Can social media find a good contractor?

The internet has become the ‘yellow pages’ of our world. We use the search bar to find local restaurants, dry cleaners, and home improvement professionals. We turn to Social Media channels for recommendations and resources, and sometimes you get good information and other times the names you get are the ones with the most friends, the most savvy search engine algorithms, or the time to make their presence known on all channels.

Other good starting points are people you know your friends and neighbors have used and been happy with as well as local professional groups.

But wherever you get the names, be sure to check them out in other ways:

• the NC Secretary of State’s website will show if they are a registered business
• trade association listings will give you an indicator of how serious they take their industry. Home Builders Associations, Chambers of Commerce, and even the Better Business Bureau can all give you a glimpse of a company that’s invested in on-going improvement and our community;
• license boards for the particular contractors will tell you if there are current complaints or actions against them. If there’s no local license requirement, then check to see what industry certifications the contractor might have;
• ask about their process – how long typical projects take, what other similar projects they’ve completed, what’s their warranty process, are their materials sourced locally, what kind of experience do their employees have;
• what standards or methods do they rely on for their work? (Hint: doing it the same way for the past 10-15 years doesn’t cut it in today’s ever-evolving construction industry)
• On their last 3 jobs, how much did the final billing amount differ from their quoted price?

Hiring a home-improvement professional is an investment in your home’s future. Make sure your research is as extensive as possible. #Professionalcraftsmanship #HireAProfessional #LocalCraftsmanship #ProfessionalTileInstallation #NeuseTile

Which tile to choose for your project?

It’s easy to be overwhelmed by all the options and beautiful tiles when you first go to a tile showroom, so here are a few tips to consider as you’re making selections.

— Large tile is very popular, and it’s getting larger. Make sure your experienced installer will use the required upgraded mortars, take extra time to flatten the substrate, and ensure patterns flow with the maximum full tiles possible. Because most large tiles have some degree of warpage (curvature), grout joints and patterns may need to be adjusted to reduce lippage.

— Glass tile and sheeted materials also require different setting materials (and tools in some cases), so there’s usually a higher level of skill needed to install these materials. Many sheeted tiles may not line up the same way non-sheeted materials will (grout joint widths can vary from one sheet to the next). Keep in mind that when grouted, sheeted pebbles/ river rocks may look very different from unfinished sheets.

— Natural stones will need to be sealed prior to installation. If a stone is heavily pitted, grout will fill any holes, making some stones a poor choice for floors since high-heel traffic may impact these weaker parts of the end-product.

— Accents and liners should be similar in thickness to any adjacent tile. A good tile designer will steer you to products that line up well, so it’s important to take advantage of the talented showroom designers in our area.

— Grout joints are routinely 3/16″, so if you want a different width, be sure to discuss with the designer and your installer. Some tiles require specific types of grout and joint sizes, so it’s important to be specific in what finish look you want.

— Patterns, accents, and borders can add pizazz to a tile installation, so they’re worth including, but they do take more time to install, so your labor cost will increase when you add an accent or extra feature.

Tile won’t bend to cover up mistakes, so working with designers who specialize in tile and installers who are properly trained will ensure you get a long-lasting and beautiful result. #WhyTile

Is your shower leaking?

Friends in our industry association have created a step-by-step guide to what might be causing a shower leak. This resource from the National Tile Contractors Association will be useful to anyone who has a leaky shower problem.

https://www.tile-assn.com/page/TILETROUBLE

When dealing with a potential water leak, it’s important to get assistance from qualified industry professionals. Plumbers can perform pan, valve, and supply line tests to pinpoint the source of leaks. Beware of those who claim that leaking showers can be repaired by adding grout, caulk, or sealant. At best, these things may temporarily slow down the problem.

A properly constructed shower should provide many years of worry free use. You’ll get that when you hire a qualified installation company.

Professional Women in Construction

Ours has long-been perceived as a male dominated profession, but the National Association of Home Builders has designated this week to recognize the amazing contributions of the women in our world.

Neuse Tile is a woman-owned business, and, let’s be honest, the women in our office keep things ticking on a daily basis. 🙂  So, we’re happy to have a reason to give a shout out in recognition of the many contributions of our female workforce, both in the office and on job sites!

The NAHB’s designation of a week to celebrate women in construction is something new, but those of us who have been in the field a while know that women have been working in construction for a very long time. Some don hard hats and kneepads and install tile; others are superintendents; and many are project managers and estimators. The work of both men and women in this field is difficult and underappreciated, no doubt, but no other profession offers such tangible satisfaction at the end of every project.

We applaud all the changing faces on construction jobsites while also giving honor to women who have done the accounting, the purchasing, the scheduling, the inventory management, and the marketing for our profession for all these years. You may not see them on a daily basis, but, without them, the jobs probably wouldn’t happen.

All our team members are essential to getting our work done to your satisfaction, and we know that the person who answers the phone or makes the sale is just as valuable as the technically adept project manager or the master craftsman. It takes us all to get things planned, built, and maintained with quality.

Let’s celebrate all those who work so hard in construction, with a special tip of the hat this week to the women among us!

Tile in the Triangle for 50+ years

We celebrated a big birthday last week with a party for our local contractors and industry friends. The party was our way of saying ‘thanks’ to the ones who keep our business going: our great customers, our supportive community, and especially our fantastic staff.

We had a great time collecting photos and reflecting on the personalities and talents of folks we’ve worked with through the years. The types of tile we install and the sophistication of our methods have certainly advanced through the years, but the reliance on talented people has never changed.

Sometimes we get calls from homeowners who need a grout touch-up 30 years after their original install, and we’re honored that they remember us and still count on Neuse Tile to provide them quality service. That kind of continuity is a tribute to our family and the quality of our employees’ work over time.

Neuse Tile Service was incorporated May 22, 1964, by founder Homer Wadford and his business partners. In 1967, Homer’s brother Al came into the business and soon assumed the company’s leadership when Homer moved on to other pursuits. In 1987, Al’s son Nyle took over as company president, and daughter Paige joined the company in 1995. Today, we are North Carolina’s only residential 5-Star Contractor recognized by the National Tile Contractors Association.

A big thanks to the sponsors of our birthday celebration event: Best Tile of Raleigh, Mosaic Tile Company, Florida Tile, and Laticrete. Thanks for the journey, and here’s hoping we’re here to serve you for many years to come! Cheers!

Terrific tile from 2015

Thanks to some of the country’s best installers, our fantastic customers, and the most knowledgeable tile team anywhere, we’re wrapping up a good year in tile. We’ve been honored to be included in some great projects in 2015, so here’s a sample for your viewing pleasure:

Large tile is here to stay, & custom patterns add interest.

Intricate cuts and plenty of patience created this fantastic feature bath.

Removing barriers – properly installed curbless showers are a new norm.

Classic subway tile is always a winner.

 

Practical luxury — heated floors continue to gain popularity.

Stacked stone is a great way to create a fireplace focal point.

Lots of glass on the walls this year. Installed well, it’s a fantastic backsplash.

 

 

 

 

Upstairs porch tile installations have needed our expertise this year. Done properly, they’re beautiful and functional.

A tiled mosaic in Louisburg features the largest state motto ever. NTS craftsmen & a local artist created public beauty.

Tile as creative expression takes hold in this new Downtown Raleigh commercial  space.

Miles of Tile for all our great customers

It’s a new year, and we’re hoping for a good one!  As we’ve been doing our end-of-year analysis and new-year planning, we are reminded of those who make our existence possible – OUR CUSTOMERS!

We’d like to say ‘Thank You’ to all who have given us the opportunity to participate in your projects. The miles of tile we’ve installed in the Triangle area wouldn’t have happened without the thousands of homeowners and builders who have trusted us with their installations.

(Our great installers and their consistent good work are a big part of that, too, of course, but we’re focusing on customers today.)

Some of our builder and remodeler friends have stayed busy through the downturn, and, because their business has been built with a reliable team, they stayed true to their high-quality subcontractors. Others have found us more recently because they needed reliable, quality tile installations done at a fair price.

So, in an effort to say thanks and help promote their great work (with positive Google searches), we’ve added some contractor credits to our website photos. They’ve kept us going in 2014 (and in previous ones), and we appreciate them! Check out their beautiful work (highlighting the tile, of course) at www.NeuseTile.com. We’ve labeled photos with a lot of contractor names and are adding to the info. every day.

Also, as we were reviewing our data, we realized that several of our contractor customers have been working with us for almost 20 years, so we’d like to give a special thanks to: Jay at Beaman Building & Realty, Mark at Massengill Builders, Jim and Dan at J.L. Williams Construction, Mark and team at Prime Building Company, Walt at Dillon Construction, and to Kemp Harris Inc. You guys have lived through the ups and downs with us, and we greatly appreciate your loyalty and your good work!!!

Here’s hoping 2015 will be a good year for all our local contractors and for those of us who are part of their teams! We’d love to add to our list and help make sure the area’s quality level remains high. If you have a builder friend who is tired of headaches and no-shows from his current tile guy, tell him or her to give us a call. We’d like to keep adding to the miles of tile we’ve installed for the area’s great contractors. And, if you want a recommendation for a general contractor for your next project, give us a call.

Why use tile?

We were recently interviewed by NC Homes magazine, and we thought we’d share our responses with you as a series of blog entries.

Why select tile?

Tile is an extremely practical material and a designer favorite because of its many possibilities. We think tile is great because it’s:

–Durable – Tile is among the longest lasting flooring materials. When you consider the length of time that tile will last versus the initial cost of installation, tile is the least expensive flooring material available.

–Easy to maintain – Most tiles can be cleaned with warm water and a damp mop. No harsh chemicals or complicated cleaning regimen are needed to keep tile looking beautiful. A recent industry study indicated that tile is the least expensive, long-term option when considering maintenance and the long life of tile.

–Beautiful & versatile – The options in tile are incredibly varied, and there is something to suit every person’s design style. Popular looks include rectangular or plank tiles, larger tiles (bigger than 15”), wood-look tiles, and textured tiles. The introduction of high-resolution printing on tile makes it possible to replicate the appearance of stone, fabric, wood, and cement.

–Inert – Tile is made from naturally occurring materials, and emits no toxic odors or Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). Most of the materials used to set tile today also incorporate recycled materials and produce no VOCs.

–Healthy – When tile is installed properly, it provides a safe, clean, and beautiful space for many years. Because tile is inert, it does not contribute to indoor air pollution, and you won’t have to use harmful cleaning chemicals to keep it looking clean and beautiful.

Qualified to talk tile in NJ & at home

Sometimes it takes an out-of-town audience to fully appreciate our hometown know-how. That was certainly the case for our own Nyle Wadford when he recently traveled to Dayton, NJ, to present a large-format tile seminar to an architectural and design community. 

3rd from left, Wadford presented NTCA seminar.

The local American Olean & Marazzi USA distributor wanted a special guest to introduce their services to an important client base, and they asked Wadford to present an NTCA seminar on large tiles and participate in a discussion about qualified labor. The hosts and audience said the seminar was “informative and truly helpful,” and Nyle was glad to participate.

As a long-time tile contractor and Chairman of the Board of the National Tile Contractors Association (NTCA), Nyle is absolutely passionate about correct tile installations – whether in NC or NJ – he just loves talking tile!

The NTCA is an invaluable association for our industry, and, as a Five-Star Contractor, Neuse Tile is able to present its seminars for continuing education credits to the Architectural and Design communities. As NTCA’s 2012 Tile Person of the Year, Nyle is also quite well-known and respected by his peers in the industry (and throughout the country).

Neuse Tile has no plans to install tile in New Jersey, but the visit is helping open doors for the NTCA and furthering discussions about proper tile installations, so Nyle sees it as a worthwhile investment of time. And, sometimes it’s also nice to get that ‘out-of-town’ recognition as well.

Nyle is also the Vice Chairman of both the NTCA Technical Committee and the ANSI A108 Committee. Great job, Nyle!

Builders rely on specialty subcontractors

Ours is not a glamorous profession. What we do involves lots of craftsmanship and behind-the-scenes know-how, some heavy-lifting, and, frequently, getting a little dirty. But we’re good at it, and we’ve made lots of functional spaces in the Triangle look a whole lot better because we were there.

Tile craftsmen at work

That, in itself, is rewarding most days, but sometimes it’s also nice to be recognized by the people who use our services. The National Association of Home Builders recently published an article which highlighted subcontractors as, “an often over looked but essential part of the home building industry.”

Interesting facts in the article included that it takes, on average, 25 subcontractors to build a single-family detached house. About 71% of those employed in the home building industry are subcontractors.  (Total employment in the industry breaks down to 647,000 builders and 1.584 million residential specialty trade contractors.)

During the past 40 years the use of subcontractors has “significantly accelerated.” (Construction costs subcontracted in 2012 averaged 75% vs. 31% in 1959.) The diverse amenities offered in housing and the increasing complexities of each trade are cited as reasons for this shift. Code requirements are more complicated, materials used are more technically diverse, and the labor force is drastically different now than it was in 1959.

We have great appreciation for our general contractor customers. They must have a vast knowledge base and be planners, jugglers, and, sometimes, babysitters. They take big personal and financial risks, and their work is often unappreciated. The best ones know that it takes an amazing amount of teamwork to get a project completed. Having their respect and appreciation makes it easier for us to go the extra mile when needed. So, today we celebrate being one of the “often overlooked but essential,” and we get back to getting it done!