sophie, Laurie, FriedaJune - the electrician insists that the undercabinet 'strip lights' are always installed at the back and never in the front. is that true?

After replacing the 3-gang box with a 2 gang box, this is what it looks like, It's not perfect, with a bit of the plate still coming out but it looks better to me. of course, the hole will be patched, textured, and painted.