What are your suggestions for tiling my home? Porcelain or Ceramic?
When it comes to what floor tile to use for your wall, floor or patio, individuals tend to get confused. Clients enjoy it when a person explains what floor tile to install for their design projects.Helping somebody make a choice that will put their mind at ease and knowing they have got an excellent selection of ceramic tiles for their project is an extremely rewarding experience.
Porcelain tiles have been the “in thing” over the past few years. If a floor tile is not made of porcelain, it’s a ceramic tile. That assumption is correct.Ceramic tiles are mostly created from red clay and some are created from white clay. Red body tiles are easy to identify, whereas white body floor tiles are nearly impossible to tell if it’s a porcelain floor tile or not.
Here is where the word of the tile manufacturer comes into play. Reputable floor tile manufacturers mark tile boxes as “porcelain” if they’re porcelain.The higher-end ones, such as Dal-tile(R), Marazzi(R), Crossville(R), Porcelanosa(R), Emser(R) to name a few, label their porcelain tiles as “porcelain”,and “ceramic” for ceramic tiles/floor tiles, if the tile is non-porcelain.Porcelain tiles have a lower water absorption rate than a ceramic floor tiles. This is because they are extremely dense.Through body procelains have the same color from front to back, thus a chip is not going to show as much as a floor tile that only has a surface coloring. Porcelain tiles can be installed outside in climates where the temperatures go below 32 degrees celsius. They are known as as frost resistent tiles.The density of a porcelain tile makes it suitable for residental and light commercial use. It’s wonderful to install on a patio that is definitely exposed outsdie elements. Water won’t damage it.
Ceramic and porcelain tiles are “wear rated” by the Porcelain Enamel Institute (PEI)
They’re as follows:
PEI 1 Rating (Not strong enough to walk on) Use these tiles on walls only.
PEI 2 Rating (Light traffic) Use on wall and bathroom floors only. A word of caution. The larger the tile, on the floor, the easier it may crack with prolonged foot movement.
PEI 3 Rating (Light to moderate activity) Use on kitchen and bath countertops, walls and floors where foot movement isn’t hefty. (Residental)
PEI 4 Rating (Moderate to heavy movement) Use in residental, medium commercial and light institutional.
PEI 5 Rating (Heavy to extremely hefty movement) Use in all residential units plus large commercial locations (malls, airports) and institutional applications (correctional facilities).
Porcelain tiles, with a PEI five score shows that they are quite resistant to chipping or cracking.
There is added value to your home when Ceramic tiles are installed.Installing ceramic or porcelain tiles in a household to yourhouse making it less complicated to sell.
One of the best advantages for any homeowner is definitely the low cost of maintaining tile floors. Ease of care with tile floors assures a homeowner of a relaxed life-style.
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- Ceramic Tile or Porcelain Tile – Which is Better?
- Know Your Tiles
- Flooring Gets a New Look
- Small Bathroom? Use Bathroom tiles to create space!
- Considering Porcelain Tile Floors? How to Know Whether They’re Top Quality
