Tile installation · Medina, Washington
Waterproofed first. Tiled second.
Behind a book-matched marble wall in Medina sits the same truth as behind any tile: neither tile nor grout is waterproof — the membrane under them is. So the assembly comes first, then a 24-hour flood test, then photographs of the proof, and only after all of that does the first piece of stone go up.
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Bellevue based · family owned · 12 years
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How much does tile installation cost in Medina, WA?
The arithmetic in Medina begins where it does everywhere — call it $14 through $26 per installed square foot covering tile and setting materials plus substrate prep plus labor, the labor line from $11/sq ft — but stone, slab-format porcelain and steam builds live at the top of that math and past it. A standard tub-shower surround prices from $3,200 through $6,800; the full bathroom — floor, shower, niche — settles between $6,500 and $14,000.
Format governs cost more than material grade does. Setting a slab-look porcelain panel dead flat, or keeping a marble herringbone's lines truly straight, is layout and labor — the invoice for the tile itself is the smaller half of the story.
As of August 2026 these are Medina's working ranges, tile with materials with labor. Governance rests with the written quote produced at the free visit.
What's behind a shower that lasts
Seven layers between subfloor and stone. Each failed shower we're asked to open is missing one — usually the membrane, usually because someone once saved a few hundred dollars on work that now costs five figures to reach.
Leaks keep their own counsel. Past the grout goes the water, into the substrate goes the load, and some two years later a ceiling stains or a run of floor softens — usually in a finished room you'd least like to open. The scope by then reads framing, subfloor, drywall, and the tile done a second time.
Waterproofing runs about 10% of a shower's cost. In a bathroom finished in stone, skipping it isn't a saving — it's a deferred demolition.
What we tile in Medina
Starting figures — format, substrate and layout complexity move them, stone more than most. The binding number gets written on site, free.
Shower & bath tile
Assembly before beauty: pre-slope and bonded membrane pass their flood test, then come niche and curb — or curbless entry — then tile or stone. Of all the layers, the one that never shows costs the most to skip.
Porcelain & stone floors
Baths, kitchens, entries, mudrooms and lower levels. Subfloors ground flat, uncoupling membrane wherever movement or radiant heat requires one, layout snapped before a single piece is set.
Backsplash
Zellige, slab-look porcelain, marble mosaic or plain subway done perfectly. Outlet cuts hidden in grout lines where layout allows, edges trimmed, grout keyed to the counter.
Heated tile floors
Electric radiant heat over uncoupling membrane, resistance read twice — ahead of the tile and behind it — on a circuit of its own. Sensible exactly while the floor stands open.
Tile repair & regrout
One cracked marble tile, grout gone tired, a loosening corner. Candor is the service here: either a repair will hold, or the substrate behind it surrendered some time ago — we say which.
Demo & haul-away
Old tile and backer removed behind sheeting and negative air, floors and finishes protected on the way out, everything hauled. The house stays presentable throughout.
Which tile, and where
The expensive mistakes in Medina baths are seldom cheap tile — they're beautiful materials asked to do the wrong job. Here's the counsel we'd give standing in your bathroom.
Material rates only, before installation. We bring samples and say frankly which materials repay their price — and which merely cost it.
Medina tile project calculator
Price your tile job before we arrive
The arithmetic we run on site — scope, square footage, format, prep — in calculator form. Not a quote; a well-informed starting point.
A bathroom, day by day
Medina bathrooms follow the usual rhythm: four to six working days, with two quiet ones mid-schedule — membrane first, flood test after — carrying the whole warranty on their backs.
Tile and stone work nearby
What Eastside homeowners tell Google
“They placed plastic sheeting over the cabinets to contain the dust, so we noticed hardly any. The floors look as good or better than new.”
“We chose them because they were professional and top-notch. The work was smooth, fast and cost-effective — such skill and precision!”
“The installers were great! The floor is exactly what we wanted. We worked with OC Flooring previously — highly recommend.”
Tile installation FAQ — Medina, WA
Not here? Call us at (425) 595-1079 — you'll get an installer on the phone, not a call center.
How much does tile installation cost in Medina, WA?
Count on Medina tile installation running about $14 to $26 per installed square foot — the combined weight of tile, setting materials, substrate prep and labor, where labor starts from $11 per square foot; natural stone and slab-format porcelain hold the range's upper reaches. Surrounds for a standard tub-shower price from $3,200 through $6,800, and the complete bathroom — floor, shower, niche — settles between $6,500 and $14,000. What multiplies cost is format rather than unit price: mosaics and large panels each ask substantially more labor per square foot than 12×12 field tile.
How much does it cost to tile a shower in Medina?
Standard alcove work in Medina prices from $3,200 through $6,800, and that spread absorbs demolition, bonded waterproofing, a sloped pan, the labor of setting, a niche and grout. The requests Medina is known for — steam, benches, curbless thresholds, stone floor to ceiling — sit above it. Waterproofing amounts to a tenth or so of the sum and retires the one failure measured in tens of thousands.
Do you waterproof showers before tiling?
Without exception. A bonded waterproofing system backs every finish we set — cement board with thinset alone has never qualified. Concretely: the base carries a pre-slope, membrane travels up the walls, corners, seams and penetrations get sealed, and a 24-hour flood test is held, photographed and filed before tile or stone is permitted on. Think of tile and grout as decorative armor; the membrane does the actual work of keeping water off framing.
How long does a bathroom tile job take?
Medina bathrooms typically ask four to six working days: demolition behind dust protection to open, substrate and membrane work with the 24-hour flood test next, tile setting across one or two days, then grout, silicone and trim to close. A further 24 hours of grout cure precedes first use. Floors by themselves run a day or two; stone and steam assemblies stretch longer, which we say plainly up front.
Porcelain or ceramic tile — which is better?
Porcelain for anything wet or trafficked: it's denser than ceramic, absorbs less than 0.5% water and shrugs off chips — the right call for floors and shower floors even in a stone-heavy design. Ceramic and glass earn their keep on walls and backsplashes. Natural stone is beautiful, needs sealing, and deserves honest counsel about where it belongs; we give all three.
Can you install a heated tile floor?
Yes — under stone and porcelain it's quietly essential, since both run cold barefoot. The mat runs $11 up to $16 a square foot installed, thermostat included, and earns its keep only while the floor is open. Installation sets it over an uncoupling membrane, checks resistance entering and leaving the tile stage, and gives it a dedicated circuit.
Do I need to remove the old tile first?
Usually the old tile goes. Removal with haul-away costs near $3.50 per square foot, and demolition alone verifies the subfloor, surfaces rot or movement, and holds the finished height honest at doorways — doubly important when the adjacent hardwood is staying. A case sometimes exists for tiling over sound existing tile; it also lifts the floor and conceals precisely what we'd rather meet early.
How much does a kitchen backsplash cost in Medina?
Medina's typical 30 square foot backsplash costs $1,100 on the simple end and $2,200 dressed up, installed with outlet cuts, edge trimming and counter-keyed grout. Zellige, marble mosaic, herringbone and slab-look porcelain occupy the dressed-up end — the money buys layout and cutting time, and in a Medina kitchen the layout tends to be the point.
Can you fix cracked tile or regrout instead of replacing?
Often, yes. Starting at $8 the square foot, repair and regrout fits stained or failing grout, a tile or two split by impact, and shower corners ready for silicone. Once tiles ring hollow, come loose in a pattern, or a wall yields under the hand, the substrate is done and repair only postpones the inevitable. Which case is yours, we establish before anything is priced.
Which Medina neighborhoods do you tile?
All of Medina — Evergreen Point, Medina Heights, Groat Point, Dabney Point and Fairweather Bay — together with Hunts Point, Yarrow Point and Clyde Hill, plus West Bellevue, Meydenbauer, Enatai, Beaux Arts Village and the rest of the Eastside, and Seattle across the bridge.
What warranty comes with tile installation?
A 2-year workmanship warranty from OC Flooring covers the installation — longer than our carpet coverage, because tile faults surface in year two, not week two. Full manufacturer waterproofing assemblies add the maker's own system warranty, and the photographs of your membrane and flood test stay on file — documentation worth having when a Medina house changes hands.