Spa glass tile with no room for grout???

[Sparq79]

pool builder installed 1x1 glass tile today...and I am not happy, hoping pros either calm me or pump me up!

2 things seem wrong to me here...the most obvious is that last tile on the corner that is crooked as heck and the 2nd is that it doesn't appear there is any room for grout between the top plane and the side plane..without sufficient grout between the two am I not going to get fractured tiles in no time??

Am I being too picky or am I right in wanting them to fix/redo before any more work is done here.

Thanks!

 

[ajw22]

Yeah, it is sloppy work.

Those small top tiles need to be cut smaller to leave room for even grout lines. That becomes more difficult to cut the smaller they get. That whole top row was planned poorly and should have been laid out so one row of 1X1 tiles is used and those small cuts are not needed.

See what your tile guy can do. It may be difficult if he is not a real artisan.

Did your PB put a waterproofing coat before installing the tile?

 

[Sparq79]

I'll take some more pictures in the morning, maybe the layout isn't clear but the top layer are the 1x1 tiles lying flat (perpendicular) on the 1x1 on the side.

As for the waterproofing coat ..I have no idea. I know he built up the spa with mortar (grey) then leveled it out with thinset (white). I then feel like I saw him brushing something on top of that and a few hours later he laid tile.

I can go through their garbage and check...or ask them when they come tomorrow. They don't really want to talk to the homeowners...they are all subcontractors and have been told by the PB not to talk to the homeowners....

 

[ajw22]

Ok, they did not cut the top tiles, just rotated them 90 degrees. But the layout does not work and leave space for grout lines.

 

[Sparq79]

Nope. Nothing was cut. My concern is that there is no room for grout between the horizontal (spillover surface) and the vertical (spillover wall) glass tiles. Isn't this going to result in damage fairly quickly or is grout between the two not needed?. More pictures attached. Thanks again! Also....I did not see anything in the garbage pile that would indicate they applied waterproofing - what can I expect as a result? If it matters at all, the tiles did not come with a mesh backing...they have are "connected" via a clear tape from the top.

 

[bigorangesky]

Just a homeowner here ... that corner would drive me nuts. If was my pool, I'd call the GC and say "look the whole job is not great, but I'm willing to compromise and only ask to fix the worst parts". I can live with some sloppy work that will hardly be noticed, but something this prominent is just not acceptable.

I feel like every pool I see with these small tiles has lots of small imperfections. Also looks like they have a sticky backing on the top sheets? Maybe the product itself is partially to blame.

Good Luck.

 

[ajw22]

Now I see the buildup of the tile.

The question is what really waterproofs the top of that spa? Water will flow in between the tiles if they are not completely grouted and then into the concrete shell. The water then needs to escape which it will do along grout lines and create efflorescence on your tiles.

Efflorescence - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[Sparq79]

Just a homeowner here ... that corner would drive me nuts. If was my pool, I'd call the GC and say "look the whole job is not great, but I'm willing to compromise and only ask to fix the worst parts". I can live with some sloppy work that will hardly be noticed, but something this prominent is just not acceptable.

I feel like every pool I see with these small tiles has lots of small imperfections. Also looks like they have a sticky backing on the top sheets? Maybe the product itself is partially to blame.

Good Luck.

Thanks for the feedback - I sent the "project manager" the pics and told him I was going to let the tile guy know my concerns....all I got was a "thanks". We are living in peculiar times is all I can say. Covid and the demand for pools has made PBs into gods that don't need to answer to anyone. These tiles do seem to be a PITA with their sticky top sheet - but the PB touted that the tile guy they had was one of the best in the business and I'm paying $$$ extra just for them to lay this glass tile. I "feel" like I should get what I want - but it's likely going to be like what you said - I'm going to have to close my eyes on the overall sloppiness and just fight for the major stuff like this crooked corner tile.

 

[Sparq79]

Now I see the buildup of the tile.

The question is what really waterproofs the top of that spa? Water will flow in between the tiles if they are not completely grouted and then into the concrete shell. The water then needs to escape which it will do along grout lines and create efflorescence on your tiles.

Efflorescence - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

I hate that as the homeowner, who is paying a good chunk of change for the job, has to have a PhD to research and babysit the PBs. I had to supply my own grout (because I wanted something other than white) and I picked up "Prism" - which specifically mentions one of its benefits as "no efflorescence". I'm sure there's probably some tiny disclaimer somewhere that makes that a marketing gimmick at most. Obviously if there's no space for the grout between the tiles then it cannot prevent the efflorescence. What are my options at this point? I highly doubt the tile guy is going to redo the job...I checked the tiles this morning and one could possibly still remove the problem rows of tiles (since the thinset was only applied to the beam and not on top of the vertical wall tile) but I highly doubt they can then be re-set to be even with the rest of the spillover.

I sense that if I fuss too much now the PB is just going to stall the rest of the project (still have deck to pour and an enclosure to put up, plus all the equipment). This build is already 4 months underway and we signed the contract almost a year ago. I'm a little overwhelmed but thinking maybe documenting everything I can, letting them finish, and then threatening legal action if it isn't done right. At least then there's a 99% complete project as opposed to being stuck in a battle with an 70% complete project. Thoughts? Am I overstressing this?

 

[ajw22]

You won’t know if it was done right until a year or two down the road and you see what problems develop.

A good waterproof membrane like Basecrete should have been put on the gunite before any tiling. Then the tile workmanship and grouting would only be a cosmetic issue.

You have to decide if you want to confront this now or later. I think your tile design will be problematic. That design looks great but after maintaining pools for 30 years I would never do it. I prefer low maintenance designs.