Tile installation and repair in South San Francisco

Matching older tile in South San Francisco bathrooms

About 69.8% of South San Francisco's housing units were built before 1980, and the 1950s were the busiest decade, with 24.3% of the stock. In bathrooms that age, grout cracks and caulk shrinks long before the tile itself fails. A tile that sounds hollow or moves when pressed often means water has already reached the wall behind it.

If the tiles are sound and the wall is solid, we rake out and replace the grout, re-caulk the inside corners and seal it. If tiles are loose or the wall is soft, re-tiling is the real fix, starting with backer board and waterproofing. Tiling itself needs no building permit here. Text photos of the worst spots and a close-up of one tile.

Worth knowing about South San Francisco

• South San Francisco has 23,515 housing units; about 69.8% were built before 1980, and the busiest single decade was the 1950s, at 24.3%.
• The oldest buildings, from before 1950, cluster in Avalon, Downtown, Winston Serra, Paradise Valley/Terra Bay and Orange Park; developers added western and northern subdivisions from the 1970s on.
• SFO's Noise Insulation Program has installed windows, doors and ventilation systems in eligible homes inside the 65-dB contour; a Repair or Replacement Initiative addresses earlier improvements that stopped working properly.