Substrate still exposed above the tile line — the stage where the outcome is decided.
TILING · WATERPROOFING · MALVERN
Tiling in Malvern rests on four layers you don't see
Tiler and waterproofing in Malvern — surfaces levelled, membranes laid and cured, set-out planned before a single tile is cut.
A mosaic sheet going onto the wall — small tiles, the same set-out discipline.
6 MM · ADHESIVE BED
Flatness and cure time decide the finish
A tiler in Malvern spends most of a job on the parts that get covered up. Substrate checked for movement, screed brought true, falls formed to the waste, membrane given the hours it needs. Tiling is what happens after that work is right.
Tiling Malvern covers bathrooms, kitchens, floors, balconies and outdoor areas, with waterproofing in Malvern handled as its own stage rather than a coat squeezed in before the tiler arrives. Residential work and small commercial fit-outs are treated the same way.
THE DEPTH REGISTER
Reading down the wall
Six layers sit between the slab and the room. Four of them disappear the day the tiles go down — and those are the four that decide whether the finish holds.
SUBSTRATE
Slab and sheeting
Checked for movement, moisture and deflection before anything is fixed to it. Loose sheeting or a live crack will read through the tile eventually, so it gets sorted here rather than argued about later. Groundwork for every floor tiling job.
SCREED · FALLS
Levelling and falls to waste
Water only leaves a shower if the floor sends it there. Falls are formed and checked with a level before waterproofing, not corrected afterwards with extra adhesive. The same discipline applies on a balcony, where the fall runs to an external drain.
PRIMER · MEMBRANE
The layer nobody ever sees
Primer, bond breakers at the junctions, then membrane coats built up and left to cure properly. Rushing this stage is the single most common reason a shower starts staining a hallway skirting two years later. See waterproofing.
ADHESIVE BED
Full contact, no hollows
Adhesive chosen for the tile and the surface, combed in one direction and back-buttered where the format demands it. Voids under a tile become drummy sound, then a crack. Critical on anything oversized — see large format tiling.
TILE
Set-out before the first cut
Where the full tiles land, how the niche lines up, which wall carries the cut. Planned on paper and marked on the wall so nothing awkward ends up at eye height. Applies to every bathroom tiling job.
GROUT · SILICONE
Joints, and where they move
Grout colour and type matched to the tile and how the room gets cleaned; internal corners and floor junctions left flexible in silicone rather than grouted rigid. When old joints fail, regrouting is usually the sensible first move.
OUTSIDE · EXPOSED
Tiled surfaces that live outdoors move with heat, take rain and have to stay safe underfoot. Slip rating, external adhesives, drainage falls and movement joints all get decided before selection is final. Outdoor tiling and balcony tiling; more details in the tilework reference.
BY ROOM, NOT BY PRODUCT
Where the work happens
Eleven services, grouped the way a house is actually used. Full list on the services hub.
Bathrooms
Bathroom Tiling — walls, floors, niches and set-out.
Bathroom Renovation Tiling — strip-out through to finishing, sequenced with the other trades.
Waterproofing — membranes and cure times before any tile is fixed.
Leaking Shower Repairs — finding the cause first, then fixing it.
Kitchens
Kitchen Splashbacks — subway, mosaic or slab-look, with clean cut-outs around power points, tidy edge trims and a grout that wipes down behind a cooktop.
Floors
Floor Tiling — living areas, hallways, kitchens and laundries, with levelling and movement joints planned in.
Large Format Tiling — flatness tolerances, back-buttering and levelling systems for oversized porcelain.
Outside
Balcony Tiling — falls, external membranes and perimeter detailing on exposed slabs.
Outdoor Tiling — alfresco areas, patios, pool surrounds, paths and steps.
Repairs
Regrouting — failed or stained joints removed and replaced, silicone renewed.
Tile Repairs — drummy, cracked or lifting tiles diagnosed and replaced without disturbing the work around them.
DIAGNOSIS
Regrout, or rebuild?
A shower that smells musty, a skirting lifting in the next room, a dark line creeping up a wall — the symptom looks the same whether the grout has simply worn out or the membrane underneath has given up.
Grout failure is a surface problem and a surface fix. Membrane failure is not, and no amount of new grout will hold it back. Working out which one you have, honestly, is the first job.
READ FIRST
Two articles worth ten minutes
Leaking Showers — the early signs, and the difference between a surface fix and a waterproofing rebuild.
Regrouting Guide — when new grout solves the problem, and when it only hides it for a season.
Sure it’s only the grout? See the regrouting service. Already sure it’s the membrane? Start at leaking shower repairs.
ASKED FIRST
Questions before the job starts
Three that come up most often. More on process, timing and materials in the FAQs.
Why does waterproofing need cure time before tiling?
A membrane only protects the room once it has cured to the thickness it was built up to. Tiling over it too early risks damaging it under the adhesive and trowel, and trapping moisture behind the tiles. How long it needs depends on the product and the conditions, so the wait is planned in rather than squeezed out. See waterproofing.
Should I regrout or rebuild?
If the tiles are sound and the problem stays at the surface — worn, stained or cracked joints — regrouting and new silicone is usually the sensible fix. If water is reaching skirtings, adjoining walls or the ceiling below, the membrane is the likely cause and new grout will not hold it back. The Regrouting Guide covers the difference.
What should an enquiry include?
The suburb, the room, the service you think you need and what the surface is doing now. If you are unsure which service applies, describe the symptom — that is enough to start. Request a quote.
WHO · WHERE
Residential, small commercial, and close to home
01 · RESIDENTIAL
Houses and apartments
Single bathrooms, whole-floor retiles, splashbacks, balconies and the repair jobs in between. Period homes and newer builds need different preparation, and get it.
02 · SMALL COMMERCIAL
Shops and fit-outs
Cafés, salons, consulting rooms and amenities. Same preparation, same waterproofing sequence, planned around trading hours and the trades either side of us.
03 · LOCAL
Malvern and around it
Based in Malvern, Victoria, and working through Malvern East, Armadale, Toorak, Glen Iris, Kooyong, Prahran, South Yarra, Caulfield North and Carnegie.
01
Send the details
Use the enquiry form to tell us the suburb, the room and what the surface is doing now — worn, cracked, drummy, leaking or simply due for a change.
02
Site inspection and measure
The area is measured and the substrate, falls and existing waterproofing are looked at where they can be, because the surface underneath is the part a quote cannot guess at.
03
Written quote
The quote sets out the work stage by stage — preparation, waterproofing, tiling and finishing — so you can see what each part of the job covers.
0 MM · SURFACE
Tell us what the room has to do
Send the suburb, the room and what the surface is doing now; photos can be shared once we’re in touch. You’ll get a plain answer on preparation, waterproofing and what the work actually involves — before any figures are discussed.
The enquiry form and service area are on the contact page.
Service area — Malvern, Victoria and neighbouring suburbs