Everything we get asked about tile: permits, materials, what is behind a shower, and how the work actually goes. No sales pitch on any of it.
Guides
Each one answers the question a homeowner actually asks us on site. Start with the one that matches your job.
Permits / 6 min read
What the state code exempts, what needs a trade permit, and why a tile job and a plumbing job are not the same job. Read this before you pull anything off a wall.
Read the guide
Showers / 7 min read
The pan, the membrane, the backer board, the grout and the tile. Five layers, and the one nobody sees is the one that decides how long the shower lasts.
Read the guide
Showers / 5 min read
A straight comparison of the two options, with the honest warning signs for each, so you can tell which one you are actually looking at.
Read the guide
How we work / 6 min read
The whole sequence, from the first visit to the last silicone joint. Substrate prep, waterproofing, layout, setting, grout. No steps skipped.
Read the guide
Materials / 8 min read
Where each material is the right call, where it is the wrong one, and what each one asks of the floor and the wall behind it.
Read the guide
Grout / 7 min read
How to tell a grout problem from a substrate problem, what a regrout actually involves, and the four things that make a fresh grout job fail.
Read the guide
Grout / 5 min read
Sometimes you can, sometimes you cannot, and the difference is in the wall behind the tile rather than the tile itself. Here is how to tell.
Read the guide
Grout / 5 min read
What cleaning actually removes, what it cannot, how to tell which one your grout needs, and why mixing bleach and vinegar is a bad afternoon.
Read the guide
Problems / 7 min read
What causes it, how it is diagnosed from above the tile, and the difference between a repair and a rebuild. This is the most common call we get.
Read the guide
Problems / 6 min read
When a repair is the right call, when replacement is the right call, and what makes a repair fail the second year.
Read the guide
Planning / 6 min read
The real sequence and what each step costs in days, what delays it, and the three things a homeowner controls that move the date.
Read the guide
Technical / 8 min read
What deflection is, what the L number means, and why a floor over a long joist span needs one number and not the other. The most useful thing a tile contractor knows that a homeowner does not.
Read the guide
Materials / 7 min read
Porcelain against ceramic against stone in a wet room, slip resistance, and why the pan and the wall behind it matter more than the tile you pick.
Read the guide
Technical / 8 min read
What a subfloor has to be before tile goes on, the common failures, and the tile problems that no amount of good tile can fix.
Read the guide
Materials / 6 min read
How grout ages, what looks good next to what, the honest reason most grout goes wrong, and what to bring into the showroom.
Read the guide
Custom work / 7 min read
What the heat does to a tile joint, the clearance questions to ask before anyone starts, and the substrate detail that gets skipped.
Read the guide
Planning / 7 min read
The seven things that move the number, and what to ask on the estimate so you can see the number move for the right reasons.
Read the guide
If you are in New Britain, Berlin, Newington, Plainville, Farmington, Avon or a nearby Connecticut town and need tile installation, bathroom remodeling, shower waterproofing, backsplash work, or floor tile installation, contact Dmtilellc today. Free estimates available.
