"most cases if the customer is not happy they will get the tiler to start over unless they walk away without payment."
You are correct about walking away. Unfortunately, most of the time the hack is paid and then the trouble starts. In a shower, sometimes it starts within a weekof the installation, but most of the time it will take longer for the water to leak through and soak into the insulation, wood etc. Most of the time these materials will soak up the small leaks like a sponge and when it gets full then it spreads . Maybe in the case of a tile installation that was improperly done on a kitchen floor and hasn't manefested its ugly head for say 7 months or even longer. The hack is long gone leaving the client holding the proverbial bag. Hacks don't stay in business long, they seem to live paycheck to paycheck and when things start to become slow, they have to move on to greener pastures in search for their next paycheck. The economy is slowing down here in Maine, there is a glut of new homes on the market, along with the banks tightening the requirements for morgages. This eliminates a large percentage of the population. The remodeling industry typically takes a strong 2 months to gear up for the increase in work. This is from people that have decided to stay where they live and remodel the kitchen, bath, etc. Remember those hacks, well they can't hang around 2 to 4 months to make the transition. Then when the remodeling industry gets a full head of steam, they emerge from the woodwork and start to install tile in a hope of cashing in on the money.
