Going rate for travertine installation in DFW (buying, tile)

[cicil]

Anybody knows of the going rate (ie. labor) for installing travertine tiles?


Also any recommendation or reference of travertine tile setters will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks a lot!

[lh_newbie]

$3-4/ft sounds about right. Incidentally, that's about the cost of buying travertine also. Many labor intensive jobs like tiling cost about 2x the material costs (as a very simple SWAG for future reference).

Gwel57 -

I just installed travertine throughout our master bath, in a diamond pattern. Geesh, such a pain... especially since it's a honed stone it's much less forgiving at the edges than a ceramic tile since it's flat all the way across. Edges must be much more accurate. I can see why people pay for tile installation.

The bathroom is ALMOST done though! Just have to tile the shower and front of the tub, install two windows and do all the trim work. It'll be ready by Christmas.

Brian

[harishv]

Great job Brian, that looks really nice. i really like your cabinets under the counter as well. did you use granite for the countertop or marble?
The $3 -$4 sounds more like for a straight cut and for a 13 x 13 tile. As the size gets smaller, the cost goes up and the work goes up as well i think?

[texasdreamin]

Looks like a perfect job. I need you at MY house.

[lh_newbie]

Originally Posted by harishv

Great job Brian, that looks really nice. i really like your cabinets under the counter as well. did you use granite for the countertop or marble?
The $3 -$4 sounds more like for a straight cut and for a 13 x 13 tile. As the size gets smaller, the cost goes up and the work goes up as well i think?

Thanks for the compliments everyone!

Yes, we used granite. We decided we saved so much doing the labor ourselves (even got the wife running the wet saw - she rocks!) that we could splurge on the counters to really put the icing on the cake.

Yes, straight cut 12x12 in my case. I don't think smaller tiles cost more for materials, but definitely will for installation. Afterall, a 12x12 tile only have ONE tile to be laid per sq ft... if you have 4x4 tiles - you have 9 tiles to be laid per sq ft.

I got the crown molding on the towers flanking the end of the cabinets last night... and tomorrow, I get the mirror so that can be picture-framed into place with some other moldings. And this weekend, I work on a couple pieces of framing in the shower that need finishing, then will tuck insulation in, put rubber matting on the walls and cover that with concrete backer board... next weekend... I begin tiling the shower - which is the last major job in the bathroom... then it's just trimming out the windows/doors. Can't wait for this project to be completed.

Brian

[galore]

Originally Posted by lh_newbie

I don't think smaller tiles cost more for materials, but definitely will for installation. Afterall, a 12x12 tile only have ONE tile to be laid per sq ft... if you have 4x4 tiles - you have 9 tiles to be laid per sq ft.

Labor also gets more expensive for larger tiles, especially with narrow grout lines. Getting a 18"x18" travertine installation with 1/16" grout lines perfect is a real challenge.
Larger tiles also means more cut waste = $$.