Wow that is bad, so sorry :/. Did you do it yourself or have it professionally done? If you hired someone definitely ask them to redo it. Not sure if there is any way to fix that.

Sadly this was a paid job. I just added a description. I just worry that if this was their best efforts the first time, why will the second be any better/ different? We paid for the tiles out of pocket as well... I suppose they won't be able to be reused? :(

They won’t be able to be reused :( i would first approach them and let them know you are unhappy. Hopefully they offer to redo at their cost for new tile if not though let them know that is what you expect and withhold paying until they fix. If they refuse to fix it look up your state guidelines on filing a claim against their bond.

Thanks Rebekah. I'll post an update with what they say. Would you mind sharing what you see wrong? The tiles are supposed to line up in the corners? And it looks weird with all the black lines at base, no? And up top where it meets the ceiling?

I would be worried about the work underneath as well. Like how well they actually waterproofed the area.

So many uneven grout lines, black grout smudged all over the white tiles. It looks like they grouted the corners but just over filled it with thick globs? Or is that black caulk? Overall just a really sloppy and unprofessional job.

Thanks so much Rebekah! I really appreciate your help :)

Like mentioned above when the topical work is that bad it really makes me very concerned about the substrate prep, waterproofing, pan with proper preslope, etc. There is no repairing or fixing that, it is a gut job.

Everything is wrong.

You also need to understand that choosing a highly contrasting grout only highlights any errors in installation or tile defects. Only expert installers would do this well, and you'd likely have to buy MANY extra tiles to find as many "perfect" tiles as possible. To do this job well would be an expensive proposition.

IF the corners are grouted it's likely a gut. An actual tile Pro would never grout any change in plane. This error leads us to believe there are probably issues with waterproofing etc. Find a tile Pro through a shop that sells tile (and sometimes hardwood). A "real" tile shop does not have pallets of tile / grout / tools....they just have samples of tile. I'm sorry this happened to you. Be aware that tile Pros are usually 6 to 8 weeks "booked out".

thanks guys, he's coming over tomorrow to talk to my husband and I about what we're unhappy about. I'm thinking it may be best just to have him take it all down, take the tile purchase as a loss and just hire someone else to do the bathroom? If he is ok with that.... We shall see! If he wants to redo/ fix it.... we just worry if this was the first best attempt... why will the second be any different?

Do you know what they did to make the shower waterproof? Do you have in progress photos to show here, before you meet with the tile guy. Was it a tile guy, a General Contractor or a handyman? Licensed? Insured?

The poor tile job might be the least of your problems.

...

Here are the only photos I have while work was in progress.... (I was being silly in the first pretending to use the shower ;) He is a general contractor but showed my husband and I around his own home to show work before we agreed to do business and the bathrooms there were definitely not done by the same team. He is licensed and insured.

There is no waterproofing. The Redguard at the seams is puzzling as that should be tapped and covered with thinset then the Entire substrate surface coated with the Redguard. In addition the horrible tile/grout he started out incorrectly. Oh and from the little bit we can see of the pan that is completely wrong as well.

Sorry but I think this is a total redo. There appears to be NO WATER PROOFING. Ohhhh no. He's put cement board (?drywall?) directly onto wooden studs and then started tiling over top. That's a no-no. There MUST BE water proofing. It is quite visible. Red Guard is RED. It is stunningly different to the grayish blah of backer board.

The wood trim "looks" to be sitting on concrete??? But that's very hard to see from the photos...I could be wrong. The tiles going straight over the wood is troubling. Tiles + grout is NOT water proof. Without water proofing membrane over the exposed wood you are going to have a rotten mess on your hands within a year...maybe two if you don't use the shower.

As millworkman says this is a complete redo. The GC is NOT a tile setter. Whomsoever worked on this shower had no clue as to how to go about creating a water proof surface. No clue whatsoever.

It's a complete gut - here's why.

We can tell no proper waterproofing was done by the presence of "bare" cement board (the gray board on shower walls). The waterproofing membrane is one continuous "coating" applied at the same time on the walls and the pan before tiling. Please understand that "cement board" is not waterproof. The cement board without a waterproof membrane allows water to "go through it". If you've ever put a cardboard box on a concrete floor - and found the cardboard "stuck" to the floor - that happens because that concrete is without a moisture barrier under it (like in a garage or basement). Hope this helps explain the issue.

Thanks so much for your help guys. This is all very disturbing stuff 😢. Here’s one more photo my husband just sent me of work in progress. Does this change anything said above? Contractor is on his way here now. Wish us luck! Thanks again for help!

No.

My husband and I talked to him and he is blaming the tiles themselves for the unevenness and grout issues. He said the edges are all off and he can make them even but that will cost much much more for labor and install....
The tiles were cheap enough (from Home Depot) ... but have an overall rating of 4.5/ 5 with 639 reviews and the customer photos with the same white and dark grout look really good!
After I said that, contractor said maybe we got a bad batch ... (although we got multiple batches ...)
He said the dirty marble around the niche is because of the black grout and that always happens ... if not at first, then gradually over time. That he could get quartz or some other much more expensive material to avoid problem. Also blamed lack of options bc of the current virus situation.

All excuses?

He said it is waterproofed too. I can take a photo of back of the shower walls (accessible through storage area) when I get home....

🤦‍♀️😞

Here are a few photos that other people shared on Home Depot site that used the same tile.

Those are definitely just bad excuses. I would not pay him, buy new tile and move on to a professional tiler. Although - is he doing all the work in finishing the basement? Based on what he has done in that bathroom I would not trust him to do work anywhere else.

The water proofing on the STUD SIDE of the build is permitted....but he will have to show a BRILLIANT job of it before I would trust the 'guy' with anything other than a paint brush.

The grout issues are because the 'guy' (won't call him a professional tile setter) didn't wipe up after himself in a quick enough fashion. The fact that the walls are smeared as well tells me he was trying to wipe with fingers/rag and then WIPE OFF fingers on the wall, etc. Not a good sign.

Believe me, getting the grout stain off now that the grout has set is NOT going to happen. Either live with it (*assuming the water proofing is appropriate...big "if" here) or tear it down and start again.

And silicon needs to be used at all "changes of direction" (ei. where wall meets floor, where tile edge meets 'lip' of shower base, etc.

Now to the materials at hand: Go ahead and take out two tiles and press them 'face to face' (glossy side 'in'). See if they are bowed, etc. See if the are square. If you repeat this with 20 tiles (if you have left over) and they are mostly 'good' then his excuse does not hold water.

The 'plumbness' of the wall is up to the FRAMER to create square and plumb. If the walls needed to be furred out then the homeowner has to pay for it. This is part of the discussion with the GC BEFORE backer board goes up. The extra cost is discussed and the homeowner decides on best option (ie. financially or aesthetically) for themselves.

Dirty marble doesn't hold water. He couldn't keep GLAZED CERAMIC/PORCELAIN clean! How the H3LL does he expect to keep stone clean??? Yes marble is porous...it is up to the PROFESSIONAL tile setter to know/anticipate the porosity of the materials and SEAL the porous stuff (yep....marble normally needs sealing before, during and sometimes after install!!! ooops). Again this would have been a discussion BEFORE the tile itself was set.

If you have left over marble tile (is that the blue hex in the niche?), go ahead and drop a few beads of water on the surface. If it 'beads' like a newly waxed car then you have a sealed surface. If the water sinks in like rain into dry ground then it has not been sealed. At least not the left overs. Do this again with the tiles that are laid. Do ANY of the marble tiles 'bead'?

The 'inset' lighting strips are WELL beyond his capabilities. This is a redo simply because it looks gawd awful.

I'm soooo sorry this has happened. I really am. Unless you can post some AMAZING photos of BRILLIANT water proofing from the crawlspace (photos from behind the wall), I doubt there is anything to salvage at this point.

Fingers crossed (hope against hope; hope springs eternal....etc, etc, etc)!

COVID-19 "hugs from here"

Stephanie

I can re assure you the pictured install meets no industry nor mfg standards, i would be concerned and expecting a full demo. theres no way now to fix bit parts. BEST of luck...., sad for my industry that these materials are readily available and so little oversight. good luck

Nichole - for the love of heaven - WE AREN'T CONCERNED WITH "HOW IT LOOKS". The waterproofing was NOT DONE.

If it had been waterproofed behind the board, then it would be visible in the photo that shows the open wall space. Don't get into an argument with him about aesthetics, or even discuss it at all. That is just a distraction. The only thing that needs to be discussed is that he did not build you a proper, waterproofed shower.

Tile and grout are not waterproof, so without waterproofing in the shower walls and floor, you will get water passing through and rotting the materials around and under the shower. Yeah, it might not show up overnight, but give it a year and you will start to smell something musty/moldy in the bathroom and surrounding rooms.

You need to tear out and redo the shower, heck maybe the whole bathroom, because the toilet shouldn't be tilted either. Or you can ignore it and then have to remodel the bathroom plus surrounding rooms that will also have water damage. I hope this bathroom isn't on the second floor ...

Sorry this is happening to you, but you have more knowledge now, so don't let the GC take advantage of you any further.

There was no waterproofing at all. He is full of cr*p if he says there is. As chispa says, tile and grout are NOT waterproof. Never were. Before a single tile goes up, you should be able to use a shower that is properly waterproofed.

As mentioned the seams were not taped and the redguard was not used on the whole cement board. And it should be two coats. Only once those things and the shower pan have been installed correctly can you start worrying about how the tile goes on and how it looks.

there is more than one way to waterproof. If he's just using Cement board, then he would use the 4mil ply behind it,

cement board goes over that using corrosion resistant fasteners at specific spacing.

all the joints get taped w/alkaline resistant tape, and then those tapes/joints get a thin coat of mortar

Now the tile is ready. This is perfectly acceptable. people lose their minds because they don't see a painted on membrane! Cement board is fine, With the layer of waterproofing behind it.

Yours doesn't have that.

So, he should have done all the proper taping/mortaring with the corrosion resistant screws and not drywall screws !! (i'm going to bet he missed this part) then you can paint the cbu w/Redgard. It's one or the other, not both. If you do the Redgard, you DONT to the vapor barrier behind it.

So from what you are showing us, he neglected either of these, which means your shower is not properly protected from water. CBU (cement board) is good for wicking away moisture,,,however, should any moisture get in behind it, the plastic sheeting is there to keep it off your wood studs.

Since yours doesn't have that, and your joints aren't taped, you have a higher probability of getting water behind the wall and soaking your wood studs. That equals rot and mold down the line.

As for your shower pan, I'm going to guess he probably didn't do that right either.

The black grout residue is lazy and sloppy. And no grout should ever go in the vertical joints or change of plane. Grout is not waterproof.

He neglected to properly do his job. He is responsible for fixing it and/or owing you a refund on any tile that can't be reused. Show him this.

If you want further info, I suggest you visit johnbridge.com tile forum

Any updates on this? Have you fired this know-nothing hack and gotten all your money back?

Because you should.

Two years ago we finished a cabin shell attached to our house for my retired dad to live in. Dad and I framed the walls for his bathroom and I did all the tiling and prep work for the fiberglass shower enclosure we bought for him.

I, a 44-year-old woman who had never even picked up a trowel before, spent enough time reading and researching to know how to hang cement board on the walls and install it on floors, how to properly screw and tape it with the correct screws/tape, and **how to use RedGuard to waterproof the whole area before the shower went in.** And that's a fiberglass shower--supposedly a fully contained waterproof unit, not tile and grout, but I didn't want to take any chances.

If I cared enough to do a little research, and if I was able to find discussions of RedGuard and proper waterproofing and such right away...and if even I can see that not only did he not properly waterproof the walls but that shower pan is literally just tiles over cement board, which is not remotely correct and is going to start leaking like heck almost immediately...then someone who claims to be a professional and charges good money to work on people's homes *certainly* ought to care enough and do it right!!

That's not even mentioning the awful tiling job and his lousy and nonsensical excuses (bowed tile, smh)! I did a way better job tiling my dad's floor and my kitchen walls than he did there, and again, I am not a professional and don't think I'm anywhere near skilled enough to charge people money. That is shockingly poor work--not that it matters, because the whole assembly is going to start falling apart after you've used the shower a couple of times.

Please tell us that you fired him, got your money back, and found an actual professional who will do it right?

(You picked lovely tile/shower doors/etc.--once a pro does the job it will be beautiful. Good luck to you!)

Any updates?