Staten Island Tile Contractors: Shower Tile, Bathroom & Kitchen Backsplash, Porcelain & Ceramic Installation
Tile vs. Acrylic: What You Actually Pay
- Acrylic liner systems often quote $8,000–$15,000 locally. A tiled shower runs $5,000–$12,000, lasts decades, and can be regrouted instead of replaced.
Payment Terms & Timeline.
- Our installers hold CTEF Certified Tile Installer credentials and complete yearly Schluter® and Laticrete waterproofing training. We attend Coverings, North America’s largest tile show, for the latest curbless shower methods.
Custom Shower & Tub Conversions
- We specialize in tiled walk-in showers, tub surrounds and tub-to-shower conversions. Every shower gets a bonded wtrproof membrane, (where I've seen all shower leaks start), plus a pre-sloped pan and optional linear drain. 92% of our showers needed 0 callbacks in the first 5 years. If a grout or caulk touch-up is ever needed, it’s $0..
Itemized, Upfront Pricing
- Every quote itemizes: tile, waterproofing, demolition, labor. Most tiled showers on the Island run ~$5,000–$12,000. tub surrounds ~$2,500–$6k. Free in home measurements within 48 hours.
Small bathroom & Shower Retiling.
- Tile layouts that make small bathrooms feel bigger, plus master bath and shower retiling. A permanent tile alternative to acrylic liners, with a 10-year workmanship warranty.
- [See Small Bathroom Makeovers →]
Payment Terms & Timeline
- Only 30% down to schedule, balance due after your final walkthrough. Most showers finish in 5–8 days, including a 24-hour waterproof flood test before tile goes up. My installers average 15+ years experience.
DCWP Licensed, Fully Insured
- NYC requires a DCWP Home Improvement Contractor license for residential remodeling work. Always ask to see it. Ours: #2105481-DCA. Check it in 150 seconds on NYC’s license lookup. All jobs: $1M general liability, workers' comp, and NYC Trust Fund.
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Client: Kcnucv. In Heartland wanted our glossy emerald green subway tile in a vertical herringbone pattern, from the curb up to the ceiling. He had a stall shower in plain white 4-in. tile and beige floor tile. We demoed to the studs, waterproofed the walls, and built a mortar-bed pan sloped to the drain, flood-testing it before tiling. The walls got the glossy emerald tile in a vertical, centered on the niche with 2 corner shelves set into the tile. We laid a patterned mosaic on the shower floor and a cement-look porcelain across the bathroom, centered on the doorway so the pattern lines up at the entry. The frameless glass door was installed by others.
Cost: $9,999
Client Johannas off Richmond Rd. had a tub surround of small 4-in. sq. tile that stopped short of the ceiling, with a dated soap dish and painted drywall above. We tore the old tile out to the studs, installed new cement board and waterproofing, and ran white subway tile from the tub to the ceiling. We built a recessed niche with a gray mosaic back and set blocking for two grab bars mounted through the tile. Then we carried the subway tile past the tub across the toilet wall and around the vanity mirror. The tub, floor and vanity stayed as they were, and the client’s plumber updated the faucet trim.
Price: $5,700
Our client Pius was converting an old tub into a walk-in shower and brought us in for all the tilework. We waterproofed the walls and shower pan, then set large-format marble-look porcelain on all three shower walls. We built two recessed niches into the tile and laid a dark gray penny-round mosaic on the shower floor, sloped to the drain for grip. Outside the shower, we installed large hexagon marble-look porcelain across the whole floor and a marble subway backsplash behind the vanity. The vanity, plumbing fixtures, glass door, lighting and paint were handled by other trades on the project.
Price: $12,500
Hear it from our happy clients!
Core Residential Tile Services in S.I.
Bathroom Floor Tile.
- Bathroom tile installation's the bulk of my work. For floors, I steer most people toward porcelain. Under ANSI A137.1 it has to achieve 0.5% water or less. So it shrugs off a wet bath mat and the steam from a long shower.
- Before a single tile goes down, we check your subfloor. Old plywood that flexes under your heel WILL crack grout within year 1, no matter how good the tile is. If it needs a second layer of plywood or an uncoupling membrane, I'll tell you up front. Not halfway through the job.
Tile Shower Installation
- I build shower floors with a proper slope to the drain, either a mortar bed or a foam tray depending on the layout. If you want a curbless, walk-in shower, I plan the slope and a linear drain from day one, because there's no curb to stop water from wandering onto the bathroom floor.
- For tile, I like to suggest:
- Porcelain on the walls for low water absorption
- Smaller mosaics on the shower floor, since more grout lines = better grip
- Glass or stone as an accent band. Not the whole wall, if you're watching your budget!
Wall Tile Installation
- I finish edges with Schluter metal trim or mitered corners rather than leaving a raw cut edge. Light changes how wall tile looks more than floor tile, so I always ask you to tape a sample up and look at it at night before we order.
- In kitchens, I usually run wall tile from the countertop to the bottom of the upper cabinets, sometimes all the way up to the ceiling on a range wall. In bathrooms, a full-height tile wall behind the vanity reads cleaner than the old half-wall with a bullnose cap that so many 1980s Staten Island bathrooms still have.
Kitchen Backsplash Tile
- In my experience, slapping up a kitchen backsplash is the absolute cheapest acoustic dampener for a visually screaming Staten Island kitchen.
- You've usually got a microscopic 25 ~35 square ft of real estate once you violently deduct the range hood and window framing. But the sq footage is a complete lie. The sheer volume of precise plunge cuts? Horrific. Interrogating switch plates, window returns, and dead-end cabinet runs is exactly where an installation either radiates ruthless perfection or violently exposes a sloppy weekend DIY disaster.
Outdoor, Patio & Pool Tile Installation
In Our Experience, outdoor masonry on the South Shore absolutely must survive brutal NY freeze-thaw torture. When microscopic water droplets infiltrate cheap "Temu" porous ceramics in late January, they violently expand. Aggressively detonating the surface glaze like shrapnel.
That is exactly why I exclusively mandated 2-centimeter hyper-dense porcelain pavers for a homeowner off Craig Ave, 2025. And drainage? If you don't fiercely pitch the runoff away ( far away ) from your foundation over a compacted aggregate bed, Hurricane Sandy's ghost will rot, rot your sub base. I rigorously mandate exterior-rated polymers and frost-immune submerged glass for every single custom pool perimeter.
Porcelain Tile Installation
Reggie and I've tested countless bargain-bin adhesives, and slapping dense porcelain onto cheap "Temu" thinset mathematically guarantees a catastrophic delamination.
We've seen that because porcelain aggressively rejects moisture, it flat-out refuses to grip standard mud. I fiercely mandate polymer-modified ANSI A118.15 bonding agents... back-buttering every single heavygauge slab. And cutting it, you may ask? You cant pray over a cheap score-and-snap, you'll violently shatter the edges. We deploy fresh continuous-rim diamond blades and aggressive core-bits to flawlessly dissect plumbing penetrations without butchering the vitreous body. Good work boys!
Ceramic Tile
According to the research spanning my entire career, deploying softer ceramic is...occasionally a financially brilliant maneuver :)
Its why I strictly confine it to bathroom walls and low-impact powder rooms where it won't suffer brutal impacts. But listen. If you recklessly install standard glazed ceramics in a chaotic kitchen where cast-iron skillets frequently dive-bomb the floor, you'll violently chip the surface and spectacularly expose the ugly red clay guts beneath. I aggressively map out dry layouts 1st to mathematically eliminate those fustrating 1-in. sliver cuts against your drywall...
Core Commercial Tile Services in S.I.
Custom Tile Installation
I routinely execute aggressive Custom Tile upgrades across storefronts down Hylan Boulevard and Richmond Avenue. in 2025 alone, we put in 50,000 of these tiles .
Commercial lockdowns demand a very tight timeline. You simply cannot paralyze a restaurant's operational cash flow for a week. I rigorously map out after-hours deployments, injecting the exact same hyper-resilient polymer mortars we use in residentials . To guarantee the floor survives relentless daily stampedes of heavy utility carts and winter salt-sludge.
Heated Tile Floors (Radiant Floor Heating Under Tile)
According to the research spanning a hundred brutal February morns, stepping onto a 78-degree porcelain slab is a ohh la la! luxurious upgrade. Its why we embeded Schluter Ditra-Heat cables directly into the uncoupling matrix fo a home in South Shore. And I don’t just casually lay wire. I ruthlessly interrogate the resistance with a multimeter before, during, and after the mortar cures to mathematically guarantee 0 microscopic shorts. It demands a dedicated GFCI circuit, but it aggressively defies winter without jacking up your threshold transitions.
This system works with most tile types, including porcelain and natural stone. The heating elements sit in a thin-set layer beneath the tile, connected to a thermostat for temperature control. Installation requires precise planning as well! I always run the multimeter tests myself, twice, because pulling up set tile to fix a dead wire is hell.
Marble, Travertine & Slate Tile Installation
In my opinion, putting down raw, porous marble without a paranoid sealing strategy ensures a permanent, catastrophic stain the second you spill red wine. Ask me how i know.
Natural stone demands agonizingly slow, surgical precision. We interrogate every one of those factory-filled void in a travertine slab, and I aggressively shuffle the veining across a dry-lay so you don't end up with a dark, unbalanced clump in the corner. Additionally, Polished stone in a wet zone is a spectacular slipping liability. Its why I demand of my team mandate honed finishes to maintain that aggressive foot-traction.
Herringbone & Custom Pattern Tile
- My Mentor Datin used to tell every commercial client upfront: navigating with rulers and eyes, a flawless herringbone matrix across a warped floor is an absolute geometric nightmare. Its why you should hire us to deal with it.
- If that central baseline deviates by even a 1/8th fraction of a millimeter, the entire visual rhythm fractures by the time you hit the baseboards. We recommend snap laser-grids and dry-set massive sections before a single drop of mortar is mixed. This completely obliterates standard waste ratios. expect a brutal 20% scrap-rate because of the sheer volume of slow, sharp diagonal cuts.
Subway Tile
I've tested countless layouts, and running classic 3x6 vitreous subway blocks across an test warped historic S.I. wall requires vicious leveling tactics.
Fro our experience You absolutely cant blindly trust a countertop to be perfectly horizontal! I strictly shoot an independent laser benchmark. If you haphazardly follow a sagging counter, the grout lines will violently amplify the wave, projecting a high and quite nauseating slope visible from the middle of the countertop....from 30 feet away.
Luxury Vinyl Tile (LVT) & Vinyl Tile Installation
in 2020, We coached Rosaline from Heartland Village this revelation:
- When your subterranean concrete basement sweats moisture, snapping down waterproof LVT is a strategically brilliant financial pivot. From our experience, it accelerates the timeline...because we completely bypass the agonizing mortar-curing purgatory. We can aggressively blanket a massive footprint in a single day. But let's establish reality: if you drop a heavy chef's knife point-down on vinyl, you will permanently gouge the wear layer. we'll tell you exactly which rooms deserve stone and which rooms require synthetic armor.
......Tile guy near me??
We extend our tile services beyond our primary location to homeowners and contractors across the greater St. Louis metro area. Coverage includes residential & commercial.
Our reach includes:
- Great Kills
- Heartland Village
- New Springville
- Port Richmond
- North Shore
- Arlington
In our opinion, quality tile work should not be limited to a single neighborhood. Whether you are located in the North or South, we work to bring the ( exact ) same level of craftsmanship & attention to detail....to every project!
Why Staten Island Homeowners Hire Me as Their Tile Contractor.
We start with an in-person or showroom consultation to understand the scope of the project and the space it will occupy. From there, we take measurements, review layout options, and provide a detailed estimate before any work begins. Our Process typically includes:
- Site assessment: to check subfloor conditions, moisture levels, and structural requirements
- Material selection: guided by our staff based on durability, maintenance, and style
- Pattern and layout planning: to minimize waste and ensure visual consistency
- Installation: using standard industry techniques for setting, grouting, and sealing
- Final walkthrough: to confirm the finished work meets the agreed specifications
We keep clients informed at each stage rather than leaving them to guess about timelines or next steps.
......What's the cost of tiling a room in S.I?
We ruthlessly reject vague, blanket pricing. The final invoice fluctuates based on exactly what catastrophic subfloor decay we unearth once the demolition starts, not just "labor- $x,xxx". Mt team dissects the numbers so you can forensically track exactly how much capital is bleeding into waterproofing v. the raw vitreous tile drops.
What Affects Tile Installation Cost?
In my 14 years experience, attempting to salvage a very rotted mud-bed hijacks your baseline labor budget. The final math hinges on: raw material density, the sheer physical footprint, and the careful geometric complexity of the pattern..
Project Type | Estimated Investment ( Staten Island ) | Best For | Factors that Affect Cost |
Shower Tile & Custom Surrounds | $1800 - $5000 | Re-tiling an existing shower or tub surround with a new waterproof system | Complete waterproofing systems (ANSI A118.10), custom-sloped mud pans, built-in niches/benches, and complex mosaics vs. large-format panels. |
Tub-to-Shower Conversion(replaces Outdoor & Patio) | $4800-$12,600 | Swapping a dated tub for a walk-in or curbless tile shower | Tub removal, drain relocation, curbless vs. curbed pan, glass enclosure, grab bars |
Porcelain & Ceramic Floor Tile (Kitchen & Living Areas) | $2100-$7300 | High-traffic kitchens and open living spaces | Square footage, removing old linoleum/tile layers, leveling for large-format tile, height transitions to hardwood |
Project Type | Average Price Range ( Staten Island ) | Best For | Factors that Affect Cost |
Bathroom Floor Tile | $745 – $4000 | Primary or guest baths that take daily moisture | Tearing out 1960s–80s mud-set floors, leveling subfloors, adding electric radiant heat mats |
Heated Tile Floors | $765 – $6,300 | Bathrooms and kitchens over cold slabs or basements | Electric mat vs. wire, room size, dedicated circuit, thermostat type |
Kitchen Backsplash Installation | $1000 – $3,200 | Protecting drywall behind ranges and elevating kitchen aesthetics. | Standard 18-inch vs. counter-to-ceiling heights, intricate cuts around multiple outlets/hoods, and premium materials (glass, marble) or herringbone patterns. |
Specialty Tile Services
Schluter Kerdi & Ditra.
We refuse to construct a shower without embedding our secret sauce: a Schluter Kerdi waterproofing matrix.
That orange synthetic armor prevents that microscopic moisture vapor from silently dissolving your structural framing. By also integrating Ditra uncoupling membranes beneath floor grids, we actively absorb the violent subterranean shifting of Staten Island wood joists, physically isolating the rigid vitreous tile from catastrophic shear-stress cracking. Theres a science to tiliong, and we take this science very seriously.
Glass & Mosaic Tile Installation
Ceiling tile installation in commercial buildings serves both acoustic and aesthetic purposes, particularly in restaurants, offices, and retail spaces where sound control matters. We evaluate Noise Reduction Coefficient (NRC) ratings to ensure tiles effectively absorb room reverberation. v According to an acoustic audit we did for a loud bar over in Soulard, swapping out their old rigid ceiling saved the space, saved their busniess. People could actually hear each other talk again - 5 years later in 2025, and visitors were up 50% .
Terrazzo Floor Installation
We have....and we can happily hijack the mid-century "aesthetic" of a brutally expensive poured terrazzo slab by deploying our custom hyper-dense composite tiles.
We'd lock these marble-chips into place using the exact same unforgiving, large-format leveling tactics. By painstakingly color-matching the epoxy grout to the exact resin body, we visually deceive the eye. Forging a oh la la seamless, monolithic retro expanse that repels stains from your grandkids, with ruthless efficiency.
How Long a Tile Job Takes, Start to Finish
According to our research and my own brutal logistical tracking, navigating from a raw quote to a fully cured slab aggressively consumes a specific block of time. Tearing into a simple backsplash might burn ~48 hours, but orchestrating a completely waterproofed, custom-pitched shower matrix demands a week-long occupation. If you demand a highly exotic, imported European slab, that supply chain delay will dictate how long as well. Expect up to 3 weeks.
Surface Prep & Repairs (1–2 Days)
We remove old materials, repair damage, and level the subfloor to ensure a flat, moisture-ready foundation.
Step 2: Tile Layout & Cutting (1 Day)
We dry-fit the pattern and make precision cuts around corners and fixtures to guarantee symmetrical, balanced lines.
Step 3: Setting Tile (1–3 Days)
We set each tile into premium polymer-modified mortar using leveling clips to eliminate lippage and ensure a secure bond.
Step 4: Grouting & Sealing (1–2 Days)
We fill every joint with stain-resistant grout and apply commercial sealers to protect against moisture penetration.
Step 5: Cleanup & Final Inspection (Half Day)
We remove all grout haze, clean the workspace completely, and conduct a detailed walkthrough to verify installation quality.
Yes! I want the SI Expert Tile experience
Tile FAQs
Choose a tile contractor who holds an active NYC DCWP Home Improvement Contractor license, carries liability insurance, and puts a waterproof membrane under every shower and tub. Ask for an itemized quote and photos of finished Staten Island jobs.
Yes. NYC requires a DCWP Home Improvement Contractor license for residential remodeling in all five boroughs, including Staten Island. Licensed contractors must also enroll in the city’s Trust Fund or post a $20,000 surety bond, and print their license number in their ads. You can check any license on NYC’s online lookup.
In our experience, Most kitchen backsplash installations take 1 to 2 days: tile is set on day one and grouted after the thinset cures, usually 24 hours later. A standard 25–35 sq ft subway tile backsplash rarely takes longer. Glass mosaic, natural stone or herringbone layouts can add a day for cutting and sealing.
Sometimes. IN our experience New tile can go over old tile only if the old floor is flat, fully bonded and crack-free, and doors still clear the extra ½ inch of height. We Staten Island floor tile contractors remove the old tile instead, because loose or cracked tile underneath shows through as cracks in the new floor.
Luxury vinyl tile (LVT) installation averages about $6 per square foot installed, with most projects at $5–$10 per square foot, according to HomeAdvisor. Labor alone runs $2.50–$6 per square foot.
For us in Staten Island, A heated bathroom floor costs about $2k on average, and most projects run $765 - $6300 , per HomeAdvisor. Electric radiant mats cost $1,000–$3,200 before tile, and labor runs $5–$10 per square foot. Electric systems suit Staten Island bathrooms because they add almost no floor height and need no boiler connection.
Yes. In our experience Porcelain is the best tile for showers because, under the ANSI A137.1 standard, it must absorb 0.5% water or less, while ceramic wall tile can absorb over 7%. It also resists stains and cracks. Pair it with a waterproof membrane such as Schluter Kerdi, because tile and grout alone aren’t waterproof.
I've seen Tiling a tub surround takes 3 to 5 days. Demo is day one, cement board and waterproofing day two, setting tile day three, and grouting and caulking day four. Wait 24 to 72 hours before using the shower so the grout and caulk can cure fully.
A Schluter-certified installer has completed Schluter Systems’ hands-on training for its Kerdi waterproofing and Ditra uncoupling membranes. Certification shows the installer was trained on the methods in Schluter’s installation handbook, which its system warranty is based on. Ask to see the certificate before you sign.
In our estimation, A tiled tub-to-shower conversion typically costs $6,000–$15,000 for custom tile or curbless builds. Prefab acrylic swaps run $1,000–$8,000, per ThePricer. On Staten Island, our conversions run $6+, including demo, plumbing changes, a waterproof membrane and tile.
A mid-range small bathroom remodel (under 50 sq ft) costs about $6,000–$15,000, and powder rooms start around $3,000, per Block Renovation. NYC jobs run higher: Block reports mid-range NYC remodels commonly reach $25,000. Tile choice drives much of the difference, with ceramic at the low end and natural stone at the high end.
A 1-day bathroom remodel installs acrylic panels over or in place of your tub and walls. It’s fast, but it limits size, color and layout. In our experience we've seen A tiled shower takes about 5 to 8 working days. it allows any tile, niche or bench, and can be regrouted instead of replaced. Choose one-day for speed and tile for long-term value.