Am I Being Too Picky? (quality Of Tiling)

[On one]

So he had to dot and dab the tiles because the walls weren't straight,yet he was the one that plastered the walls

So if he dot and dabbed the tiles to straighten the bent wall,did he succeed?(If you have access to a 3 or 4 foot or even longer piece of wood or metal,place it across the walls to check)

 

[Spare Tool]

They initially provided a professional tiler, but for some reason he walked out and refused to do the job.

..could that have been anything to do with the plastering, alarm bells should ring when a booked in tiler walks out

 

[SJPurdy]

from your first post concerns:
mosaic in corner is poor and should be corrected;
the two tile wide wall probably looks better as two tiles rather than a centre full tile and two equal size (slightly bigger than half tile) cuts. New architrave slightly wider or moved over is a possible fix to loose the wide grout joint;
Wrong size trim is not acceptable If it causing overhangs/lipping;
Sharpe corners on trim (or anywhere) are not acceptable;
unsightly gaps in trim joints should not occur.
Changing the trim will be difficult as the tiles under it will probably need taking off (they would if I'd fixed it). I also note that the way the trim is fixed around the window is not the way I'd expect most professionals to do it - well the ones I've worked with but others may disagree.

Its funny how the plasterer says a bit of wall does not need flattening but then when it comes to HIM tiling it then its not flat enough to tile without dot and dabbing!

 

[Freda42]

Thank you SJPurdy. Can I ask, how would you expect the trim around the window to go? He did it the other way around to begin with and it looked awful ('ll find pics and post in the next post)

Interestingly, I spoke to another tiler today, as I am looking for a local independent opinion. He knows the person who walked out (by name/reputation only) and said it was because he will only tile on smooth, plastered walls. Is this a good or a bad thing?

I've tried around the walls with a straight edge. Under the sink - where it was dot and dabbed - the tiling is noticeably bowed forward at the join of the tiles. Is this a practical problem (ie. is the sink likely to fall off the wall?!) or an aesthetic one (ie..e no one will notice unless they are having a bath with a spirit level)

 

[Freda42]

This is what it did look like, SJPurdy.

 

[Freda42]

and..

 

[Freda42]

And thank you, I really do appreciate the time you guys are taking to answer my questions

 

[On one]

He should have mitred the internal corners on the trim.
And I personally leave a 1mm or 2mm grout joint between the trims and the tile.(More forgiving to the eye)

 

[SJPurdy]

Freda42,
Yes that is the way round that I would have instinctively done the trim unless requested to do it the other way. I again think it is not jointed very accurately which detracts from it. I can see that you may prefer the look from afar done the other way as the thin silver line would match that on the top of the tiling. This is a caution to other prospective tiler clients reading this to specify/check how things will be done.

 

[SJPurdy]

For a wall to be flat enough to tile then when you put a 2m long straight edge anywhere on the wall there should be no gaps (between straight edge and wall) of more than 3mm. This is so that fixing can be carried out correctly by spreading adhesive on the wall with a notched trowel and then pressing/shuffleing (back buttered if required) tiles into it. Sadly such flat walls are very rarely encountered in domestic properties unless the tiler prepares them! If you have paid for walls to be prepared ready for tiling then this is the flatness that should have been achieved.