First, post a pic of what is going on???

I don’t have good pics but my guess is that you can see the lines of the separate sheets that the tiles came on. If so - you are right. It is not a good install. Stand your ground.

https://www.younghouselove.com/how-to-install-penny-tile-and-lots-of-it

This is a backsplash application, but details the planning and slow process of staggering and laying out the sheets of tile to minimize any obvious lines. If you see lines, then the crew likely didn't stagger the sheets or take the time/labor intensive route which penny tiles require.

These are great pics, a few of them I’ve seen in my months of tile choosing. The tile contractor goes on attended Acacian test they’re starting this Thursday. I proposed we have a meeting after his back so he’s hopefully mindset to want to make this right rather than quit the job. My husband and I just cannot believe that we’re in the same position we were in six weeks ago when we had to fire the first contractor who’s tile guy was beyond awful. Here’s pics of that job:

And here are pics from what we have now. I had posted these on a length thread below which may have not been seen by everyone.:

And here’s tile contractors explanation as to why the lines show:

“That how that tile is supposed to be set all the joints are the same size. Our job isn’t grouted yet. I’ll talk to you tomorrow when I get there. That floor looks exactly like every other penny tile job I’ve set or watched be set over my 20 years of experience.”

Ps the story of how we got here is subject of a long (prob too long) posting below I’d done when still in a significant state of hysteria. 😉 this is my first time using Houzz for help like this and I cannot tell you all how much it means to feel supported in this bathroom remodel experience.

You might want to consider a different tile. While I love penny tile, if installation isn’t perfect it will bother you every time you use the space.

Fwiw here’s a real life example of a penny tile installation that’s good but not perfect. Actually I thought it was perfect until i took a close-up to ahow it off on a previous thread like this — and was surprised to realize that the picture showed lines that honestly aren’t quite so visible IRL.

Hi Aelem, I’m not looking for perfection here but don’t think I should have to settle for visible lines running the length of our small bathroom. What’s so frustrating is that DIYers get how to a good install. Shouldn’t a professional tiler do as good a job as a first time DIYer? Here’s pics I found in a good article about laying penny tile.

We don’t want to lose this contractor as we need this job done (I’ve been sharing our master bath with two teen boys since July). I just want people’s thoughts on how I should handle this and whether there’s anything tiler could do to fix it (short of ripping it all out and starting over).

these gaps against the wall need to be filled w/half cut pennies. otherwise, those huge grout fills are going to look horrible.

is cutting each penny in half by hand a PIA? yes it is.

this is what I meant by staggering the sheets. even 1 and 2 should be off set a bit on the ends

Thanks Beth. Appreciate your weighing in. When I’ left yesterday he was laying down the first sheet of tile and asked me if I wanted the sheet to be set on its side (like a diamond) or like a square which it is so that seemed right to me. I stared and asked questions about the pattern and he said they’d be doing a “running board like the subway in the shower” which is staggered. He knew my fear of seeing lines again and assured me it woos be great. I have no idea what happened after to left. And I included the pic showing open spaces along the wall. Even I know that’s a bad idea. I’m just terrified he’s going to say forget it and leave us high and dry. We paid him about half of the total job and I’d say he’s done maybe slightly more than that. We just can’t bear to start over with yet a third person. But honestly, shouldn’t he make this right?

Don't pay him again until he's finished. 50% is all you need to have paid. don't pay anymore until after grout cleanup or final inspection. if you do, you'll never get him out to fix anything.

what's going on the floor here? a vanity? something?

the arrows are pointing to where I see clearly see the sheets. he didn't stagger it vertically. or did he? When laying these sheets, NONE of the edges should run the same line. even if you only stagger it over 2 pennies, it will still mess up the straight line. This requires more cutting of the mesh, because you won't line up perfectly like you would if you placed the sheets side by side.

the eye won't be able to reconize the lines. on the mesh they're lined up perfectly. when they're placed by a human on the floor next to the factory edge, the slightest variation in spacing will be picked up. staggering these lines makes it more difficult for the eyes to see the difference

does that make sense?

from this angle it looks pretty good. I can see a few lines where he got too close to a finished sheet, but it's by the toilet and shouldn't be noticeable once grouted.

the white underlayment is making it more visible to you. that's also why I would not use a white grout. (you don't want white grout in a bathroom anyway. )

have him cut those half tiles against the wall. unless the baseboard will cover those spaces. bring in a baseboard and place it on top of the tiles. take another picture.

what color grout are you using? use a medium gray and you shouldn't see anything

overall, I don't think it's worth ripping it out. what does he tell you? after if its grouted if the lines are visible, will he redo it for you? get it in writing

what are your plans for the threshold?

I know you are not seeking perfection - just someone that can do what they say they can do. So very frustrating. And after sharing bathroom with two boys you are being much more gracious than I would be. All I was suggesting was a Plan B for the tile. And I know this is the second time you purchased this beautiful tile, but having a Plan B of different tile already picked out/available in your back pocket should you need it, could be a win for everyone.

Thank you Aelem, I didn’t mean to sound ungrateful for your thoughtful advice. I’m just not willing to give up. We’ve come too far and are far too in love with this tile to jump ship now.

FWIW I just looked at the tiler’s contract again. It describes in detail the penny tile installation we expected but didn’t get.
He wrote:
“Penny tiles will be set on bathroom floor in a random pattern so separate sheets aren’t noticeable at completion of install.”
He’s coming over tomorrow at 10 am. I terrified of him trying to blame me for this somehow. Or worse, telling us that it will be fine after it’s grouted. We all know that’s not true(!!). Not sure how I’m going to argue that point with him. Any advice ladies?

Hi Beth, I just saw your awesome comments above and helpful markups on those pics. Believe or not, the second pic you made duo was of the FIRST guy’s work. It had been grouted with a sand color. You’re thinking that using a medium gray grout on the floor we have now (the pic where tin face is white) could fix this? I’d thought that once it was set poorly the grout can’t fix it.

As for the spaces along the wall we do have baseboard going down. To me it just seems sloppy (lazy?) to have not competed that with the half tiles.

First bad job (red) and current, ungrouted job:

Beth—I’d like to show our tile a pic showing how he should have laid the sheets. Could you make up the one above white tub face? And not sure you saw this, but he wrote this in the contract: “penny tiles will be set on bathroom floor in a random pattern so separate sheets aren’t noticeable at completion of install.” 🙄

It's not bad. get a baseboard and set it in place to see how much of the wall tiles it will cover.

I see the line going straight up the middle, but with a gray grout, it shouldn't be noticeable.

And if it is, then you have it in your contract.

what are you doing for the threshold?

You’ve seen lines disappear or become less noticeable after grouting? If so then maybe we let him finish it and see if it’s fixed. We thought the tile would go to end of room. Not expecting that big a transition. Floor is almost level with adjacent hardwood.
Vanity going at end under window.

Also is he supposed to be removing the white material that’s coming through, heavy in some areas?

Beth-how should he have staggered the tiles on this pic? I’d like to show him how he should’ve staggered them but the pic you drew squares on was the penny fail #1. It will help make clear exactly what he didn’t do here. 🙏🏻

uh, this is not almost level!

You need a transition piece of some type. Get an Oak Reducer and stain it to match your wood floor

They come in diff sizes. this is a 3/4" reducer

basically will resemble this. Get the same species of oak as your wood floor, and stain it the same color. it will look perfect.

I keep asking you about grout color and you never answer me.

I'm saying, if you go w/a medium gray grout the 'grids' should disappear.

If they don't, then it's on him and he will have to redo it.

using a white grout will make everything more noticeable.

Here are Custom grout colors. that admiral blue may be a good choice. or maybe one of the grays.

These are Mapei grout colors. maybe Slate? Waterfall? Gray? Charcoal? I did Charcoal in my own bathroom w/black marble tiles.

What white stuff is coming up? you mean the thinset? sometimes it oozes up between the tiles. he'll have to knock it down before grouting.

I did mark up what I saw. I posted it in my last comment. there is no way for me to tell if he staggered every sheet.

it's not that noticeable and I think you're freaking out! lol. let him grout it. if you want, have him make you some sample boards of grout colors so you can see what you like.

get a sample of the admiral blue, some of the grays, and maybe slate. see what you like.

I have no idea what your other colors are going to be in there, so it's hard to pick one.

oh, grab a baseboard piece and put it on top of the tile next to wall. lets see how much it covers.

We had somewhat visible lines before grouting and I freaked out. Talked to the contractor about it and once it was grouted with warm gray grout it looks terrific. I suspect your job will be the same.

Here are some not great shots

I think that was before grout— you can see some lines. I don’t have an after picture but trust me it looks good!

Beth, we had planned on a light gray grout. Can go medium. Don’t want too dark though. Bathroom is blue and white. Nautical. Plan of on a wood transition piece. Tiler will finish floor once we have it. Nothing being done tomorrow just a meeting. He leaves next day for 10 days so will get while he’s gone. I hope the grout can fix the visible seams. We’ll have to try a few types to see what’s best.
Here’s the pic of how staggering should’ve gone, but it’s on pic of old floor that’s now gone.

Here’s the floor now. If the floor ends up being redone, could you do that nifty stagger pattern overlaying this pic? (I don’t want to show him the pattern on the other guys tile floor)

And here’s the rest of the bathroom…delft border on subway…brass fixtures, shower curtain for now, and whatever heated towel warmer I can find that doesn’t modern up the space too much or cost $3k. (That’s a must have). I think he did a great job so far on the wall. Waiting for shower trim kit to arrive so plumber can adjust pipe and switch valve. He has to narrow the niche which is why there’s a piece of wood in it. We noticed that the tile plan had a delft below it but off center. Distracting. Anyway, I’m really ready for this bathroom job to be done. But after all this time I feel like we should not give up and just accept a floor with visible seams. We’ll see what he says about the grout…

Hi LYNNE, i’m really glad you shared those pictures. I think he’ll want to grout it first before conceding that we do in fact have visible lines.I feel like I’ve read so many strings on here that say crowding will not fix visible lines but we’re def willing to try. The last thing I want is to see this thing ripped up again and have to buy new tile again. Anyway, thanks again!

You make him buy the tile...............or you do not PAY him. And you delay and get a pro who knows how to do any mosaic, which penny tile is. One who can show you pics of his WORK

I think I'm confused. I thought I was looking at current tile guy's redo.

So this isn't what new guy did?

anyway, here's a rough layout. obviiously when he does it it won't be this sloppy looking. this is just a quick sketch of how to stagger sheets so you don't get discernable grids.

He just has to be very careful to match the exact spacing to the penny spacing.On this pic you can see where some of the joints are too far apart

And the pennies should always be leap-frogged when joining edges, and never straight across from each other

Like this one. this is bad.

this is a good layout

Please work with your installer. While you've received some visuals and info here, it's all over the board and frankly no one here is onsite. From the photos of the second install, it's hard to discern the problem. At edges you will have a base anyway and you do not want your tile to butt up against the wall (where baseboard will cover). At this point, let them grout and then make your determination. You had a negative experience with your first installer, and unfortunately that creates a fear factor that bleeds into the next. Let him finish. Good advice about a darker grout.

dragonfly, that's what I thought. I thought this was the redo, which isn't bad. and I also said the baseboard should cover the wall tile gap.

but she wanted me to do a lay-over showing staggered sheets on that photo so she could show the new tile guy. That's why I'm confused.

is this the most current picture? because I think it doesn't look so bad. if your contractor won't do a full redo (for free), then I think it would still be ok to just go with this and choose a slightly darker grout. those lines seem subtle enough to disappear.

is this how it looks IRL? sometimes patterns like this show up more in pictures than they do in real life.

OR is this a more accurate representation of what you're seeing? (Is this the same exact tile as in the photo above or was there a redo?) if this is how it looks today, then I do think it might be bad enough to warrant a full redo, on his dime. it almost looks as if the edge tiles are sunk in deeper. is that the case or is that just a trick of the light?

if they redo this, I still think you should choose a darker grout anyway, just in case.

don't let the darker grout bum you out. sometimes you need to pivot from your original vision, it happens all the time. I've had some hard lessons in this. I'm such a perfectionist but I've had to learn to be a little more flexible. in your case, darker grout will look good, I promise.