GUIDE FOR A CORRECT CHOICE OF TILES

At the moment when we have to prepare a reform, or a new work, and we have to choose the tiles, at that moment a multitude of questions of all kinds assail us: Large Format or Small Format? Ceramic tiles or Porcelain? Rectified or Not Rectified?  Light or Dark Colors? ...

On many occasions, I have seen in the store how customers come with a well-studied lesson based on notes taken from the internet, neighbors or friends ... and that, although they may be right, I think that a series of factors must be taken into account when choosing tiles, which can help us save money on materials that, perhaps, are not necessary for our specific space; and as an example I can cite a very common one, as porcelain tile is not always necessary for a bathroom.

For these reasons, I found it interesting to write this post with some tips and questions that we can ask ourselves when choosing our tiles.

If we want to create a rustic atmosphere, we can choose for floors, for mud and stone-type pavements, and brown and beige tones. Regarding the format, perhaps the 30 * 30 or 33 * 33 square is one of the best suited to this type of environment. It is a very comfortable format for placement, in addition to being relatively inexpensive, as it is a fairly standard format. We could also choose a 20 × 20, even with decorations in shades of blue, white, yellow ...

As for the walls, we could also go to artisan-type tiles, in the same white, bone, blue and yellow tones, in formats of 20 × 20 cm, 10 × 10 cm or rectangle type platelet or meter, even playing with the edges irregular to give a more rustic and handmade feel.

If what we are looking for is a more Modern or Minimalist style we would opt for Large format and rectified tiles, in cemented style gray or beige tones for floors, combining with white or light tones on walls, also in large format, such as 30 * 90 cm or 33 * 100 cm, and rectified.

If we opt for a Classic style, in this case, both for floors and walls, I would opt for a tile with a marbled texture finish, preferably glossy, although we can also find a multitude of matte designs.

If we are going to choose this style of tile, for interiors we will find a lot of production in stoneware or red body, so these tiles are usually much cheaper than white body or porcelain. 

This is one of the main questions that many of us ask ourselves: What is better, Ceramic or Porcelain? Well, it all depends on the use you are going to give it.

As far as technical characteristics are concerned, porcelain is much stronger and more resistant than stoneware and resists sudden changes in temperature as well as ice and snow; On the other hand, stoneware, as it is glazed, can crack with the ice and "detach" from the sponge cake; so we say that it does not resist ice.

If we are going to use the tile indoors, be it stoneware or porcelain, we will be indifferent in terms of technical performance, while if we are going to place it outdoors, it will be more convenient to use a porcelain tile.

Another issue between stoneware or porcelain is the design, since in porcelain, due to the performance of the material, we can find larger pieces, with very different reliefs and textures due to the more "moldable" characteristics of the material, while with in stoneware, the design may be more limited as it can only play with drawings without relief, in gloss or matte, as it has a smooth enamel layer.

Because this is usually a somewhat more complicated issue. What does rectified mean? It is nothing other than the fact that the rounded finish of the tips is cut to the tile piece so that it is totally straight. This makes the piece placed much more beautiful since the joint between the tiles is much less marked and straighter, and it will give us a uniform plaque sensation throughout the area.

Therefore, when to choose a ground material? I, personally, would opt for a rectified tile for the walls of the bathrooms or kitchens, especially if it is a large-format tile, since the feeling of spaciousness that it can give us is greater and very pleasant if we can also hide the joints with a color as similar as possible to the piece.

Now, a rectified tile is very nice as long as it is well placed, and its placement is not always easy since you have to put them patiently and without haste so that the corners square well. That the grinding does not have joints, it is not true, it should always have even a minimum of 1 millimeter, to avoid problems.

If you have more questions than what I have mentioned in this article, feel free to contact us at Newcastle Tiling, our tiling experts will be able to assist you on your tiling needs.