Bathroom Tiling & Finishes · Essex
Bathroom walls and floors, wet-room tanking and tiling, large-format porcelain and natural stone. Substrates prepared properly, joints set out from a plan, sealants cut and tooled by hand.
15+ years on the tools · Gas Safe registered · Open 24/7 · Same-Day Service
Service Overview
Owner-led by Pierre Codarin from Southend-on-Sea. Single point of contact from first call to final invoice.
What it is
Avanza handles tiling as part of a full bathroom project, or as a standalone service. We prepare the substrate (tanking, priming, levelling), set out the tile pattern from a drawing, fix tiles with the correct adhesive for the substrate, grout, seal and silicone — to wet-room standard.
Who it's for
Homeowners refitting a bathroom, anyone wanting a wet room properly tanked, and clients commissioning large-format porcelain or natural stone where bad fitting would ruin an expensive material.
When you need it
During any bathroom refit, after any wet-area damage, or when existing tiling has lifted, cracked or mouldered. Existing tiles that move underfoot or sound hollow when tapped need redoing — they're already failing.
Why hire a professional
Tiling looks straightforward and is one of the easiest trades to do badly. Failed silicone, lipping tiles, blown grout joints and cracked screeds all trace to a fitter who skipped the prep. Done properly, a tiled bathroom lasts 20+ years; done badly, 2.
The Real Cost Of Getting This Wrong
The cheapest tiler in town is almost always the most expensive one across 5 years. Tile failures cascade — once water gets behind tiles, the substrate, joists and ceiling below all become rebuild jobs.
Our Process
We measure, check substrate, draw a setting-out plan that minimises cut tiles in eyelines, and confirm tile, grout and adhesive specs.
Existing tiles removed, substrate cleaned, primed, levelled, and tanked where needed. Cement-board fitted in wet areas where required.
Tiles fixed to the setting-out plan with the correct adhesive (S1/S2 deformable for large-format, rapid-set for floors), level and lippage checked tile-by-tile.
Grouted to manufacturer spec, joints sealed where natural stone or absorbent material, silicone cut by hand at all internal corners and tile-to-fitting joints.
Tiles cleaned of grout haze, work area swept, 12-month workmanship guarantee on the install in writing.
Benefits
Every wet area is properly tanked — not just splash-shielded.
Cut tiles end up in corners and behind fittings, never down the middle of a wall.
We don't carry one tub of cheap adhesive for every job — adhesive is matched to substrate, tile and location.
Cut to depth, tooled by hand, neat lines — not piped and smeared with a finger.
Properly-rated adhesive, deformable to S1/S2, full back-buttering — large-format and stone laid flat.
Written guarantee on every tile and joint.
Inside The Detail
These are the details cheaper installers skip — and the reason their work fails inside two years.
Working across
Southend-on-Sea · Chelmsford · Basildon · Colchester · Brentwood · Rayleigh · Wickford · Billericay · Harlow
Full Service Area ListTiles only last if the substrate behind them is sound. In dry areas, plasterboard is fine if primed and skimmed. In wet areas (showers, wet rooms), tile-backer cement board (HardieBacker, Marmox, Wedi) is required — plasterboard alone will fail. Tanking (liquid membrane like BAL WP1 or sheet membrane like Schluter Kerdi) goes over the cement board in wet areas. This is the difference between a 20-year wet room and a 2-year leak.
Porcelain is our default for floors — denser than ceramic, lower water absorption, more durable. Ceramic is fine for walls in dry areas. Natural stone (marble, limestone, travertine) is beautiful but porous — every piece needs sealing before grouting and re-sealing every 12 months. Large-format (60x60 and up) requires S1/S2 deformable adhesive, full back-buttering, and a flat substrate within 3mm over 2 metres.
Standard cement-based grout suits most installs in dry areas. In wet areas, epoxy grout (Mapei Kerapoxy, Ardex WA) is non-porous, stain-proof and lasts the life of the install — it costs more and is harder to fit, which is why budget tilers skip it. Silicone joints go everywhere two different planes meet (wall-to-wall internal corner, wall-to-tray, wall-to-bath) — these joints absorb building movement that would otherwise crack the grout.
Wet rooms need a sloped former (Wedi, Kudos, Impey) tanked across its full surface, a linear drain or central gully with a 75mm trap, and a slip-rated R10+ tile across the wet area. The tanking continues 1800mm up every wet wall and behind the drain housing. We commission with a 24-hour flood test before tile fix, and a second flood test on completion.
Questions
Cost, timeline, guarantees, lifespan, emergency cover — answered without the sales speak.
Ask YoursEvery tiling job is priced from a free on-site survey — substrate, format, layout and access all change the number. You'll receive a fixed written quote, with the price locked in for 14 days.
Sometimes — if the existing tiles are sound, well-bonded, and the additional weight is acceptable on the substrate. We tap-test the whole area first; if anything sounds hollow it has to come off. Often safer and longer-lasting to strip back to substrate.
A standard family bathroom (walls and floor) typically 5–7 working days from substrate prep to final silicone. Larger wet rooms with full tanking 8–12 days.
12 months on our workmanship in writing. Tile manufacturer warranties on the tiles themselves vary by brand (typically 10–25 years on quality porcelain).
Both work. We can supply at trade pricing from our merchant accounts, or fit tiles you've chosen yourself. We'll flag any tile that won't suit its intended location before fitting starts.
Yes — we work across Southend-on-Sea, Chelmsford, Basildon, Colchester, Brentwood, Rayleigh, Wickford, Billericay and Harlow. If you're outside that ring, call 07809 414913 and we'll confirm coverage before you spend a minute filling in a form.
Yes. Gas Safe registered for all gas work, fully insured, and trading as Avanza Heating & Bathrooms Ltd (Companies House 17201187). Gas Safe is our only listed accreditation. Certificates and policy numbers available on request before any work starts.
Related Services
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View ServiceNext Step
Properly tanked, properly set out, hand-tooled silicone. 12-month workmanship guarantee in writing.
Gas Safe registered · Fully insured · 1-year workmanship guarantee · Companies House 17201187 · Southend-on-Sea
