protective plastic on shower tray......

[grrrinch]

Not sure if this is the correct place for this question but......
I'm having a bathroom refurb and my builder is REALLY touchy so it's kind of hard to ask him questions without getting a sour face back.
We've had a new shower tray put in and it's been grouted on the inside of the cubicle, also the outside and when I was checking over last night I noticed that he's grouted the shower tray without removing the protective plastic film.
This seems weird to me. I asked him this morning and he said he always does it like that and cuts it off with a sharp knife afterwards. Now from what I remember from physics lessons about water and capillary action isn't this a recipe for disaster in a shower or am I over reacting? Will a sharp knife scratch my minty shower tray?

Also should the tiled wall/shower tray edge be siliconed over the grouting?
While I'm here should the inside corner of the shower (where the tiles meet from the left and right) also be siliconed over the grouting? forewarned is forearmed......

 

[Richard C]

I'm having a bathroom refurb and my builder is REALLY touchy so it's kind of hard to ask him questions without getting a sour face back.

Nobody likes being continually & unnecessary bothered by touchy, overly fussy customers but your perfectly entitled to get a civil answer to perfectly reasonable questions. I’d give him an even stronger sour face back & tell him that as you’re the customer, you expect civil answers to reasonable questions. I’m rather a perfectionist in the work I do & if someone finds fault with it, they will in all probability be right & I would definitely take notice.

We've had a new shower tray put in and it's been grouted on the inside of the cubicle, also the outside and when I was checking over last night I noticed that he's grouted the shower tray without removing the protective plastic film.
This seems weird to me. I asked him this morning and he said he always does it like that and cuts it off with a sharp knife afterwards. Now from what I remember from physics lessons about water and capillary action isn't this a recipe for disaster in a shower or am I over reacting? Will a sharp knife scratch my minty shower tray?

I peel back the protective film just enough to allow tiling/grouting, clean off & silicone & then totally remove the protective film last of all. A bead of silicone will take care of it though.

Also should the tiled wall/shower tray edge be siliconed over the grouting?
While I'm here should the inside corner of the shower (where the tiles meet from the left and right) also be siliconed over the grouting? forewarned is forearmed......

I never grout between the tray & the bottom row of tiles, it will crack & let water through. I leave a gap, apply one thin bead of silicone to seal between the tray & the underside of the tile, I then cut the silicon nozzle to the required size, apply another bead of silicone between the tray & tile face & smooth over. It’s also good practice to run a bead of silicon down the corners of the shower where the walls meet rather than just rely on grout as you can get cracks develop due to differential movement in adjacent walls.

I hope your man tanked any plasterboard around the shower area & used decent trade tile adhesive & grout.