pros and cons of ceramic/porcelain kitchen floor tiles

cyclonebri1

Leif wrote: »

Oh, and if you have large tiles, you have to have a more level floor. One way to achieve that is with levelling compound. Another is to lay a sub floor. Adds to the cost, but not much in the case of levelling compound.

A decent thick bed adhesive negates the need for floor leveling compound unless you are talking seriously out of flat and that affects all sizes of tiles.
It can be laid approx 3 to 12mm in thickness so can take up a fair discrepancy, and is similar in cost to decent self levelling compound.

Last project was 600mm x 600mm tiles, yep they take a bit of getting right, and on walls even more so , but the finished result is worth it.

And just a further warning on tiles from a recent experience a friend of mine had a bathroom tiled with approx 200mm x 400mm black tileslooked nice enough in the box but what he didn't know was that every single tile was uniformly out of flat by about 3mm along its length. They were banana shaped, higher in the middle.

Now 3mm in 400mm might not have been a major issue, however he wanted them laid in brick pattern, ie, staggered. The end result being the high point in the middle of the tile abutted the low ends where the joint was, if that makes sense. It gave a 3mm step from 1 tile to the next. :eek:
They felt awful to walk on, and don't ask me why the fitter completed the job but I know it got legal.

All I'm saying is open the tiles and check before you buy.

katejo

Leif wrote: »

A decent quality vinyl or similar can look nice. Not as long lasting, but warmer. I don't regret tiles, but I can understand choosing vinyl.



I have a few large porcelain tiles which I took home as samples. I do think you need to do that as I found I did not like the beige, it did not go with my kitchen, and so I went for white. No doubt your tastes will differ, due in part to a different kitchen decor. I have no problem carrying a large tile, although getting on a bus and paying the fair might be interesting. Just pop into a tile shop, and pick one up. They almost always have one or two samples lying around so you can carry test one.

There do seem to be some things in fashion, but as the curtain people told me, buy them for yourself. Turned out they were right as far as curtains go. Did I tell you how much curtains cost ... rant ramble blah blah.

Oh, and if you have large tiles, you have to have a more level floor. One way to achieve that is with levelling compound. Another is to lay a sub floor. Adds to the cost, but not much in the case of levelling compound.

Yes i have already taken several medium size ones home (about 33 x 33). My floor is going to be levelled anyway.

tpt

My parents had ceramic tiles. My dad dropped a normal dinner plate around 6 inches from the tiles and 4 tiles smashed. The plate was unharmed

they haven't been laid properly then. if laid correctly you'll be able to park a car on them.

porcelain is superior in my opinion, as long as you dont go too low quality. The time difference in laying them is negligible if you have the right kit, many tilers seem to use porcelain as a reason to quote more!

Go for a slight texture or variation in the colour, grey microporous grout and the larger the better and you'll have a floor that will last for years, stand the test of fashion and be easy to clean. dont skimp on the tiler though.

We've just has some great quality 600x600 and 450x450 glazed porcelain in with a rectified edge (this means a completely square edge, looks more like natural stone) in light\mid grey and white. might be right up your street. personal message me if you'd like some samples

katejo

tpt wrote: »

they haven't been laid properly then. if laid correctly you'll be able to park a car on them.

porcelain is superior in my opinion, as long as you dont go too low quality. The time difference in laying them is negligible if you have the right kit, many tilers seem to use porcelain as a reason to quote more!

Go for a slight texture or variation in the colour, grey microporous grout and the larger the better and you'll have a floor that will last for years, stand the test of fashion and be easy to clean. dont skimp on the tiler though.

We've just has some great quality 600x600 and 450x450 glazed porcelain in with a rectified edge (this means a completely square edge, looks more like natural stone) in light\mid grey and white. might be right up your street. personal message me if you'd like some samples

I have sent a private reply

cyclonebri1

tpt wrote: »

they haven't been laid properly then. if laid correctly you'll be able to park a car on them.

That's true, but only on concrete. Tiles on a bouncy wooden floor will either break if correct adhesive is used or spring off if not.

And thats walking on them, forget the car,

tpt

cyclone, your partially right, but that bouncy wooden floor should be overboarded and\or strengthened to stop the bounce. No more ply or 12mm ply will solve that issue when used with the proper adhesive...apart from parking the car :-)

cddc

tpt wrote: »

The time difference in laying them is negligible if you have the right kit, many tilers seem to use porcelain as a reason to quote more!

It is not the time taken that causes the fixing price to go up. It is the cost of the kit and the renewables for it that cause tilers to charge more. Diamond blades and drill bits arent cheap as you know.....

I am with you in agreeing that porcelain is in general better unless you get the really cheap and nasty stuff... but it is fair to allow fixers another few quid to fix it.

tpt

yep your right they arent cheap, and some of the crap porcelain thats being sold by some retailers at the mo is so brittle and hard to cut the waste forces an increase, i understand that but i'm hearing some quotes of double the price which is frankly ridiculous

cyclonebri1

tpt wrote: »

cyclone, your partially right, but that bouncy wooden floor should be overboarded and\or strengthened to stop the bounce. No more ply or 12mm ply will solve that issue when used with the proper adhesive...apart from parking the car :-)

Yes of course it should, I'm a big fan of No More Ply, does what it says on the can, but have they used it?, that was my drift

ronkeddy11

Both kind of tiles looks good on floor, but more than looks it should be long lasting. And in this case I will prefer porcelain tiles as they are more resistant to moisture. Or simply try Centura Tile installers, hope it will help.