Recently had a very significant tile project to do as part of our remodel. Roughly half the project entailed laying tile on a concrete slab in mostly good condition. But the other half was on a raised subfloor to replace an old ceramic tile floor; very uneven thinset/hardybacker and lots of cuts around kitchen counters, center island, pantry, etc. And we had some steps, a mosaic pattern in the entry, and some gaps in the concrete floor where walls had once been. The concrete floor would have to be built up in some areas to decrease a step height and to run flush with a glue-down bamboo hardwood floor to follow. And the tiles we chose were large 12x24" porcelain with no beveled edges on a 1/16" gap. So basically, a very large and challenging project.
I don't know what it is with most tile companies, but there are so many total flakes that don't return calls. Or the rare professionals that are busy and if they even entertain quoting, their fees are exhorbitant and insist on a pristine subfloor (e.g. replace all hardybacker with new). After cycling through friends' recommendations and Yelp, I found myself dialing contractors whose business cards were posted on the cork board at a local flooring store. That's how I found Candy.
An affable, seasoned tile guy said he could do it, get it done in 2 weeks, don't worry about the hardybacker -- he'll fix any uneven stuff, work around the kitchen corners, take the remaining studs out of the concrete floor and fill the gaps, nail the mosaic pattern, grout it, and leave it clean and ready for the hardwood guys to follow. And he could start in a few days, and the price was reasonable. I took the leap of faith.
Well, it was a challenging project. Candy, and his sons, and his dad spent a solid 2 weeks getting this floor exactly right. The layout, the edges, the mosaic. They had to lift and redo tiles more than a few times esp on the uneven subfloor. But they were meticulous and methodical. It was fun having them over, 3 generations of Guerrero's working together...fixing the subfloor, spreading thinset, cutting tiles, and Candy and his dad laying them just right. They brought their own tools including the biggest-baddest tile saw I've ever seen. And they worked straight through the second weekend to have it all done before the hardwood flooring contractor.
The end result was the most beautiful floor we could have envisioned.
Highly, highly recommend. read more
