Wow it looks so much better! Love your tile choices! One note, though, is that CAULK is the finish for all changes of plane (corners, floor/wall intersections), not grout. Caulk is waterproof, grout is not. Caulk moves as the tile moves, grout does not. Also, caulk or grout alone is not enough to keep a shower from leaking, properly waterproofed walls and pan are.

I have a botched kitchen backsplash which covers from the counter to the ceiling. After seeing this, I will have to see how much would it cost to pull it out and have someone else redo it. It is one inch glass tiles and the more I look at it the more issues I see. Most of it is tiles not lining up right or some depressed so they are not all flush. I could of done that myself but wanted a professional job.

Thank you for sharing - you should post this in design dilemma as well..

That really is a night and day difference between the two! Looks great!

wow. that is possibly the worst tile job I have ever seen. Were you able to recoup any money from him? did you actually pay this other guy in full???? Unbelievable. the 2nd one is flawless.

Can't believe the first job was actually done by a professional. Very scary. They ruined $$$$ in materials and you can bet they didn't use proper underlayment or seal correctly. Glad you found a great installer and finished with a beautiful project in the end. Thanks for posting.

I would have been happy with your botched work!! www.apictureisworthathousandwords.us

So sorry, it's so frustrating. How did you handle getting it redone? Did you ask for money back from first contractor or not pay the rest?

You actually want to "caulk" (since I think you use a caulking gun) using 100% silicone at any change of plane as it won't rot or mildew and will allow tile to expand and won't crack with small movement. I recently asked this question and not a single person defended using grout in the plane joints. So that's the bad news, the good news is your second guy looks like he would come back and change it for you.

http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/4076401/do-i-need-to-calk-or-silicone-if-ive-used-fusion-pro-grout

http://www.johnbridge.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=119926&highlight=Tub+silicone+grout+plane

Hello,

I am living a similar nightmare in the PNW,

see my recent post;

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/feedback-on-tile-job-please-dsvw-vd~3704306

I would truely appreciate if you could send me the contact of the new tile person you used - brentserena@outlook.com

I am so glad to see that your bathroom is now how you dreamed!

What a big difference! I'm happy to see that you were able to get your bathroom fixed! What a mess but now you can finally enjoy your bathroom!

there is a great product to get the pitch correct: pre pitch, liner, than final shower pan. called goof proof pitch. Apparently even a poor contractor cant mess it up. I think all contractors should use it ( I do and I have a mason background) since it saves time and if not the most important part of a leak free, mold free shower.

The other thing is properly mixing the shower pan mud: the formula and ratio. Jot me a note if any contractor is interested in what I use.

Please be careful who you call "professional" and "contractor" as the "before" does not resemble the work of someone who has the training to be a licensed tile contractor ("4 years of journeyman level experience" in CA). I don't think I've ever seen that poor level of work on even production (tract) homes, but it's common in "flips" where investors often hire "parking lot tradesmen" from the local chain supply house. Notes: I see 3 different shower pans.... 2 "befores" with different drains. Matching caulking is sold at tile supply houses with and without sand for a near perfect match to grout.... It minimizes expansion cracks at the inside corners of the base. The shower pan (hot tar, preformed or other system) has the backup job of water containment for the base. Make sure the wall systems are complete. People often underestimate the grout job (I have before) as it's often the apprentice who performs it... but after many redos and a long tedious training process. Labor and substrate is usually most of the tile budget, not the material.

Thank you for sharing your story. I am currently going through a similar situation. I decided to use 6x12 glass tiles for my new shower. Which I showed to the contractor, asking if they were experienced. Of course they responded with a YES!!! Well this is what I have to contend with now (please view the pictures). I stopped the project. Now I'm in need of someone to fix the damage, without losing the tiles. I'm a single professional, who was trying to follow through on my fathers goal of renovating his home. He passed away suddenly in March. So needless to say my dream of a beautiful new master suite has been deflated. Any recommendations to repair with minimal cost, please!!

As you will view,cardboard was used, the grout lines are uneven , the corners are off, there are jagged edged tiles, and some are chipped!!!

B DE: Wow... just wow. I am not that experienced at tile (I've done some) and did an entire bathroom (bath enclosure, ceiling, floor, backsplash) and my work looks top notch expert next to that horror. Did the original contractor give you a refund? Did you sue him? Did you at least put his name out there so others could avoid his bad work?

Donna: That's sad. A bag of plastic spacers is available at nearly every hardware store and online. Using corrugate cardboard is terrible, as it will get wet and compress very easily making your grout lines bad. Can't believe the people that call themselves "pro" and then give you this kind of sub-par work.

Donna, start your own new thread with this dilemma in the bath forum so others can see it and help you.

Great idea

thank you

I have only paid for materials

not labor

Donna,,,yes,,please start your own post. this is horrible. I know of no professionals who use cardboard for spacers. Especially when you can buy 200 of them for like, 3 bucks.

do not pay them. please start your own post and show us pics of how they prepared the shower prior to tiling. need info on waterproofing, etc.

looking at the pics from here, the tile work doesn't look half bad. I notice they didn't use any Redgard or other waterproofing membrane over the cement board. It's not mandatory, but good tile workers will do it for extra insurance. post some other pics on your own post

Thank you Beth.

I did bring in another tile setter yesterday, who was speechless when he walked in. He is willing to save the job!

I will start my own feed.

Wow after reading your post of how the bathroom looks now I had to see what this first contractor did, its terrible! I hope you didn't have to pay them one penny! Good thing the finished product from the good contractor looks so wonderful now though!

Wow what a difference..

Can you remember the name of the tile that you have in the shower niches and on the backsplash. I have the same tile and am looking for some extra but cannot remember the name of it. Thanks!!!

" I notice they didn't use any Redgard or other waterproofing membrane over the cement board. It's not mandatory, but good tile workers will do it for extra insurance. post some other pics on your own post."

Unless there is felt behind the Durock, it certainly is mandatory.

Such a big difference! Looks great!

geez joseph, you're correcting one of my comments from 2 years ago?

And yes, it's either Redgard or a vapor barrier in back of the cement board. Not both.

A lot of people get it mixed up and will do both.

when I wrote that comment wayyyyy back when, I didn't specify the one or the other. I now do. But thanks for keeping an eye out for me.