Ok... I've got a Madera floor on in my bathroom... however, it got destroyed over time. So I decided to get some stoneware tile for the floor. I tried getting up the Madera Wood Tile, and the stupid tiler layed it directly to the floor without using backer board.

So, I can't get the floor up myself, because just to get one tile up, it takes like an hour. And multiply that by a 10'x10' room. That's a lot of tiles stuck to the floor.

Anyhow, I called up a general contractor, and he told me that the floor would cost me around $950. I warned him about how hard it would be to get it up to the point as to I wanted to show him. But get said ok anyways.

We got talking, and I thought it would be nice to take down the plastic shower walls and lay tile instead. Which he'd do for another $1600...

No biggie... I've been dealing with no toilet and a destroyed bathroom for over a year now. My toilet has been sitting in my living room, almost useful as another chair!

So he comes over today, with a helper... they work all day, and the worker tries to get some of the tile up... well, for about 2 hours, he only got up about 1 and a 1/2 tiles. He said it was the toughest thing he ever had to do. Heck, the dude had bloody blisters on his hands!

Now, here's my question of the day... can this guy charge me more for taking up the tile because he underestimated the time it would take to remove it? He didn't say that it would cost any extra to remove it in the contract. From the looks of it, these people are going to be making a living in my bathroom for the next month.

How do I ensure that I won't be getting ripped off in the end? I mean, $950 is the price he set.

I just don't want to see some crazy bill at the end just because his worker got some blisters and almost killed himself on the job site.

 

There's no way you could have sub-floored it? They have 1/4" backer, even thinner, Think I've seen 1/8" . Durabond makes it. Depending on the damage there currently, sometimes it's easier to build up.

Is the existing cabinets on top of everything or was the flooring built up around them? That could be a problem with what I suggest.

I couldn't estimate that on the phone, I would have to see it lol.

 

You can afford to pay the man whatever he wants.

You have a 10 foot by 10 foot bathroom for crying out loud.

 

As mentioned above, you probably want to explore option B at this point and lay down a membrane underlayment on top of the existing Madera floor.... it will only add 1/8" plus you tile thickness.... you may have to flush cut trim to allow the increased finished floor height but that's easier than scraping the Madera tiles off.... http://www.schluter.com/6_1_ditra.aspx

Other than that, your contractor will probably have to set his circular saw to 1" depth or so and cut out the Madera Tile and subfloor in pieces down to the joists... he'd then have to lay a new sub-floor (get 3/4" AdvanTech tongue & groove for the sub-floor from your local lumberyard - $3 per panel rebate as well on it) and then Hardie backer on top of that....

 

As long as you are sure there is no area for extras to the quote, and the contract is signed by both parties, you are good to go.
The contract should say remove old flooring, install new underlayment, etc.

The part where it can get messy, did you include the end date in the contract ? Most people forget this item in a contact ( because it is only a small job ), and it can bite you in the rear.

If there is no end date, he can work on it until an easier job comes along, go start & finish that job, then come back to your job.

Might not want to ask about any extras if you were thinking about it, as might be more expensive when compared to normal.

At this point it sounds like it could be easier to cut up the old floor, and start over with new decking on the joists, and work from there.
Toe kick saw to the edge of the tub and cabinet / sink base, and then scrape the little left over by them.

This is what MikeF150 posted above, set the saw depth so it is just cutting out the plywood deck, and take it all out. the additional material he has to eat is going to be less than the labor by a long shot.

 

Cut the floor out down to the joists and start over. makes for a better job in the end because of the problems in the bathroom .

 

Driving the BangBus...........any benefits with that job?

 

Before yer "contractor" screws up what's left, I'd suggest recommending to him to heavy sand the existing floor and then floor stone it. Floor stone is like a self leveling, thin set concrete. It only needs to be 1/8" thick and will level the floor along with filling in any holes, cuts, etc. to give you a great subsuface to work with. He can then put the tile over it. FWIW, by Texas pricing, to retile yer bath tub is about 2 clicks above crazy. I just had one done with upgrade 6x6 tile for $900.00 and that's for an over sized 36"x60" tub. Most tubs are 30". My guy used DensaGaurd behind the tile which I made sure was in his specs. AVOID using the HardiBoard unless you don't plan on living there long. Using felt as yer water barrier is just plain stupid, reckless, and dumb. You might also look at yer water fixture in the shower and see if maybe now is a good time to replace it. If you have a fiberglas tub, now is a great time to get a steel tub. Frankly though, it sounds like yer guy has no clue what he is doing. Best of luck.