Large-format tile: what has to be true before it goes on the wall
Big tile hides nothing. Flatness tolerances, lippage, mortar coverage, leveling systems, where the seams go on a slab wall, and why the prep is most of the job.
Read noteNotes from the field
The questions we answer on every site visit.
Written the way we'd explain it standing in your bathroom with the wall open. Costs, assemblies, materials, and what to ask before you hire anyone.
Renovating a condo bathroom: what your strata will ask and what the unit below needs
Strata approval, elevator bookings, noise bylaws, core drilling, and why a condo shower is a waterproofing project for two homes. What to sort out before the demolition starts.
Read notePorcelain or natural stone? How to choose for a Vancouver home
Marble and limestone against porcelain slab and large-format tile: what each looks like in five years, what each asks of the household, and where we'd put which. An installer's honest take.
Read noteHow to hire a tile contractor in Vancouver
The questions to ask, what a real quote includes, what Schluter certification means, and the red flags that predict a shower rebuild in year four. A checklist from the other side of the table.
Read noteHow much does a bathroom renovation cost in Vancouver?
Real ranges for a Vancouver bathroom renovation, what actually moves the number, and where the cheap quote is hiding its cost. Written from the site visit, not the brochure.
Read noteKitchen tile renovation: what to decide before anyone picks up a trowel
Floors, backsplash, range wall, sequence with the cabinets and counters, and the material decisions that decide how a kitchen looks in year five. A working guide for Greater Vancouver kitchens.
Read noteWhat's actually behind a tiled shower
Tile isn't waterproof. Here's what has to be behind it, why most Lower Mainland showers built before the mid 2000s don't have it, and how to tell if yours is failing.
Read note