Metro tile fitting in Barking, Upney and Barking Riverside. Brick-bond, herringbone and vertical layouts set out properly so the lines stay true from floor to ceiling.
Metro tiles look simple, and that is exactly why they show every mistake. A wall that is out of level, a first row laid off the floor, or grout lines that wander by a millimetre per row are all obvious from across a Barking kitchen. The work is in the setting out: finding level, planning where the cuts fall around windows and sockets, and choosing a layout that suits the room. Bevelled metros need extra care at corners because the edges have to meet cleanly.
In Barking, metro tiles go into everything from the Victorian terraces near the town centre to the new flats at Barking Riverside, and the walls behind them are very different. The cost depends on the area, the layout pattern and how much preparation the wall needs. A photo of the wall with a tape measure in shot is enough to price it.
In the Riverside flats the walls are mostly plasterboard, which is light and flat; in the older houses it is often uneven plaster on brick that needs work first.
Send a photo or a quick video of the room on WhatsApp, or get a free fixed quote, no obligation, and we’ll tell you straight what it needs.
Never from the floor or worktop, which are rarely level. The first row decides every row above it.
Even cuts at both ends of a wall and around windows, not a sliver on one side.
Classic brick bond, stacked, vertical or herringbone. Herringbone takes longer and uses more tiles.
Trims or mitred edges so the bevels meet neatly at external corners.
Existing tiles taken off and the wall made good before the new ones go on.
Faceplates removed and refitted, with tiles cut tightly around each one.
White keeps it clean, mid-grey shows off the pattern and hides dirt. Dark grout makes every line visible, so the setting out has to be perfect.
Yes, on a properly waterproofed wall. It is the preparation behind them that keeps the water out.
Usually around fifteen percent extra to allow for the cuts, compared with ten for a straight layout.
Either way works. Many customers choose their own; some prefer us to supply everything as one price.
A kitchen splashback is usually a day, with grouting the next morning.
Yes. Ceramic metro tiles cope with the heat behind a gas or induction hob, and they are easy to wipe clean.