About

I was first introduced to the tile trade in 1991 while employed by my brother in law in Redding ,California. Back at that time my main duties were mixing mud for him and grouting his tile work. What is “mud”? Mud, when referred to by a tile installer is what we use to create flat surfaces to adhere our tile to. We use it in a similar fashion to the stucco on the outside of your home. It is considered “Old School” by many in the trade, and also one of the best installation methods used because of its ability to correct uneven surfaces.

After a couple years in Redding, my brother in law and I both moved to Salt Lake City, Utah. The economy was strong there and the construction industry was booming. As working with family typically goes, we went our separate ways. He moved on to Colorado and I stayed in Salt Lake with my wife and 3 children. I went to work for Lawrence Bros Tile, which took me in a new direction in my career. Because of  the amount of older historic buildings and homes I was exposed to and trained by fine craftsmen.  Installing “time period” turn of  the century type tile takes a different type of  finesse than your typical tract home work.

My wife and I became homesick after 5.5 years in Salt Lake and decided it was time to come back home to California so we packed up and moved to the Temecula valley where our family lives around 1997. At that time I had my mud skills shaping up nicely and an eye for detail but I had been trained to set tile in Utah, and in CA things are a little different, or shall I say a lot. I went to work for Gary’s Tile here in Temecula. Gary came up through the tile union and the work we did was semi custom tract homes. I had to learn to be fast to keep up and make a wage as we were paid in “piece work” At first I was about half as fast as I needed to be but caught on real quick. Gary taught me how to take the skills I had learned in Utah and speed me up.

In 2001 I decided it was time to go out on my own. I had my training in quality, and knew how to get the work done efficiently. With a thirst for more knowledge I turned to the internet and stumbled across the John Bridge tile forums. The John Bridge forums is a message board where the “Do it yourselfer” Can get the most friendly, and comprehensive tile advice on the internet. It is also the meeting place for some of the most knowledgeable tile experts in the world. In 2005 I was asked to help out on the site and spent several years as a moderator. During this time I furthered my knowledge on the technical side of tile work and became what some refer to as a “tile geek” I simply think of it as keeping up with the times. To this day, I continue to participate and stay involved in the community.

Having a broad perspective and understanding of the products and methods that are available allows me to problem solve with more than one solution. Knowing the do’s and dont’s also assures my customers they are getting a top notch  installation that will last for years.

Hamilton Tile and Stone services Southern California.  We focus on customer satisfaction by building quality projects with integrity,adhering to industry specifications and paying close attention to detail.