Room
Property
Tips and Tricks
Renovation

Ceramic

Ceramic floor tiles are made from a dust-pressed clay that is fired at high temperature with an applied surface finish; can be glazed unglazed and available in matt, satin or gloss finishes. fully Vitrified ceramics are the most waterproof of all tiles, making them suitable for the wettest areas in the home. When ordering your tile amount make sure to order a sufficient ammount of tiles in the first instance, as tiles are made in batches, using the same clay, fired in same oven and tiles ordered from a different batch can vary in colour.

The suitability of the tile depends on how hardwearing it is. Tiles that are suitable for a bathroom may not be suitable for kitchen or a hallways, since they will not be sufficintly durable. Similarly, any ceramic that can be used on floor can also be used on a wall, but wall tiles cannot be used on floors. Floor tiles will have two to three coats of glaze applied in order to prevent scratching and wearing. Glazed floor tiles can be quit slippy and tend to mark more easly.

The thoughness and durability of a manmade tile is gauged on a five-point scale according to its PEI rating, with one being the wekest and five being the hardest. Tiles of one or two PEI rating are suitable for low traffic areas, such as bathrooms, while three and four are best for kitchen, conservatoris,and hallways. tiles with a PEI rating of five are suitable for outdoor use.
If you want to have a go with at laying tiles yourself, ceramic tiles are the best option. They are easy to cut and don't require any special treatment and the calibration of the tiles is always exact,i.e. all tiles in the same box will be the same size.

The tiles are applied with ceramic floor adhesive to a sound floor. In newly built homes make sure the concrete has been allowed to cure before laying your tiles, otherwise the tiles may crack. If you're considering underfloor heating with ceramic tiles make sure to use heat-proof adhesive. A timber floor will need to be sheeted out with plywood before tiles can be laid.
Ceramic tiles are the least expensive of all tiles,though cost will increase depending on the colour, size and complexity of design.