A dedicated tile crew brings a different toolkit than a general flooring dealer. Wet-area waterproofing, mortar selection for large format porcelain, slope-to-drain pan construction, and natural stone sealing each carry their own ANSI and TCNA standards, and the installers who hold the Certified Tile Installer credential through the Ceramic Tile Education Foundation have passed a hands-on test that a typical flooring mechanic has not. Nashville homeowners planning a custom shower, a heated bathroom floor, a stone backsplash, or a steam enclosure are better served by a tile specialist than by a multi-category flooring shop. The three operations profiled below lead with tile, stone, and waterproofing rather than treating tile as one product line among many.
Quick Comparison #
| Firm | Credentials | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| Nichols Tile and Terrazzo Co., Inc. | Founded 1973 by David and Juanita Nichols; third-generation family ownership; NTCA Five-Star Contractor designation; CTI credentials issued through CTEF on the leadership bench. | Ceramic and porcelain tile, natural stone, glass tile, terrazzo, dustless demolition, concrete grinding and flattening, waterproofing, artistic patterns, and gauged porcelain panel installation across residential and commercial scopes. |
| 615 Tile Pro | Owner Nathan Critchfield has worked tile and natural stone in Middle Tennessee since 1998; 25-plus years of continuous residential installation work. | Curbless and steam custom showers, conventional walk-in showers, porcelain, ceramic, marble and natural stone tile, electric heated floor systems, kitchen backsplash, and fireplace surround work. |
| Nashville Marble and Tile | Founded 2015 by Clay Forney, third-generation Nashville construction worker; NTCA member and BBB accredited; owner-on-site project management. | Bathroom remodels, marble installation, large residential and commercial tile work covering Brentwood, Franklin, Nolensville, Green Hills, and broader Middle Tennessee. |
1. Nichols Tile and Terrazzo Co., Inc. #
David and Juanita Nichols founded this shop in 1973, and the family still runs it through the third generation from a yard at 5800A Clarksville Pike in Joelton, the northwest Davidson County community that sits inside the Metro Nashville footprint. The office answers at (615) 876-2114. Fifty-plus years of continuous operation under one family makes this outfit the longest-tenured tile and terrazzo house inside the county, and the company carries the National Tile Contractors Association Five-Star Contractor designation, the trade association’s top accreditation tier. The leadership bench includes Certified Tile Installer credentials issued through CTEF, and CTI training events have run out of Mount Juliet just east of Nashville, which places the regional certification hub inside this firm’s working radius.
NTCA Five-Star accreditation and CTI bench #
The Five-Star accreditation through the National Tile Contractors Association is awarded after a written application covering installation methods, safety practices, business operations, and project documentation, and the program recognizes contractors whose installers carry CTI or Advanced Certifications for Tile Installers credentials. This shop publishes both the Five-Star mark and the Certified Tile Installer designation on its team, which means a homeowner hiring the crew gets installers who have passed the CTEF hands-on assessment on mortar, layout, lippage, and grout joint discipline rather than learning those standards on the job site.
Tile, stone, glass, and terrazzo across residential and commercial scopes #
The company runs ceramic and porcelain tile, natural stone, glass tile, and terrazzo across both residential bath and kitchen work and commercial flooring projects. Specialty services published on the company site include dustless demolition, concrete grinding and flattening, waterproofing, artistic tile patterns, and gauged porcelain panel installation, which is the large format category that requires specialized lippage control and substrate preparation per the latest TCNA Handbook addenda. Terrazzo capability gives this practice a portfolio that reaches commercial and institutional clients alongside the residential bath and kitchen book.
Substrate preparation and waterproofing discipline #
Wet-area work runs to the ANSI A108 series installation standards and the TCNA Handbook for Ceramic, Glass, and Stone Tile Installation, which means proper sloped mortar beds under shower pans, bonded waterproofing membranes on shower walls and floors, and movement joints at the perimeter of every tiled field. The dustless demolition service published on the company site reduces airborne silica during tear-out of older mortar beds and tile, which matters for occupied homes where the family is still living in the property during a bath renovation.
2. 615 Tile Pro #
Nathan Critchfield has worked tile and natural stone in Middle Tennessee since 1998, and his shop trades under the 615 Tile Pro brand at (615) 476-1273 with a working service area that reaches Nashville, Franklin, Brentwood, Dickson, Bellevue, Pegram, Burns, and College Grove. Twenty-five-plus years of continuous installation work inside the same metro has built deep subcontractor and supplier relationships, and the operation focuses tightly on residential tile, marble, and natural stone work.
Custom shower categories including curbless and steam #
The shower category on this firm’s site lists curbless and steam configurations alongside conventional curbed walk-in showers, which is the full slate of wet-area shower types that Nashville custom-home and renovation clients now request. Curbless shower construction requires recessed framing, a fully bonded waterproof membrane under a depressed mortar bed, and a linear or trench drain rather than a center point drain, and the build sequence is unforgiving of any shortcut on slope or membrane termination. Steam shower construction adds a vapor-rated waterproofing membrane behind the tile, sloped ceiling for condensate, and sealed enclosure detailing that requires steam-specific training.
Heated floor systems and natural stone scope #
The services list covers electric heated floor systems alongside porcelain, ceramic, marble, and natural stone tile installation, with kitchen backsplash and fireplace surround work as separate published lines. Electric heated floor cable or mat systems integrate with the tile thinset bed and require correct thermal-break detailing at the perimeter, proper sensor placement, and a thermostat circuit pulled by a licensed electrician. Natural stone work adds sealing, honing, and lippage tolerance considerations that differ from porcelain, and the in-house stone capability keeps marble and travertine projects under the same crew.
Free estimating and direct-with-owner project model #
The operation runs a free estimate workflow with the owner himself involved on residential bids, which puts the homeowner in direct contact with the installer who will run the job. That model fits the same install-first philosophy that the longer-tenured tile crews in the region tend to adopt, and it lets a homeowner walk a prospective shower or backsplash with the person who will set the first tile rather than with a sales representative who will hand the project off after the deposit clears.
Expert Tile Installation in Franklin, Brentwood, Nashville & Dickson
3. Nashville Marble and Tile #
Clay Forney founded this practice in 2015 out of Nolensville on the southern edge of Davidson County and reaches at (615) 336-6349 with a working footprint that covers Brentwood, Franklin, Nolensville, Green Hills, and broader Middle Tennessee. Forney is a third-generation Nashville construction worker, and the business holds NTCA membership and Better Business Bureau accreditation. Eleven years of continuous residential and commercial tile work under owner-operated leadership puts this shop in the experienced-mid-tenure tier among Davidson County tile installers, and the practice runs a Yelp and Houzz portfolio that documents recent bath, kitchen, and stone projects across Brentwood and Green Hills.
National Tile Contractors Association membership #
NTCA membership obligates the contractor to follow the trade association’s published installation standards, which align with the ANSI A108 series and the TCNA Handbook, and gives the shop access to NTCA technical bulletins on substrate preparation, large format tile, gauged porcelain panel handling, and shower waterproofing. Members carry the NTCA mark on marketing materials and have direct technical support from association staff when a project hits a substrate or waterproofing question that falls outside routine practice.
Owner-on-site project management #
The website states that the owner personally manages job sites rather than dispatching a project manager who supervises remotely. Owner-on-site management means the person who priced the bid is the same person reviewing the substrate before mortar goes down, inspecting the waterproofing membrane before tile sets, and signing off on grout joint width and lippage at completion. For Nashville bath and kitchen homeowners, that direct accountability removes the layered communication channels that often complicate punch-list closure on larger tile contracts.
Bath, marble, and large project portfolio #
The portfolio covers bathroom remodels, marble installation, and large commercial and residential projects, with published client references that include Whole Foods. Marble capability requires the slower, gentler diamond cutting and the sealing schedule that softer natural stone demands, and a shop willing to publish marble work alongside porcelain tile is signaling that the crew can handle the higher-value bath and entry projects where marble shows up. The mixed residential and commercial book also tells a homeowner that the project will not be shoehorned through a residential-only template that lacks the documentation discipline a commercial job requires.
https://www.nashvillemarbleandtile.com/
Reference Notes #
CTEF Certified Tile Installer (CTI): The Ceramic Tile Education Foundation administers the Certified Tile Installer program, the only third-party assessment of a tile installer’s skill recognized by the broader tile industry. The CTI exam combines a written test on standards, materials, and methods with a hands-on practical that evaluates layout, mortar coverage, lippage, and grout joint discipline. CTI training events run out of Mount Juliet, Tennessee near Nashville and in Egg Harbor City, New Jersey.
NTCA Five-Star Contractor: The National Tile Contractors Association Five-Star Accreditation is the trade association’s top recognition tier for member contractors. The program requires a written application documenting installation methods, business practices, safety programs, and project quality, with renewal at defined intervals.
ANSI A108 installation standards: ANSI A108.1 through A108.17 cover the installation methods for ceramic tile, glass tile, and dimension stone, including bonded mortar bed systems, large and heavy tile mortar, ungauged stone, and waterproof membranes. The standards are referenced throughout the TCNA Handbook and are the industry baseline for acceptable installation practice.
TCNA Handbook for Ceramic, Glass, and Stone Tile Installation: The Tile Council of North America publishes the annual handbook of installation method details, with each method assigned a method number that specifies substrate, membrane, mortar, and finish requirements for floors, walls, showers, steam rooms, and exterior installations. Specifications across commercial and residential tile projects routinely reference TCNA method numbers as the installation requirement.
Schluter-DITRA uncoupling membrane: The Schluter Systems DITRA membrane is a polyethylene uncoupling layer installed between the substrate and the tile to absorb in-plane substrate movement and prevent crack transfer to the tile field, with a bonded mortar bed above and below the membrane.
Schluter-KERDI waterproofing membrane: The Schluter KERDI sheet membrane is a bonded waterproofing layer for shower walls, floors, and ceilings, applied with unmodified thinset over a properly prepared substrate and integrated with KERDI-BAND seam tape, pre-formed inside and outside corners, and pipe seals to produce a continuous waterproof shell behind the tile finish.
Schluter-DITRA-HEAT electric floor warming: The DITRA-HEAT system combines an uncoupling membrane with channels that accept electric heating cable, integrated with a programmable thermostat and floor sensor. The system gives an installer a single membrane that delivers both crack isolation per ANSI A118.12 and electric radiant warmth without two separate underlayments.
Large format tile (LFT) standards: The TCNA Handbook defines large format tile as any tile with at least one edge longer than 15 inches and publishes lippage and substrate flatness requirements that exceed the standard tolerance for smaller tile. Substrates for LFT installations require flatness within 1/8 inch in 10 feet and 1/16 inch in 2 feet, and the mortar must be a medium-bed or large-and-heavy-tile mortar rated for the tile size and weight.
Gauged porcelain panel installation: ANSI A108.19 and A108.20 cover the installation of gauged porcelain tile panels and slabs, which typically run from 5 by 10 feet up to 5 by 12 feet at 6 millimeter thickness. The standards specify suction-cup handling, custom mortar trowel configurations, and movement joint placement that differ from conventional tile installation.
ANSI A118.10 bonded waterproof membrane: ANSI A118.10 sets the performance requirements for bonded waterproof membranes used in tile installations, covering tensile strength, elongation, fungal resistance, and dimensional stability. Both sheet membranes such as Schluter-KERDI and liquid-applied membranes such as Custom Building Products Redgard meet the A118.10 specification when installed per manufacturer instructions.
Tennessee home improvement licensing: The Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance Board for Licensing Contractors requires a Home Improvement license for residential remodeling contracts between $3,000 and $24,999 in covered counties including Davidson, and a full Contractor license for residential work at $25,000 or above. Custom tile shower and full bathroom tile projects routinely cross the Home Improvement threshold and often the full Contractor threshold on larger renovations.
Selection Methodology #
Tile installation sorts on three signals: NTCA National Tile Contractors Association membership or CTEF Ceramic Tile Education Foundation Certified Tile Installer status on the lead installer, mortar and waterproofing system literacy at the TCNA Tile Council of North America handbook level (movement joints under EJ-171, shower-pan slope-to-drain detail under B415, large-format tile bonding under F-101), and authorized-distributor relationships with named manufacturers (Daltile, Schluter Systems for uncoupling membranes and shower waterproofing, MAPEI or Laticrete mortar systems). The three firms above each list CTEF Certified Tile Installer credentials on the lead crew, hold NTCA membership where claimed, document waterproofing system specifications, and operate from a Davidson or Williamson County street address. Subcontractor-broker operations without an install crew of record were excluded.
Frequently Asked Questions #
Q: How does the crew prepare and flatten the substrate before tile sets?
A: Ask whether the installer measures floor flatness with a 10-foot straightedge and corrects high or low spots with self-leveling underlayment or patch before any thinset goes down. For large format tile the substrate must hit 1/8 inch in 10 feet and 1/16 inch in 2 feet per the TCNA Handbook, and a crew that skips this step will produce lippage that no amount of mortar back-buttering can hide. Confirm in writing which leveler or patch product the crew will use and who pays if a subfloor flatness test fails on the day of install.
Q: What lippage tolerance does the contract specify and how is it measured?
A: ANSI A108.02 sets allowable lippage at 1/32 inch for tile with grout joints under 1/4 inch and 1/16 inch for joints at 1/4 inch and wider, measured with a digital caliper or lippage gauge across adjacent tile edges. Get the tolerance written into the scope of work along with the inspection method, because a verbal handshake on lippage leaves a homeowner with no remedy when a shower wall reads like a topographic map under raking light.
Q: Are any of the three firms paid placements?
A: No. The three profiles above are editorial selections drawn from publicly verifiable sources. No firm sponsored placement.
Q: What grout sealing schedule does the installer recommend and who applies the first coat?
A: Cement-based grout needs a penetrating sealer applied after the grout has cured for the manufacturer-specified window, typically 48 to 72 hours, with reapplication every one to three years in wet areas. Ask whether the installer applies the initial sealer as part of the contract or hands the bottle to the homeowner, and whether epoxy grout (which does not require sealing) is an option for showers and high-traffic kitchen floors.
Editorial Note #
This guide was published on 2026-05-11 and reflects research current as of that date. Verify licenses, phone numbers, and current business status before engaging any firm.