Tile Shading issue advise

[Njdceramics]

Hi all turned up to my job this morning laying 60x60 Versace porcelain and have complaints about shade variation

The job has a large centre piece with Nero black tiles then the the border and then the blanco into the other areas of the room

First day layed centre piece then borders and white tiles cut into borders and no problems

Second day protected tiling already done with sheets and worked off dry tiling to start expanding the White tiles away from the centre piece at end of day pulled up protection cleaned over floor and ran out to make sons school parents evening

This morning under fresh light and with all tiling exposed you can see that there is a shading issue

I suppose what I'm asking is how liable I am considering that all batch and shade numbers are identical on the boxes and these tiles have come directly from the factory in Italy and of course are not cheap tiles
The suppliers have agreed to send a new lot of the White and customer is happy with all the black tiles and border work so will not have to remove them just the whites but obviously now I will have to strip out a day and a half of my work and start from scratch
So would the customer be entitled to compensation or is it just if you fitted it its your fault card which is a pig because the tiles they don't match with were covered to avoid any scratching so couldn't really see they weren't matching up
Will try to workout how to post pictures but at the moment just wondering where I stand and what the factories stance will be
Also still have all the boxes with batch and shade numbers at the job
After a rummage in the skip great fun

 

[Time's Ran Out]

Only you can see the shading issues - not visible on photos - but if all the boxes and shade numbers are the same and kept, there's not much you can do IMHO.
I'd be charging for taking them up!

Nice job!

 

[Flintstone]

I would be complaining to the supplier and try and get them to compensate you for lost time

 

[Njdceramics]

Thanks timeless if you zoom in some of the outside rows there is a grey tinge to some supplier turned up and said if I was a good tiler I wouldn't have fitted them

And I did check all codes before starting so how much responsibility do I have to take for their product

Also not helped having to start in centre of room to make sure focal point is right then having the audacity to protect my work

 

[Njdceramics]

That's the road I want to take local tiler

 

[Italy]

I'm sorry, but it is written on the box.
tiler, you have to stop and charge lost day, from tile factory. (Via the supplier).

 

[Flintstone]

If you have checked all the boxes and shade numbers are the same then that's all you can do, your not gonna inspect every tile. Stand your ground with them! Not sure how they can compensate you unless it's a tile shop

 

[Italy]

If you have checked all the boxes and shade numbers are the same then that's all you can do, your not gonna inspect every tile. Stand your ground with them! Not sure how they can compensate you unless it's a tile shop

you must inspect each tile.

 

[Andy Allen]

Who supplied the tiles
..you or the customer?

 

[Time's Ran Out]

I'd have told him to f... off and I don't swear! He's trying to portion blame away from his product.
Just do it, put in a extra on your bill and take it from there or not. At the end of the day you won't be happy if you leave them, you can't walk without some pay, so best smile and learn.
Tell us all the name of the tiles, the name of the rep, and like BCT tiles we'll give our opinions.

 

[hmtiling]

As you haven't supplied the tiles and checked codes then I don't think you should be replacing them without be paid to do so. As local says, supplier should be paying.

 

[Flintstone]

Deffinately if you haven't supplied tiles you should be the one that's in a strong position with the customer!

 

[Rich Midge]

I'd be charging to replace as well. If all batch and shade numbers match then imo you'd every right to fit them. The customer presumably took and accepted delivery so they must take some responsibility. It can be difficult to notice shading differences when you've just got your head down working. Also, the fact the supplier is willing to supply more tiles I'd take as an admission of fault with the original ones supplied.

 

[Njdceramics]

Customer supplied through her brothers tile import company
Tiles come direct from factory

Customer being really nice she just doesn't want to get caught up in the argument

And yes timeless I wasn't there when this was said

 

[hmtiling]

Customer supplied through her brothers tile import company
Tiles come direct from factory

Customer being really nice she just doesn't want to get caught up in the argument

And yes timeless I wasn't there when this was said

If she was being really nice she'd have said ' of course I'll pay for the extra time as it's not your fault'

 

[Njdceramics]

She has paid me some money to cover up to now it's just where we go from here
I want to leave her with a job she's happy with but think the factory has to take some blame
I mean it's Versace not b&q

 

[Time's Ran Out]

So why get involved. They can see your doing a good job, let them sort it with the supplier and just tell them how much it will cost to replace them. When they replace the tiles what happens if it's the first lot that's wrong?
Cut your loses, and state your terms, if they are the same batch etc it's there quality control not your fixing. I'am the first to say ( 2nd today as Antonio 1st) its tiler error for shading, but only if you haven't checked batch nos.

 

[Rich Midge]

They'll probably play the "claims cannot be accepted once material has been fixed" card. They'll say they're only supplying more as a good will gesture but like I said earlier I'd be insisting it's an admission of fault with the product.

 

[Njdceramics]

If batch numbers were different I would have held my hands up straight away

 

[widler]

you must inspect each tile.

Aye imagine that.......... day rate job that

 

[Njdceramics]

Aye imagine that.......... day rate job that

Go to job unpack 150 tiles inspect
..... Go home

 

[gamma38]

To inspect each tile though you would have to lay them out somewhere as a whole, not practical imo. Plus who would do this if all the numbers are the same.

 

[widler]

Exactamundo , its impossible unless we have unlimited time scales

 

[Andy Allen]

Definitely suppliers problem not yours.

 

[Italy]

there is no need to check all the tiles, when you see that changes shades, you stop

 

[Time's Ran Out]

We don't have that natural sunlight like Italy . It's not always possible to see slight changes in 'whites' .
They were most likely from an Italian factory anyway - so it was your fault.

 

[John Benton]

Sometimes the changes are so slight it's not noticeable….until you grout and then it shows up. I had it once with a rogue box of tiles. The whole palette had been checked, not by me, apart from 1 box that the details were facing inwards. Customer forgot to mention it to me and they were laid. He did pay me to remove them and relay. It was never noticed until it was grouted and then when you caught it in certain light it showed up, albeit very minimally, but once you know it's there then the game's up.

 

[Njdceramics]

On a normal day I probably would have seen the change going from one end of a room with it all in front of me

This was different as had to start in the middle then cover to work off of it
...... Perfect storm

 

[Bathfix Bob]

Can't really offer any new advice other than every so often you are served a great big excrement sandwich and you just have to eat it down. I ate mine earlier in the year with a BCT fail.

 

[Italy]

frankly I'm tired of saying things to those who refuse to understand.
Perhaps the rules are valid only in Italy?
go read the rules. you could avoid many headaches.

 

[Njdceramics]

Thanks for the input chaps
The thing is this type of thing is a rarity for me so when it happens it stings
All I'm trying to do is a good job for someone and my work is not the issue here it is their product
I stand behind my work and would just like them to do the same