Tiling in Lausanne: finding a tiler for your project

Are you looking for a tiler in Lausanne for a bathroom, a kitchen, a hallway or a terrace? Tiling in Lausanne is carried out in a city built on a slope, between the shores of Lake Geneva and the upper districts, with very varied buildings from one neighbourhood to the next. This context affects the substrate, access to the site and the way you compare offers.

Tiling in Lausanne: the work people ask for most

The tiler’s trade covers laying tiles and wall tiles on floors and walls, screed, waterproofing under tiles in wet rooms, mosaic and natural stone. The reference qualification is the CFC (federal certificate of competence) for tilers. In Lausanne, requests cluster around a few situations:

• renovating a bathroom or shower room, including removal of the old covering;
• replacing the floor of a kitchen or an entrance;
• fitting wall tiles as a splashback or on the walls of a wet room;
• tiling a terrace, a balcony or an outdoor access;
• mosaic or natural stone in a room where you want a particular finish.

Each of these tasks depends on the existing substrate. A reliable tiler starts by looking at what lies under the covering, not just the covering itself.

Between Ouchy and the Cité: what the slope and the buildings mean for the tiler

Lausanne stretches from the lake, around Ouchy, up to the upper districts. This topography has a very practical consequence: access. In steep streets, or in districts served by the very steep m2 metro, delivering bags of adhesive, boxes of tiles or slabs of natural stone takes organisation. In your request, state the floor, whether there is a lift, whether parking is possible in front of the building and the distance to carry materials. These details affect the time spent on site and therefore the price.

Around the cathedral, the old town of the Cité has older buildings. In this type of building, floors are frequently uneven, sometimes slightly sloping, and walls are not square. Laying a large-format tile on a floor that is not flat produces visible defects: the tiler may have to level the floor, lay a levelling screed or choose a smaller format. A quote that says nothing about preparing the substrate deserves a question.

Lausanne is also a university city, with UNIL and EPFL nearby. Many homes there are therefore rented flats, sometimes furnished, sometimes shared by flatmates. For a tenant, any change of flooring requires the landlord’s consent; for the owner of a flat in a condominium, the house rules must be checked, in particular regarding sound insulation between floors.

Bathrooms and kitchens: waterproofing before the tile

In a wet room, what matters most lies under the tiling. Waterproofing under tiles protects the slab and the walls from seepage, especially around the shower, the bath and the floor drains. In an older building, a badly treated leak can reach the flat below, which is a source of disputes between neighbours and with the insurer.

If you are renovating the whole room, the sequence is generally as follows: removal, checking the substrate, waterproofing, laying, grouting. Plumbing comes before laying: if you are changing the shower or moving a water point, coordinate with a plumber in Lausanne before the tiler steps in. Likewise, for a whole kitchen, the tiling is part of a wider scheme: see kitchen renovation in Lausanne if you are also changing the units and connections.

Underfloor heating is another question to raise from the outset. It works well with tiling, but means choosing a suitable adhesive and grout, and letting the substrate stabilise. State it clearly during the visit.

Lausanne terraces and balconies and the frost

By the lake, the Vaud climate is mild, but the upper districts and open exposures see frost. On a terrace or balcony, tiling is exposed to water, temperature swings and frost. Three points decide how well it holds up:

1. a sufficient slope to shed water, which must not stand;
2. a tile, adhesive and grout designed for outdoor use;
3. proper waterproofing under the covering, especially above a lived-in room.

If the terrace covers a heated space, the question overlaps with insulation: see the page on thermal insulation in Lausanne to see how the two jobs fit together. Also ask the tiler what is planned for expansion joints and edges, which are often forgotten in offers that are too sketchy.

Permits, municipality and landlord’s consent in Lausanne

For a simple replacement of tiling indoors, authorisation is in principle not required, but check with the municipality. In the canton of Vaud, the building permit is issued by the municipality, and the file goes through the cantonal permit centre (CAMAC) when cantonal departments need to give an opinion. This becomes relevant if the work changes the façade, a terrace or the structure, or if it is part of a wider conversion project.

Buildings in the old town and protected groups of buildings may be subject to specific requirements. Here again, the right approach is to contact the municipality or the competent cantonal department before signing a quote, rather than finding out afterwards that a document was missing from the application.

As for private agreements:

• tenant: written consent of the landlord or managing agent before the work;
• condominium owner: read the house rules and, if the work affects a shared area, inform the administrator;
• house owner: no consent to obtain, but think of the neighbours when it comes to building-site nuisance.

Describing your Lausanne tiling project to compare quotes

The more precise the request, the more comparable the offers. State:

• the rooms concerned and their use (shower, kitchen, terrace);
• the condition of the current covering and, if you know it, of the substrate;
• the type of building, the floor, access and parking;
• the material you want: porcelain stoneware, wall tiles, mosaic, natural stone;
• whether there is underfloor heating;
• your status: owner, condominium owner, or tenant with the landlord’s consent.

A good quote itemises removal of the old tiling, preparation of the substrate, any screed or levelling, waterproofing in wet rooms, supply of the tiles, laying, grouting, waste removal and finishing. Compare the lines, not just the total: two offers for the same amount can cover very different work.

The cost depends mainly on the surface area, the format and quality of the tile, the complexity of the cuts, the condition of the substrate, the waterproofing required, access to the site and the time spent. No reliable figure can be given without a visit: that is the role of the quote. You can request a quote, free and without obligation, by describing your project; tradespeople and companies in the area then contact you.

Other useful pages for your work in Lausanne

• the trade in general: tiling;
• the city: work in Lausanne;
• the canton: canton of Vaud;
• in the same municipality: kitchen renovation in Lausanne, thermal insulation in Lausanne and plumber in Lausanne.