Poor job? Do have to let the tiler come back and have another go?

[ren2626]

We had our kitchen tiled last week and we're not at all happy with the work. The tiles aren't level, the spacings all the over the place, trim looks terrible, no expansion gap between worktop and tiles, grout not silicone between worktop and tiles, grout is varying shades of grey, tiles not flush next to windows. I'll try and add some photos. It's so bad we want to take all tiles off and start again. I think we need to do this because of the lack of expansion gap and silicone. Could the tiler argue that there's some way of fixing this without starting again? We haven't paid and don't intend to pay for the work (we supplied the tiles). I've read that the tiler could request that he gets the opportunity to fix the job but I don't want him doing any more work in my house. Can I refuse to allow him to do this? I plan to email him today and tell him we won't be paying but want to start removing the tiles tonight. Should we wait before starting to remove tiles?

 

[philipio]

First off, I'm not a tiler myself but I've done far better tiling than that for me and my family. I'd be embarrassed to leave the job in that state. I'm really not sure what the etiquette is here, but like you, I would not be paying for that job. I'd discuss it with the tiler and tell him you're holding payment back in full until you're satisfied with the job, and that means starting over again. Maybe that will mean he/she has to call in a favour from someone who actually CAN tile. For me, if the tiler is satisfied with that level of finish, I'd be worried about short cuts, what's behind the tiles for example. I think the real tilers on here will tell you that with those white metro tiles done in brick bond, coupled with darker grout, everything has to be perfect because that colour combination emphasises even the least severe mistake. From the look of things, the tiler hasn't used spacers effectively or even been bothered to mix the grout to the right consistency and that's why its colour varies so much. Hope you get this sorted, but IMHO you're absolutely right to be dissatisfied with that.

 

[Trigger]

Looks awful, can't be a tiler. Maybe a handyman that thinks he can tile.

As above, you would be embarrassed leaving a job like that.

Call him and tell him its not good enough and ask if he wants to redo it, make it clear you will not be paying if it is still not acceptable. I suspect at this stage he will know he has been caught out and will not want to waste his time attempting it again as he knows he won't get paid cos he can't tile.

 

[Hobnob]

Yeah that looks pretty poor.
As above, it’s not a professional finish and you would be right to not pay. I guess you need to advise the “tiler” that it is not satisfactory and ask him if he can do it properly or if he wants to get someone to do it properly on his behalf.
There are plenty of photos online these days that can be used as a reference for what you were expecting, so use them to illustrate your disappointment.

 

[Slippery]

I've moved into a house with terrible tiling that I can't wait to rip off and start again, but it was done by the previous owner, not someone who is charging for his service and it's still better than that!