I have waited some time to write this review, because I wasn't sure what I needed to say. For the past 5 or so years I have laid plenty of tile on 4 properties that I currently own, 3 of them being rentals. I have only done 3 tile showers and so far so good, I have not had any issues. About a month ago my wife and I hired Jim to install 2 tile showers in our latest rental. He seemed pretty knowledgeable at the time. Explained to us what he would be doing and how much the cost of installing these showers would be. Each tile shower plus the bathroom floor was 1,600 dollars a piece. He explained to us that he has been installing tile for many years and he has a team that helps him and he could get both showers done within an 8 day period. I've have done and seen enough tile jobs to know that even just one tile shower plus the floor would take at least 10-14 days to complete, if done properly. This was where the problem was! Before beginning any tile job, you must always ensure that the studs in the wall are level and there isn't any unevenness. If there is, your walls will not be squared and your tile will not be even. YOU MUST ADD A SISTER STUD in these cases. When I demolished Jims work I noticed that there weren't any sister studs where the Hardie Backerboard would be placed. There was unevenness and bowing. THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE in any tile shower install. Unfortunately, he missed this very important step. On day 2 of the tile shower install, the mortar bed was beginning to take shape. In a typical tile shower install, you usually place felt tip roofing paper w/ metal lath over the subfloor to prevent water from the 1st mortar bed to wick through the wood subfloor. He explained to me that he doesn't do it this way. I applied thinset mortar over the subfloor with another pice of hardie backer board
All USA
I have waited some time to write this review, because I wasn't sure what I needed to say. For the past 5 or so years I have laid plenty of tile on 4 properties that I currently own, 3 of them being rentals. I have only done 3 tile showers and so far so good, I have not had any issues. About a month ago my wife and I hired Jim to install 2 tile showers in our latest rental. He seemed pretty knowledgeable at the time. Explained to us what he would be doing and how much the cost of installing these showers would be. Each tile shower plus the bathroom floor was 1,600 dollars a piece. He explained to us that he has been installing tile for many years and he has a team that helps him and he could get both showers done within an 8 day period. I've have done and seen enough tile jobs to know that even just one tile shower plus the floor would take at least 10-14 days to complete, if done properly. This was where the problem was! Before beginning any tile job, you must always ensure that the studs in the wall are level and there isn't any unevenness. If there is, your walls will not be squared and your tile will not be even. YOU MUST ADD A SISTER STUD in these cases. When I demolished Jims work I noticed that there weren't any sister studs where the Hardie Backerboard would be placed. There was unevenness and bowing. THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE in any tile shower install. Unfortunately, he missed this very important step. On day 2 of the tile shower install, the mortar bed was beginning to take shape. In a typical tile shower install, you usually place felt tip roofing paper w/ metal lath over the subfloor to prevent water from the 1st mortar bed to wick through the wood subfloor. He explained to me that he doesn't do it this way. I applied thinset mortar over the subfloor with another pice of hardie backer board