Can I ask my contractor to redo a tile job I'm not happy with?

Question

Click on photo for full size

I had my bathroom renovated while I was away last week. I'm not happy with how the floor tile came out. I assumed the contractor would lay the tile out in a uniform way (yes I know-- ass-u-me).

The bathroom is pretty small- about 4 1/2 feet by 5 feet of total floor space (plus bathtub). I thought I could live with this-- but it is kind of driving me nuts.

Two questions--

• is it fair to have him redo it?And how tough would it be to redo it. I have a bunch of left over tile so I wouldn't need to buy much more.

• How tough is it to rip the tile out and redo it. There are no moldings or anything. The only thing which would need to be removed aside from the tile is the toilet.

• Ok three questions-- what do you think the cost of this should be (I live in Manhattan).

just to be clear-- here is an updated photo when the job was completed. I wanted to make clear that the issue was not the white spots or grout-- the issue was how the pattern was not continuous and how the seams are shown between the sheets of tile.

Answer 1

We can't really answer the cost or any legal questions (OT per our FAQ), but it's unanimous that this job was done poorly. Repairing it right will likely involve removing everything and starting over from scratch. There's not enough benefit in saving a few rows of tile and it would make the thin set and grout work more difficult. Ripping up the floor in the bathroom is more difficult the better your contractor did their job. A power chisel will make the job go faster, but no matter how you do it, it will be a mess.

I'd point out the mistakes, ask him to correct it, and if he refuses, never work with that contractor again. A good contractor is willing to fix their mistakes and make the customer happy, since a good reference is usually worth more than the materials and labor.

Answer 2

This is an old post but I wanted to comment. I had a licensed landscaper extend my existing retaining wall about 20 ft. x 6 ft. His crew did a really shoddy job. I was in disbelief. Mortar was applied unevenly, sloppy and too thick, the vertical seams weren't aligned properly and horizontally the blocks appeared to wave. The wall leaned slightly as if the footing hadn't cured, and a few blocks were loose and not even cemented. I contacted the contractor and asked him to come out to take a look at the mess. He did. He agreed it was a lousy job. I didn't have to ask, he suggested it be torn down and rebuilt. I guess I could have told him to take a hike before he made the suggestion, but since he was straightforward and didn't try to sugarcoat anything, I gave it another chance. It was done nearly perfectly the second time. So yes, contractors will and should remedy the job to the client's satisfaction by doing whatever it takes to get it done right. I have learned to hire licensed ones because you do have recourse if there are problems, and don't give them a deposit anymore than what is legal, usually 10%.