Ceramic tiles are installed once in at least twenty years, so making the right choice is crucial. Classic, granite, wall, floor, for indoor or outdoor use, there are many dilemmas. Of course, whether they are cheap or expensive matters because the price is a significant factor. In the following lines, we will try to make it easier for you to choose the ideal ceramic tiles.
Not so long ago, ceramic tiles were reserved exclusively for bathrooms, kitchens, and perhaps terraces. Today, tiles are not uncommon even in the living room, which is a particularly good solution if you opt for underfloor heating. Fortunately, the selection is more extensive today than in previous years, but sometimes abundance can be confusing, making you feel like a child in a candy store in a tile shop, as you’re sure that “the other one” is better than what you want at that moment.
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We’ll try to help at least a little. Oh, we won’t discuss “how to tile on your own” here. If you’re not one of those with golden hands and a lot of free time, tiling on your own is not a good idea. This is a job done once every twenty or thirty years, so there’s no point in practicing on your kitchen or bathroom.
Basic Division – Wall, Floor, External, and Internal
The shortest rule is: Wall tiles can only be installed on the wall, floor tiles can be used on both walls and floors. Internal ones are only for indoors, while external ones can be used indoors and outdoors. There are reasons for this. Wall tiles are of such quality that they are not intended for heavy loads and intensive wear, so they should not be installed on the floor.
Also, wall tiles on the floor are often not a good solution because when they are wet, they can be slippery, which can be particularly inconvenient in the bathroom. The type of finishing glaze and its slip resistance are indicated by the letter R. The higher this factor, the “rougher” and more slip-resistant the tile is. Floor tiles are more durable, making them suitable for all applications, but sometimes, installing floor tiles on the wall is not economically viable. There’s no need to install high-quality floor tiles on the wall if they won’t endure any load.
Nowadays, the choice of shapes and designs is large enough to find wall tiles that suit your needs. Similar considerations apply to the division into external and internal ceramic tiles. External tiles are designed to withstand moisture and low temperatures better. They have a significantly lower moisture absorption rate, so they won’t freeze and crack at low temperatures.
Ordinary clay tiles and those of lower quality have high absorption, leading to glaze or tile cracking. External ceramics usually have water absorption below 0.5%, making them the right choice for the yard. Of course, these external tiles can also be installed indoors if you have the economic rationale for it.
Ceramic or Porcelain Tiles – What to Buy
Another significant division could be between classic ceramic tiles with glaze or porcelain, or as they are otherwise called – porcelain tiles. Both ceramic and porcelain tiles fall into the category of ceramic tiles because they are both made from clay.
Ceramic tiles are made from red, brown, or white clay, while porcelain tiles are made from white clay with the addition of sand and various minerals. A different composition and high firing temperatures give porcelain tiles greater strength and lower porosity, with moisture absorption less than 0.5 percent. All of this makes them ideal for the yard but also for places with high traffic. It should be noted that ceramic tiles are easier to handle when installing, while porcelain tiles are more complicated.
Difficult installation and their price mean that you should be careful when choosing a craftsman. Porcelain tiles have another advantage, and that is that due to their high strength and low porosity, these tiles do not have to be glazed. Both the face and the back of such tiles are the same color. These tiles have the same structure throughout the volume, so if there is minor damage during exploitation, it will not be overly noticeable. This is a particular advantage when installing outdoors.
With classic ceramic tiles, if they get damaged, especially if they are lighter in color, a bright red internal structure appears, making the damage much more noticeable.
Buy a Few More Ceramic Tiles
Calculate from the start that you need to buy a few more tiles than the measured area. Let’s say 10 to 15 percent more tiles than the quantity you calculated you’ll need. Some may be damaged in transit or during installation, and some may end up as “scrap” during cutting, trimming around the edge of the wall, around radiators, and the like. It’s smart to leave a few tiles in reserve in the attic, basement, or garage because one day, there may be damage in a visible place.
Then, it is possible to carefully remove and replace the damaged tile. Of course, there’s a good chance that after ten years, you won’t find tiles identical in color and size to the one that needs to be replaced.
Choosing colors and dimensions is not easy either
Regarding design, everyone will judge for themselves what they like best, but some rules still exist. The basic rule is – the larger the space, the larger the tiles. Pay attention to large shopping centers. There are huge tiles on the floors, and often, just one has a larger area than your entire bathroom. In smaller spaces, choosing larger tiles is not good, not only for aesthetics but also for installation because often, between two opposite walls in a room, you only have four tiles and a strip a few centimeters wide that stretches along the entire room. It also narrows towards one end.
The same applies to a narrow strip on the wall in the kitchen, which runs from the work surface or sink to the kitchen wall units. Large tiles are not a good choice for this small space, and one of the very effective solutions could be tiles that mimic mosaic. Another rule is that smaller spaces should have lighter colors, while larger spaces can withstand darker colors. Experienced designers agree on one more thing – avoid passing trends. Trends come and go, but tiles will remain.
About ten years ago, tiles with an “animal print” pattern were very popular. It sounds crazy, but in that general hysteria, many fell for it, so today they’re looking at a tiger pattern on their bathroom floor. Another example is tiles that mimic wood texture. When they first appeared, they were attractive, but today, the production of such ceramics has been perfected, so it is simply impossible to tell whether it is real wood or ceramics. Compared to today’s products, the first ceramic tiles with a wood design look completely outdated.
Foto: Freepik