Service
Bathroom Tile and Shower Installation
Tiled showers built on a waterproofing system that actually holds, plus bathroom floors, niches and curbs. New Bern and the surrounding towns.
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Free estimates · open 8:00am to 8:00pm · New Bern and Eastern NC
- Free estimatesSame-day reply in most cases
- Owner on every jobQuoted and installed by one person
- Open 8:00am to 8:00pmCall or text, seven days a week
- Serving since 2024New Bern and Eastern NC
Tile is not waterproof. Grout is not waterproof. The system behind the tile is what keeps water out of your framing, and it is invisible the moment the job is finished — which is exactly why it is the corner most often cut.
A shower that leaks does not announce itself. It shows up two years later as a soft spot in the floor outside the shower, or a stain on the ceiling below. By then the fix is the whole shower plus the framing. That is the job I would rather you never need.
What the job includes
Written out so you know exactly what you are paying for, and what you are not.
- Demo of the existing shower or tub surround, and haul-away
- Framing checked and corrected where the old install left it out of plumb
- A complete waterproofing system — bonded membrane or a properly sloped mud pan
- Flood test before any tile is set
- Niches, benches and curbs framed and waterproofed as part of the system
- Tile set with the layout planned around the niche, the valve and the drain
- Grout, and flexible sealant at every inside corner and change of plane
- Glass measured after tile, so it fits the shower that exists rather than the one on paper
Materials
- Porcelain and ceramic wall tile in any format
- Large format panels for fewer grout lines
- Mosaic shower floors, which handle the slope to the drain properly
- Marble, travertine and other natural stone, sealed
- Pebble and penny round, with the extra grout work they need
- Curbless and low-threshold entries where the framing allows
How the shower is built behind the tile
There are two systems I build. A bonded sheet or liquid membrane applied over backer board, with every seam and corner banded — fast, reliable, and what most showers get. Or a traditional mortar bed with a pre-slope under the liner, which is more work and still the right answer on some layouts.
What both have in common: the pan slopes a quarter inch per foot to the drain, the corners are sealed before tile, and the whole thing gets flood tested and left overnight before a single tile goes on. If a contractor skips the flood test, there is no way to know the pan holds until your ceiling tells you.
The niche is where most showers leak. It is a hole cut in a waterproofed wall, so it gets waterproofed as its own box, sloped slightly so water runs out instead of sitting on the shelf, and tiled with the back wall piece installed last. A niche with a flat shelf and an unsealed corner is a slow leak with a tile face on it.
The curb is the other one. It gets wrapped in membrane on all three faces, with the top sloped back into the shower. Fasteners never go through the top of a curb, because every screw is a hole in the waterproofing.
Recent bathroom work
What it costs
Real ranges, installed, not including the tile itself. Layout, prep and cuts move these either way — anyone who quotes you a firm number without seeing the space is guessing.
| Job | Typical installed range |
|---|---|
| Shower walls and floor, standard size | $3,500 – $7,000 |
| Tub surround, tiled to ceiling | $1,800 – $3,500 |
| Bathroom floor only | $600 – $1,400 |
| Curbless entry, including framing changes | Quoted after looking at the floor structure |
Timeline. A tub surround is two to three days. A full tiled shower is three to five, because waterproofing and mortar need cure time that cannot be rushed. A floor on its own is one to two.
Questions I get asked
Can you build a curbless shower?
Often, yes. It depends on whether the floor framing can be dropped or the slab can take the slope. I will tell you after looking at what is under the bathroom, not before.
My shower leaks. Can you just fix the grout?
Almost never. Grout is not what was keeping the water out, so regrouting a leaking shower buys a few months at best. I will find where it is actually getting in and tell you straight whether it is a repair or a rebuild.
How long before I can use the shower?
Three days after grouting as a rule, to let everything fully cure. Using it early is how you get hazing and soft grout.
Do you do the plumbing?
I set the tile and the waterproofing. Moving a valve or a drain needs a licensed plumber, and I work alongside one regularly — I will coordinate it so you are not chasing two trades.
What about mold behind the tile?
If the shower was built without proper waterproofing, there is often something going on behind it. During demo you will see exactly what I see, and I will photograph it before anything gets covered back up.
Ready for a straight answer on your tile job?
Call and talk to the person who will actually do the work. Free estimates, no pressure, no sales visit.