Kitchen flooring - Porcelanosa or Amtico

dumpallhere

Purchasing a new build (happy) therefore limited to the range of flooring options offered by the developer (not so happy).

For the kitchen flooring, considering Porcelanosa ceramic or Amtico luxury vinyl (Spacia or Signature) - but unaware of the advantages / disadvantages between the two with respect to:
1. Anti-slip
2. Scratch resistant.
3. Insulation (don't want freezing feet all the time).
4. Cleaning.

Appreciate comments / feedback from experts or users. Will help me choose the appropriate product.


Thanks in advance.

scottishblondie

I had ceramic tiles in my old flat, and I found them to be very slippery when wet if I spilled anything, very cold, and anything that I dropped was guaranteed to end up broken. I also managed to crack one tile when I dropped a heavy pan. I ended up ripping them out and laying some cheap-ish vinyl instead. I now have some very nice click vinyl in my new house, which I'm much happier with.

Having said that, I saw the floor tiles on offer at Porcelanosa when I was choosing the wall tiles for my new build. The do look very nice and you can get plenty of finishes which are not slippery. I would imagine they are still cold though!

JamesWalkerz

I have been let down repeatedly with poor service and products being damaged in transit by the granite supplier we had chosen to go with. Anyone have any suggestions of an alternative company who are reliable and professional?

aggypanthus

Amtico is great, 3 of my family have had it fitted, its warmer than tiles, and quieter to walk on, no clicky noises lol. I believe its less likey to crack than tiles,

dumpallhere

scottishblondie wrote: »

I saw the floor tiles on offer at Porcelanosa when I was choosing the wall tiles for my new build. The do look very nice and you can get plenty of finishes which are not slippery. I would imagine they are still cold though!

There are three ranges on offer at the development, one of them being the "polished" range which I guess would be the (most) slippery one. So those are clearly out of consideration.

Thanks for your response.

andyhop

Amtico or karndean is more suited to living areas. Easy to clean and look after and probably more durable if getting a house builder to install

dumpallhere

Don't think the builder is going to allow third party on to the site / house to do the flooring for us before the completion. Guess some builders have that policy though I'll explicitly check with the site manager this weekend.

In such case, I am limited to getting the flooring done by the builder and further (severely) limited by the range of carpets / underlays / LVTs / ceramic flooring options available at the development and also limited shades / colors within the available ranges.

And OH won't even fancy 10% of the choices available, so me not too happy!

murphydog999

I would consider the amount of time you spend in the kitchen. We've got a tiled floor at the moment (not put in by us) and in our current renovation it is one of the things that is going. It gets really uncomfortable to stand on - I like cooking and it makes my feet and legs ache - and vinyl is a much better option, for me anyway.

xyz123

scottishblondie wrote: »

I had ceramic tiles in my old flat, and I found them to be very slippery when wet if I spilled anything, very cold, and anything that I dropped was guaranteed to end up broken. I also managed to crack one tile when I dropped a heavy pan.

we had same experience of tiles being very cold, and slippery. We also broke one corner in the tiles. being a rental it was perhaps cheaper quality.

araminta2

I have tiles in both kitchen and bathroom and the main concerns were as you said

1) cold to stand on
2) slippery when wet
3) damaging a tile

The best way to deal with these

1) under tile heating - ITS FANTASTIC AND CHEAP TO RUN!! we have no rad in our kitchen. its just as controllable as heating as run off its own thermostat/controller

2) feel the tile - if its smooth do not use on the floor especially in the bathroom, however you can get a liquid application if you already have tiles laid and think they are slippery - the liquid can be painted on the area you want some grip (made by HG Haageson)

3) ceramic tiles are not as hard wearing as porcelain, however there is always some overlap with this kind of generalization.......

dumpallhere

Looks like I'll have to live with cold feet, or devote less time helping in the kitchen!

A new build with a national builder - it is a "NO" for having the flooring and/or carpeting done from anyone else but the developer before completion. Under-floor heating is not an available option / choice so not possible (sad).

OH wasn't happy with the Amtico Signature choices available on the site, so had to settle for one Porcelanosa tile amongst the many that were on offer and the OH liked. It is a Matt-Gloss tile with higher slip resistance (Co-efficient of friction (CoF)= 0.78 when dry, 0.51 when wet; in other words R12 at minimum as per DIN51130) as compared to Amtico Signature (CoF = 0.11-0.18 or R9 as per DIN51130 std.).

Am not sure if the one chosen in a porcelain or ceramic but having read through the technical details of the ones that OH liked, this has the highest abrasion and crazing resistance, and breaking strength. So, may miss breaking it unless OH throws me on the floor. Time will tell and I'll have to live with it until then.

Unless OH plans to ruin the tiles as soon she is bored of them, I am happy I saved some quids for not having to pay for doubly expensive Amtico Signatures.

Thanks all.