CTEF Tile Tip: Avoiding Ceramic Tile Installation Surprises
Most sample boards or tile literature now list a range of shade, tone, texture and color as found in the TCNA Handbook and similarly in ANSI A137.1: Specifications for Ceramic Tile. This chart, as shown in Table 3 (see excerpt above), ranges from V0 (zero), which exhibits no shade range detectable by the average eye, to the potentially extremely varied color and tone of V4. Also, be especially cautious of consumers who make their selections online or from a color photo. While being a great way to save time, there is nothing like seeing, touching and knowing all about their selection before the tile is ordered. Additionally, a computer or tablet monitor may not be color-perfect and there is very little if any recourse once the tile has been installed.
The safest way to eliminate the “five oh five” surprise is to provide your customer with a mounted and grouted panel that shows the tile shade variation and pattern layout (if the job calls for it) along with the size and color of the grout joint. This, of course, is to be completed BEFORE the job begins. You may say following this procedure will cost you additional time and money—which, yes, it does—but this cost is minimal when compared to the cost of a possible tear-out and replacement. Finding and fulfilling your customers’ tile desires in advance will save a lot of headaches and money.
Always strive not to meet your customer’s expectations, but to exceed them while also providing superior workmanship and quality the first time.
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