When it comes to choosing tiles for your washroom, the options are almost limitless. Nevertheless, porcelain is a popular choice for bathroom floors. This is because the material is less porous, denser and offers greater water and stain resistance than other kinds of tiles such as ceramic. Moreover, it is suitable for radiant in-floor heat to keep feet warm on cool mornings. Porcelain provides unparalleled design versatility. Tiles can simulate natural stone varieties such as limestone and granite and fresher designs draw inspiration from glamorous settings and fashion runways, with surfaces that bring to mind fabric, leather and even animal prints. There are two fundamental types of porcelain tiles. Thorough-bodied porcelain tiles have the texture and color running all the way through the tile. They are unglazed, durable, and strong. On the other hand, there is glazed porcelain tile completely covered in a layer of hard finish. It is dense and resilient and offers the broadest range of designs and colors. The following are the considerations you need to make when choosing porcelain tiles for your bathroom.
Is it strong enough?
Your washroom typically experiences heavy traffic and large of amounts of water. As such, you need a tiling option that will be able to withstand such incidences. Even though materials such as glass are beautiful and classy, they can only be suitable for areas such as your bathroom backsplash. If used for flooring, they can easily break and they are also very slippery so they can cause fatal accidents in your bathroom. Porcelain tiles go through extremely high temperatures to make them hard and resilient. This tile option will stand the test of time and be able to endure wet conditions and heavy foot traffic for years to come.
How will you maintain it?
Porcelain is one of the easiest materials to clean. Wipe the tiles down with a piece of cloth, vacuum, or sweep on a regular basis. In a nutshell, that is the maintenance routine for these tiles. However, you should abstain from using abrasives such as scouring pads and steel wool. If you choose unglazed porcelain tiles, they will require more regular cleaning. Installation of porcelain tiles is ideal on subfloors that are rigid, flat, and smooth. Porcelain tiles can go on underlayment-grade, cement based backer board, concrete slab, and existing tiles if they are in good condition.
Porcelain is a product of a combination of minerals and fine clay fired at very high temperatures. This makes porcelain tiles denser and harder than other tiles. They resist odors, bacteria, water, and staining. They are difficult to scratch, fire-resistant and come in various styles, colors and shapes. One thing that you should keep in mind is that in the absence of radiant heat underneath your porcelain tiles, they can be cold on your feet making it uncomfortable to stand on for long periods of time. It is also important to factor in your choice of grout because it is the glue that holds your tile installation project together.
