From the practice on site
The client did not call us because he did not like the look of his new bathroom. He called us because water appeared on the ceiling of the flat below immediately after the works were finished and handed over.
The company that carried out the works no longer answered the calls or the complaint.
As soon as we walked into the bathroom it was clear that the problem was not a single fault. Uneven joints, tiles cut without precision, badly finished edges and unfinished details were visible at almost every step. Even so, the look of it was only what could be seen on the surface.
What was under the ceramics was far more serious
An inspection of the state we found established that the waterproofing, although listed in the specification and charged to the client, had not been done. Because of that, water which gets through the joints and the critical points has no protective barrier to stop it spreading into the structure and into the flat below.
The water pipes were replaced, but the old main valve was left in place. That means a new installation was built without replacing one of its most important control elements, the valve that would have to shut the water supply quickly and safely in case of a fault.
When the finishing work is this imprecise, there is good reason to ask how the parts that can no longer be seen were done: the water joints, the drain connections, the falls towards the gullies and the preparation of the substrate under the ceramics.
In a bathroom it is precisely those hidden works that matter more than the look of the tiles. A bad grout line can be noticed at once. A bad joint or missing waterproofing often becomes visible only when the water reaches the neighbour's ceiling.
The high price was no guarantee of quality
The hardest part of this case was not only the technical problem. The estimate the works were charged by was roughly four times higher than the offer our own company would have given for a comparable scope of work.
The clients took out a loan for the renovation. They believed that a high price meant a serious company, good workmanship and security in case of trouble. Instead they got a bathroom that had only just been finished, water in the flat below and a contractor who did not answer the complaint.
They no longer had the money for another demolition and for doing the works again. In practice they were forced to pay off a loan for a bathroom that already needed repair.
They were given a real hell in their own home.
How situations like this can be prevented
With a complete bathroom renovation it is not enough to choose the tiles and agree a total price. What the offer covers has to be defined exactly: which installations and elements are being replaced, which materials are being built in and who answers for the works as a whole.
It is especially important to document the phases that will later be closed up:
- the water and drainage installations;
- the joints and the pressure test of the installation before it is closed up;
- the preparation of the substrate;
- the execution of the waterproofing;
- the treatment of corners, penetrations and the area around the gully;
- the falls of the floor towards the drain.
The client should get a clear offer, a specification of the works, a receipt or an invoice and the terms of the guarantee. A spoken promise does not mean much if, once the works are finished, there is nobody who answers the phone.
We are not publishing this example in order to name anybody in public, but to show why supervision of the works, documentation and the responsibility of the contractor matter as much as the price and the final look of the bathroom.
The photographs show the defects of the finishing work as we found them immediately after the handover. What cannot be seen on a finished surface has to be checked and documented while the installations and the layers are still accessible.
A bathroom is not judged only by how it looks when the works are finished, but also by what lies under the tiles, and by who will stand behind the work done if something goes wrong.
