Shower Tile Installation in Farmington, CT

Yes. It is the natural move in a 1980s Farmington primary bath. Removing the tub deck typically frees a 5-by-6-foot or larger footprint for a tiled shower with a bench and a linear drain. The plumber relocates the drain and valve under a plumbing permit while the floor is open; we build the pan, waterproof, flood-test and tile.

Yes. Large-format porcelain panels and 24×48 tiles need a very flat substrate (within an eighth of an inch over ten feet), a medium-bed mortar, back-buttering and a leveling system. We plan the vein direction and matching on a drawing before the tile is cut.

That is the whole job: build for a house that moves. The floor is stiffened and leveled, a plywood layer goes over the wide-board subfloor and cement board over the old plaster, a bonded membrane covers that, and silicone handles every change of plane. Movement joints go where the old framing will shift, and the tile format is chosen so the pattern suits the room rather than fights it.

Not for the tile. Connecticut's building code exempts tiling and finish work without structural change under the state exempt-work list (CGS 20-340(11)). Drain and valve changes are plumbing permits and lighting is an electrical permit, both filed online with the Farmington Building Division at 20 Monteith Drive by the licensed trade.

We build the pan, then go over it with a bonded waterproofing membrane such as a Schluter-KERDI style sheet or a liquid-applied one where the geometry calls for it. The membrane runs over the pan, up the walls, around the curb, and over every seam, corner and valve penetration, and we hold a twenty-four-hour flood test before any tile goes down. If a drop moves, we find it while it is still inexpensive to fix.

Only sometimes, and only when the old tile passes the checks: solidly bonded everywhere when you tap it, flat, and structurally sound, with enough give at the outlets, counters and doors to absorb the added thickness. When it fails any of those, tiling over it locks the problem in. On a wet area we almost always take it down to the substrate instead.