Do Tilers Remove the Old Tiles? What's Included in a Re-Tiling Quote

Yes, in almost every proper re-tiling job the old tiles come off first. Tiling over existing tiles is usually a false economy that puts the new work at risk, so a good re-tiling quote includes the strip-out, the disposal of the old tiles and rubble, and the making good of whatever is underneath. The problem is that these parts are often left vague or left out entirely, which is how one quote ends up looking cheaper than another for what is supposed to be the same job. This is what a complete re-tiling quote actually covers.

Key takeaways

• A proper re-tile means removing the old tiles first, not laying over them.
• Strip-out, disposal, and making good the substrate are real work that must be quoted.
• The hidden cost is what the wall or floor needs after the tiles come off.
• A quote that only prices laying new tiles is hiding the biggest variables.

A West Wickham shower rebuilt from a sound, prepared substrate. Detail like twin niches only works when the surface underneath was stripped back and made good first. Bathroom tiling service

Do tilers remove the old tiles?

Yes, on a re-tile the old tiles should come off. There is a temptation, usually driven by a wish to save money, to tile straight over the existing tiles. Occasionally that is viable on a sound, flat, well-bonded surface, but it is the exception, not the rule. It adds height and weight, it relies entirely on the old tiles staying bonded, and if anything underneath was already failing, you have built your new job on a problem. I go through exactly when it works and when it does not in can you tile over existing tiles.

For most bathrooms and floors, the honest answer is a strip-out. Take the old tiles off, see what you are actually dealing with, and start from a sound base. That is the only way to guarantee the new work has something solid to bond to.

What a complete re-tiling quote should cover

A re-tiling quote is not just “lay new tiles.” Done properly it covers a sequence, and each stage is real labour:

• Strip-out. Removing the existing tiles from the walls or floor.
• Disposal. Clearing the old tiles and rubble, which is heavy construction waste.
• Making good the substrate. Repairing, grinding back old adhesive, levelling, and priming.
• Tanking, in wet areas. Waterproofing the prepared surface before tiling.
• Laying the new tiles. The part people picture when they think of tiling.
• Grouting and sealing. Including silicone in the movement and floor-to-wall joints.

If a quote only itemises the last two and stays silent on the first four, it is not pricing the same job as a quote that includes them. That silence is exactly where a cheap-looking number comes from.

The part that decides whether it lasts: the substrate

Here is what people underestimate. When the old tiles come off, you are rarely left with a clean surface ready to tile. Plaster often comes away with wall tiles. Screed can be cracked or hollow. Old adhesive has to be ground back to a flat, sound base. Until the tiles are off, nobody can see all of this, which is why a careful tiler will flag that some making-good may be needed once the strip-out reveals the true condition.

That making-good is where durability lives. A new tile is only as good as the surface it bonds to. Tile onto blown plaster or an unlevelled, dusty substrate and the best tiles in the world will fail. In a wet area the prepared surface then needs tanking with a named membrane such as Mapei Mapelastic, BAL Tank-it, or a Schluter Kerdi system before a single tile goes on. See what is tanking for why that hidden layer matters so much.

This is also why preparing the room properly before the tiler arrives helps the whole job run cleanly. How to prepare for a tiler covers what you can do in advance.

Who clears the rubble?

Tile rubble is heavy and counts as construction waste, so it cannot go in a household bin. Some tilers include removal and disposal in the price. Others quote labour only and expect you to arrange a skip or a grab lorry and clear the room yourself. Neither approach is wrong, but you must know which one applies before the job starts. Nobody wants to discover on the final day that there is a pile of rubble in the garden and a disposal bill that was never discussed. Agree it in writing.

Why this is where cheap quotes hide

When two re-tiling quotes look far apart, the gap is almost never in the cost of laying the tiles, because that part is broadly similar between competent tilers. The gap is in strip-out, disposal, and making good. One quote has priced the real, full job. The other has assumed the surface will be fine, left disposal to you, and quietly dropped the substrate work that you cannot see and will not miss until it fails. You are not comparing like with like.

The fix is simple. Ask every tiler to put in writing whether strip-out, disposal, and making good are included, and what happens if the substrate needs more work once the tiles are off. A clear answer separates a real quote from an optimistic one.

How I quote a re-tile

I itemise the strip-out, tell you up front how disposal is handled, and set out the making-good and tanking the substrate needs, with the honest caveat that some conditions only show once the old tiles are off. That way you know what you are paying for and there are no surprises mid-job. I cover West Wickham, Bromley, Beckenham, Orpington, and Chislehurst, across bathroom tiling, wet rooms, and kitchen floor tiling. For a clear, fully itemised re-tiling quote, get in touch.

See: can you tile over existing tiles | how to prepare for a tiler | what is tanking