Most pro installers pull all or most of the stones off and hand set them. This is a common problem, must have been his tile guys first time. Hope he has more experience otherwise.

It may not be as noticable, once it gets grouted.

He says he's been in the tile business for 20 years, but I agree with you. This looks like the work of an amateur. He also told me he was working with a new type of glue that was drying more quickly than he expected so he had to work quickly to get the tile sheets down. At this point it looks like pulling the stones out and laying them individually is the only fix. I was wondering if I'm being unreasonable in making this request.

Make sure he stands on them barefoot - some are beautiful but not comfortable

The ‘pro’ should be embarrassed but instead he’s blaming his tools. He used quick setting thinset because it was after lunch and he wanted to get home?

Unacceptable. That is a do over. At least he is admitting there is a problem - even if he is blaming it on glue. Therefore, you can ask him for a redo “using different glue”. Not your fault that ”the glue” wasn’t good!

Did he do the shower walls and do they look ok?

He did do the walls and they look great. He also did the backsplash in the kitchen and it's also beautiful. The store is offering to supply new tiles for the floor and have them installed, but they're insisting that my son choose a different style, one with a straight edge. I get the feeling they think he's just being difficult.

Does the installer work for the store? It is quite concernign to me that the wall tile appears to be set lower then the top of the floor tiles which will cause a myriad or other issues down the road. How was the shower walls framed and waterproofed? How was the pan built?

As millworkman noted in the comment above, I noticed that the tiles on the walls appear to have been set prior to the floor. The wall tiles should be on top of the floor tiles/mosaics.

Also, I could have done a better job setting those mosaics pebbles - and I've never set tile on a shower floor before. I would not be happy.

The only way it looks better once grouted is if the grout is the exact black as the pebbles - and it still will be noticeable that they weren't set correctly.

He is the subcontractor that the store uses. I'm not sure how the shower was built since no one is actually on site all the time, but I did see some type of moisture barrier. And you are correct, the wall tile went up first, before the floor tile. I appreciate this valuable input and am just sick that my son is having to deal with substandard work. We're taking all this good advice and trying to turn it over to the general contractor in charge of the project. At this point he's having the store re-order the tile and is getting a different installer to come look and see what needs to be done to fix this. Hopefully we don't end up having to tear out the shower and start over from scratch.

Closeup shot. Nothing is grouted yet.

Is that curbless with a transition to vinyl???? IN addition to the horrible crapset of the black pebbles? What waterproofing system was used here? Where are the pics of this in progress?

Wall tile needs to be sitting ABOVE the floor tile, and the change in plane gets caulked. The wall substrate (type dependent) also sits ABOVE the pan or it will wick water up the substrate. This is assuming they used a cement board tile backer. They should have specified on the quote ALL the materials used. But not sounding or looking good at this point.

It is very worrisome that the general contractor is not on top of the install to make sure the floor went in first.

You are not alone, terrible contractors pull this crap all the time even when someone is on site. I have specified in my contract the order in which things need to be done, posted it on the walls, and talked to the contractors daily and STILL had it done wrong.

I would ask the contractor the exact names of every product used for waterproofing and see what they say.

What color grout is being used for the floor? The wall tile is beautiful. Black is a great floor color but I’d never want to clean that stone. I’d use a simple rich black hex in here instead. It will be masculine and great with the walls.

Millworkman my tile guy always tiles the walls first when setting pebble- he can arrange the pebbles tight to the finished tile easier than cutting tile to follow pebble. Is there a technical reason this is bad? He’s done it in two of my homes and a few clients with no issues, schluter system walls

Not an issue as long as the both the wall tile and the substrate are held off the pan. If the substrate is in contact with the pan it will wick water up the wall, causing the potential for mold. Typically from what I know they keep the tile up for the reason and also so you can get a nice bead of caulk at the change of plane. Of course that is why I also added the disclaimer that I was assuming cement board as the substrate. As the raw edge will act like a sponge.

Nothing in that picture shows the slightest possibility of a avoiding water damage almost immediately. Curbless to vinyl is and immediate design NOPE. (Who designed that failure????) The fact that he would try to excute something that just shouldn’t be done…. Plus the ineptness of what was done…..

Update. I think we may have arrived at a resolution. The plan at this point is for the store to send someone to pull up the river rock tile and order new sheets. My contractor has called in another independent installer who came and looked at the job today. He said he'll inspect the floor after the problem tile is removed and if he sees any possible issue with the moisture barrier he'll redo it. He'll then lay the new tile, but will cut each stone apart and lay them individually. The store will honor the original warranty even though another installer is going to pay the floor tile.

You never showed the most important part. That pebble is just the most visible thing to show that nothing was built correctly. That is a guaranteed leaker. Do you not care if you rot your house out? As long as it’s ”pretty”? Which pebbles are NOT.