ESSENTIAL TILE TIPS 

1. *EDUCATING OUR CLIENTS: Our goal is to educate clients and decision-makers to make the tile installation process seamless and painless, and to provide realistic expectations for each party involved
2. *ORDERING: When we order tile, our goal is to have enough tile for us to cut and install skillfully, with some leftover attic stock for you. Tile lots change, products are discontinued regularly, people have floods, breakage, damage, and appliance or layout changes over time. Having attic stock is the difference between a small fix and a complete redo. .  Most field tile is ordered by the carton, and decorative pieces generally by the piece. Mosaics are ordered by sheet (not necessarily per SF) and sometimes by the carton. If you prefer to take responsibility for ordering your own tile, please read ORDERING TILE after reading this page. Your tile order should include grout, caulk or sealant, as well as transition pieces, sealer, and trim pieces where applicable. 
3. * INSPECTING AN ORDER: Tile is susceptible to variation in color, shade, and thickness, and ordering errors occur from all parts of the supply chain. We check for damage and accuracy of tile based on the order sheet, but we don’t know what the tile specifier was expecting. When we order tile, we bring it on site so it can be seen and inspected by the decision maker or specifier prior to installation. Builders often have a foreman on site, who may not have been the original decision-maker familiar with the expected tile products. Their goal is to keep the job moving smoothly. We recommend that the homeowner, designer, or specifying party inspect the tile for accuracy before installation, and advise us immediately of any discrepancies. Removing installed tile is laborious, time consuming, and costly. 
4.  *IRREGULAR TILE: Irregular and hand-crafted tiles are very popular due to their natural and artistic appearance. Given the variation in color, shade, and thickness, some tiles may be asymmetrical and often non-rectified. No installer can change the attributes of the tile. Know your tile’s unique traits before you finalize your selections. 
5.  *HAND-SELECTING: If you plan to hand select only certain tiles or remove any tiles from your order, that should be done prior to installation. Our installers will then install only the tiles you have selected. Removing tiles after installation requires a lot of labor and risk. If you plan to hand-select, we will need to know in advance in order to advise you as to how much extra tile you should order.
6. *DRY LAY:  Before installation, we can lay all individual tiles on an unused horizontal floor surface in your home for you to hand-select unwanted pieces. This is called a dry lay, requiring extra time from the installer and decision-maker because your own subjectivity and decision making are involved. Dry lay extends install time, and incurs an additional fee. Please advise us if you want a dry lay. Our installers will lay the tiles for you to cherry pick. Once you start to “manipulate” the tiles and eliminate some, it will change the overall flow completely. It becomes important to cherry pick throughout the whole layout, or the outcome will appear splotchy. Extra tile will need to be ordered, and if it’s special order tile, understand it cannot be returned. Most vendors will not accept return of tile, especially open cartons. 
7. *CRITICAL LIGHTING EFFECTS: When natural or artificial light shines on walls and floors from a distance of less than 12” from surface or at an angle almost parallel to tile surfaces, normal and acceptable inconsistencies in the tile work are highlighted by shadows that exaggerate these conditions and can magnify the effect of natural variation in the materials. This is a well known consideration for seasoned tile installers, but not for those outside of the tile industry. It’s imperative to know that allowable lippage and warpage can be accentuated by critical lighting. All inherent imperfections will be more visible. Remember to coordinate your lighting as you finalize your tile selections with your design team. Flush lighting can serve as a magnifying glass to all acceptable imperfections, especially lippage.
8. *LIPPAGE: Lippage is a known condition that occurs when the edge of one tile is higher or lower than the adjacent tile. Lippage is inherent in all installation methods and may be unavoidable due in part to the way tile is manufactured. For the least lippage, choose highly flat or gauged tiles, meaning they have minimal warpage or bowing. Large format porcelain tile (over 15″ on one side) will inherently have some degree of warpage. Beware of cheap tile, which often is not calibrated (sorted into groups or calibers based on finished size). Most warpage is not notable to the human eye until installation. We can install beautifully, but we cannot change the attributes of tile. To minimize lippage we can increase grout joint size and avoid 50% (1/2) offset layouts (like a brick lay) as the midpoint and end point will be adjacent to one another in these instances, making lippage most notable.  Stacking tiles or offsetting at 33% or smaller will minimize lippage in such circumstances. Remember; lighting can also accentuate the visibility of lippage.
9. *GROUTING: When grout type is not specified, our standard is high-performance stain-resistant cement grout (such as Laticrete Permacolor/Select, Mapei Ultra Color Plus, TEC Power grout, Custom Polyblend PRISM). Minimum grout joint size will be based on TCNA standards and product-specific installation instructions. TCNA does not recommend less than 1/16″ joints, despite some manufacturers suggesting smaller joints. We cannot make joints smaller than recommended industry standards, despite design preferences, as this can become a maintenance issue for clients. For multi-color or deep-pigment grouts (some of which require taping), bag applied grout, and epoxy or epoxy performance grout, additional labor (and materials for epoxies) will apply. Make sure to notify us before bidding or in bidding documents and/or RFIs (requests for information). For clients who opt to order your own tile, you will also need grout and matching caulk or sealant. Sealant is different than sealer. Sealant is a silicone product, while caulk is an acrylic product, and both come in a similar tube to match grout. Multi-plane installations and installations requiring movement joints require soft joints, like caulk or sealant, to match your grout. Make sure if you are ordering directly, to order matching caulk or sealant when you order your grout. 
10. *CAULK & SEALANT (SOFT JOINTS): Caulk or sealant are used in addition to grout in matching colors to allow for movement and expansion joints (soft joints). Caulking compound: used to be the only soft joint compound made to match grout. It is a plastic material consisting of pigment and vehicle, used for sealing joints in buildings and other structures where normal structural movement may occur. Historically caulk has been used to match grout until recent years. Sealant: recently emerged in the tile industry to match grout colors. It Is an elastomeric material that is used to fill and seal the expansion joint. This material prevents the passage of moisture and allows horizontal and lateral movement at the expansion joint. It is more flexible than caulk, so it is becoming more and more prominent. It is harder to clean during application, and it can be prone to seeping, especially when porous stone is involved, requiring extra work and skill set and a detail-oriented and seasoned tile installer.
11. *THRESHOLDS / TRANSITIONS / PROFILES: Tile vendors often sell standard 4″x36″ door thresholds, and sometimes even 6″x72″ curb tops, but generally only in limited colors. These can be cut down by us to make them shorter (but not narrower). For customized thresholds or curb tops, jambs, headers, niche tops and sides, we recommend purchasing from a slab fabricator who does countertop slabs. They can provide the slab materials, even when we install them. For minimalist floor transitions like Schluter 1/8″ Schiene or similar products, we can use these only when adjacent floors can be flush. On walls, Schluter or similar profiles are made to cover the exposed side of the tile and wrap under the tile. Profiles must match thickness of the tile, and are installed with the tile, not after. 
12. *CHANGE ORDERS: Demolition or many other unknown conditions may reveal extra work needed after work has commenced. More often, additional work may be requested by you while we are installing, and can extend the scope of our work. This additional work after a contract is signed is called a CHANGE ORDER. To avoid unexpected change orders, please advise your installer if you believe something is missing from your bid like an unseen condition you may know about your home that we or our installer could not anticipate.
13. *SEALERS: (different than sealant above). Sealer fills the pores of porous tile, such as stone and unglazed or crackle tiles, and can also add a layer of grout protection. The tile vendor should specify whether your tile requires a sealer. If you are ordering your own tile, make sure to advise us of this. Stain resistant grouts do not require sealer, although grout joints can be sealed as an additional service, which should then be maintained. Unless stone comes pre-sealed, natural stone tiles generally need to be sealed at installation, but glazed ceramic or porcelain generally do not and often will not absorb sealer. Penetrating sealers provide protection against staining, while color-enhancing sealers protect and bring out natural tones of stone. Please advise us if you have natural stone, so we can include sealing of your tile. Sealers need to be maintained! ALL SEALERS must be re-applied in the future accordance with tile manufacturer recommendations. 
14. *HAND-CRAFTED TILE ATTRIBUTES – These tiles are very popular due to their artistic appearance. Some tiles may have varying or crackled finishes, and be asymmetrical or irregular. Please be aware of tile traits before tile is ordered. You may want to see a grouted board of photos from vendor.
15. *NATURAL STONE ATTRIBUTES – Unlike man-made porcelain and ceramic products, natural stone has unique organic qualities. With over 20 years experience installing natural stone, we’ve learned that every client views the variation differently. For more info on natural stone, please read our STONE vs. PORCELAIN BLOG POST.
16. *VARIATION: Variation occurs within and between tiles, and includes diverse color, shade, veining, fissures, pores, thickness, and edges. Non-rectified tiles (with edges that are NOT right angles) are common, and require bigger grout joints, and may be visibly irregular. Preference of each tile’s characteristics is subjective. Handcrafted or stone tile are specifically for those who can embrace these unpredictable and exciting characteristics.
17. *STONE REACTION TO MOISTURE: Natural stone, especially light marbles, may discolor during and after installation. Temporary change may occur while mortar is drying, especially over waterproofing which slows the process. Permanent effects may remain also because natural stone is made of minerals such as calcite, pyrite, silts, sands, organic matter, ferrous material (iron), chlorite 3, and epidote 4 among many other elements. “Reaction” or discoloration is most common in wet/moist areas due to exposure to wetness. Sealer does not block absorption of steam particles, and reactive stones can still oxidize and yellow after being sealed thoroughly. Ask your tile vendor before ordering natural stone to understand expectations. An excellent installation cannot change innate characteristics of stone which are considered “normal” due to the unpredictable nature of stone. Also, ask if your natural stone or marble requires a special rapid-set thinset. This is sometimes required with green marbles or special products, and is a labor upgrade! 
18. *QUESTIONS: If you have any questions, please call our office M-F 9am-5pm at 301-881-8483 or email us at office@vallefuoco.com so we can help.