marble tile in shower cracked, now what
My mom lives in a condo and the shower has big square marble tiles. There is a big crack (1/4″ wide) through the middle of three tiles at the top starting from the edge of one tile. – does she have to replace the all the tile to get the right match? – is it…
My mom lives in a condo and the shower has big square marble tiles. There is a big crack (1/4″ wide) through the middle of three tiles at the top starting from the edge of one tile.
– does she have to replace the all the tile to get the right match?
– is it likely there is some kind of issue underneath and if so what could it be?
– who should she hire to remove, deal with issue and replace new tile?
As always, thanks
the last poster is a shill
You said that the tiles were “at the top.” Does that mean at the top of the shower where they are not really getting wet? If so, you may just want to fill them. They sell an epoxy-based marble crack filler that will work…you can add pigment for different colors
thanks for information.
They are wall tiles and they measure 12″ x 12″. The crack is much much bigger than a hairline.
Who do I call first? Tile person to come and remove to figure out what is going on? How do I find a good tile person?
How large are the tiles and are they wall, or floor tiles? Larger floor tiles have to have a very stable substrate, or they have a tendency to crack. The pattern of the crack will tell you a lot. If there is one long crack running through 3 tiles, that usually indicates some kind of structural failure (this doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s a huge problem, it just might be that the subsurface isn’t rigid enough for very large tiles, you may have to go with a smaller tile). Random cracking usually indicates an instalation problem (usually being the key word). A 1/4 gap in a wall tile would make me very nervous, there aren’t too many scenarios where that would happen, and something strange is happening. Can you post a picture, you can usually tell what the problem is by the pattern of the cracks.
Whether or not you have to replace all the tiles will largely depend on how long the tiles have been down. They will have a patina if they have been down for a while due to foot traffic, exposure to pollution in the air, cleaning products etc. which makes it difficult to match up. Newer tiles shouldn’t be as much of a problem matching.
marble tiles are usually laid very tightly together and might have to replace all, if it is cracked then that means possibly that the grout underneath was not applied full and there is a gap underneath, call Kevin 347 961 5544, very reliable