Tile floorings are one of the most favored flooring options. The product’s clean and sanitary features, inexpensive cost, and wide variety are three primary elements that contribute to its popularity. 

Choosing tiles for your house is essential since there are several aspects to consider. It’s important to remember that not all tiles are made equal. Simply expressed, there are several distinctions to consider when determining the intended use. Here are some pointers to assist you in selecting the best tile flooring for your home

About Prime Home Renovations:

We are a full-service interior remodeling company based in Orange County. As a one-stop-shop for your flooring, bath, and kitchen remodeling, we provide our clients with a complete package including design, materials, removing installation, and in-house construction labor.

What Is Tile Flooring?

Tile flooring is commonly seen in bathroom and kitchen remodelings, but you may utilize it wherever in the home. Before choosing tile flooring, it’s necessary to understand the distinctions between the two types.

Ceramic Tile

Because ceramic tile is made and heated, it isn’t as durable as porcelain tile. However, it is less expensive than porcelain tile, is easier to cut, is more flexible, and can have a texture for a more appealing appearance.

Porcelain Tile

Porcelain tile is distinguished from ceramic tile by using more refined clay compacted at higher pressures and baked at higher temperatures. As a result, porcelain is more durable and less porous than ceramic because of these differences.

Tile Flooring: Pros and Cons

Before purchasing, knowing the advantages and disadvantages of tile flooring is essential for determining whether it is a suitable material for your home’s flooring requirements.

Pros

• Durability: Porcelain tile is waterproof. However, ceramic tile is more porous when deciding between the two materials. Both are incredibly durable and are hardly ever cracked or chipped. Furthermore, tile can be stain resistant, slip-resistant, scratch and dent resistant, among other things.
• Tile is simple to maintain, much like other smooth floor surfaces. It cleans up quickly and simply. Scrubbing floors is simple, and you may clean up spills without leaving stains. If you want to keep your tile flooring exceptionally clean, you may mop them with a light detergent.
• Cost-Effective: At home improvement stores, ceramic and porcelain tiles can be purchased for as low as $1 per square foot or as high as $9 per square foot.

Cons

• Installation is difficult: Cutting and installing tiles is time-consuming and requires extreme accuracy to complete the project successfully. After the tiles have been cut, grout must be placed to hold them in place. Cutting a long tale short is a task that’s best left to the professionals if you’re not handy with tools.
• Cold: Because tile is a poor heat conductor, some homeowners install radiant floor heating beneath their floors.
• Grout requires special attention: Since the grout sealer is not applied after laying tile, the grout lines may get stained over time.

What You Need To Know When Choosing Tile Flooring

Before installing your tile flooring, pick the area you wish to and estimate the amount of foot traffic that area receives regularly. A floor’s tile should be selected based on the amount of foot traffic it receives. If it doesn’t receive much foot traffic, you may go with a softer tile.

Another significant thing to consider is the tile design, which can increase or decrease the time required for installation. A more extended time will be necessary for smaller, more detailed mosaic designs than bigger subway tile designs.

You’ll also want to consider the tile’s overall shape and size. Some forms work better in different places than others, so select your shapes thoughtfully while designing your environment.

Tile Ratings

According to the Porcelain Enamel Institute, tile comes in five different hardness classifications. The higher the grade, the better the tile’s scratch and chip resistance.

• Class I: Applications that are solely used on the wall
• Class II: Low foot traffic, better suited to toilets.
• Class III: Moderate to light foot traffic, suitable for regions with regular foot activity.
• Class IV: Moderate to high foot activity, ideal for everyday usage in the house
• Class V: High foot traffic, ideal for all household and business applications.

Mohs Test

The Mohs test is an antique scale for determining scratch resistance. It’s a scale of one to ten, with the greater the number, the more difficult to scratch. For example, a tile flooring with a level 2 or lower would very certainly be scratched with a fingernail. However, unless you pay a lot of money for a diamond floor, you won’t find a level 10 in flooring.

Ceramic tiles should be about a four on the Mohs scale, although more rigid tiles might be as high as an 8 or 9. Scratches aren’t an issue if you obtain a seven or above. Even at 5 or 6, a scratch will need significant furniture shifting or a fallen knife.

Coefficient of Friction

A tile flooring’s coefficient of friction (COF) is a physics word that describes how slippery it is. If your tile gets wet, you’ll want to avoid one that is overly slippery. This is especially true for adults over 65 or for commercial establishments that are subject to liability.

COF is measured on a scale of 0 to 1, with higher numbers indicating less slickness. According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, all commercial buildings that employ tile must have a rating of at least 0.6. A figure greater than 0.50 is sufficient for most households.

Rating of Absorption

So, how can you determine whether or not your tile flooring is moisture resistant? Depending on the density of the tiles, they may be split into four categories:

Non-vitreous: This is the sort of stone that is the most porous or the most absorbent.

Semi-vitreous: If exposed to water, semi-vitreous materials will require more care than pure vitreous materials.

Vitreous: Generally speaking, vitreous is the standard for low to medium traffic volume locations. Applications for both indoor and outdoor environments are widespread.

Impervious: The term impervious refers to anything that is waterproof and is typically used in industrial and commercial settings.

The Color of the Ceramic

When it comes to creating a room’s atmosphere, the color of the porcelain is crucial. Brightly colored ceramic tiles may make a room feel much larger. Narrow spaces, such as bathrooms, may be made to look larger by using cream or pastel tile floorings. Darker ceramic tile flooring can help create a warm atmosphere, especially in bigger and more open-plan spaces, and have adequate lighting.

Ceramic tiling with various colors is a good choice for high-traffic areas. In addition, this contrasting color can assist in concealing flooring that is prone to becoming dirty. You may combine grey and white, brown and tan, or even textured ceramic tile flooring to accomplish this effect.

How to Choose the Right Size

Large Format Tile

When it comes to selecting tile flooring for a large space in your house, such as a common area, great room, or kitchen, larger tile formats are preferred. When you choose a big format tile, the size of the tile will make the space appear larger.

With bigger tile, you’ll also have fewer grout joints and require less grout upkeep. In addition, the surface will appear less “busy” and “noisy” with fewer grout lines. It flows much better in a wider room as a result, and it’s highly recommended.

Smaller Format Tiles

Consider using smaller format tiles when constructing a smaller space, such as a powder room.For example, while creating a smaller area, We prefer to think of something incredibly intricate, like a marble arabesque mosaic. You may be more imaginative, and in smaller rooms, you can even use smaller tiles on the floor. It’s a great way to create a lot of modernity, and because it’s a smaller space, it won’t appear too crowded.

Tile Flooring: Pattern and Texture 

This recommendation is dependent on the preferences of the home’s owner. People can choose between glazed and unglazed tile flooring and between plain and patterned ceramic tiles. Remember that glazed ceramic tiles are simpler to clean, whereas unglazed ceramic tiles require more frequent polishing to prevent discoloration.

Pick the Ideal Tile Finish

• Gloss finish tiles appear to have a mirror-like sheen that reflects a lot of light, brightens up the room, and gives it a spacious feel. However, it is not recommended to use glossy tiles in wet areas such as the kitchen or bathroom since they tend to become slippery. (read more about bathroom remodeling mistakes)

• Matte finish ones are slip-resistant, non-reflective, and do not reveal stains or dirt as quickly as shiny finish ones. In addition, slip-resistant tiles lower the danger of falling in places with high moisture content, such as the kitchen and bathroom. As we mentioned above, choose tiles with a COF value greater than 0.6 to ensure safety.• You may also choose a semi-matte or lappato finish as an alternative. These tile floorings have a more excellent sheen and are non-slip in nature compared to matte tiles.

Grout

When creating an attractive contrast between your tile flooring, grout, a mortar or paste filling in cracks or gaps plays an important role. Choose a grout color that contrasts with the ceramic floor tile color to draw attention to the interplay of lines and motifs. If you choose a grout that matches your tiles, the flooring will seem spacious and smooth.  

Sanded grout is smooth; an unsanded grout is rough. 

Sanded grout works best for larger grout lines, while unsanded grout works best for smaller ones.

Calculate the Cost 

Calculate the precise number of tiles necessary for the flooring, and be sure to account for 10% waste in your calculations. Finally, keep a budget in mind so that selecting the floor tiles will be a bit less complicated in the future.

Conclusion

Thank you for joining us as we discussed the importance of selecting the right tile flooring for your environment. You should now be prepared to choose an aesthetically pleasing and practical tile in nature. Please do not hesitate to contact Prime Home Renovations if you have more queries concerning tile selection. We are more than delighted to assist you!

Source:

Gerhardt, N. (2021, September 28). Tile Flooring Buying Guide: Types And Prices – Forbes Advisor. Forbes Advisor.
https://www.forbes.com/advisor/home-improvement/tile-flooring-buying-guide/.

MSI, W. (n.d.). TIPS FOR SELECTING THE RIGHT TILE. TIPS FOR SELECTING THE RIGHT TILE.
https://floorcenter.com/tips-for-selecting-the-right-tile.

Unbiased Tile Floor Guide 2020 [8 Minute Read]. (n.d.). Carpet Captain.
https://www.carpetcaptain.com/tile-guide/.