Discuss Tiles and tiles and tiles! How to choose? on IKEAFANS.com. We're Personalizing the IKEA Experience. Tiles and tiles and tiles! How to choose? - Paints, rugs, accessories, hardware. Discussions of all the elements that make a room more than just a room..
I took a trip to HD today to check out the tiles - I am planning to tile my kitchen floor, bathroom floor, backspash, and shower walls. I was overwhelmed by the different styles. I'll probably just go ceramic since this is all in the basement renovation, but is there any real difference between ceramic tile that is $1/sf to $4/sf? Are there any quality issues that I should be on the lookout for? I am probably going to use 12 inch squares on the floor and possibly 4 or 3x6 inch tiles for the backsplash. What size should I use for the shower?
They also had some pretty mosaics for borders in tumbled stone. Would it be ok to mix cermic tile with a tumbled stone border in the shower and on the kitchen floor? The tumbled stone looks a bit porous to me. Is that not a good thing to have on the floor?
Is all of this is going on a concrete slab? There would be some not insignificant issues you'd want to be aware of with some of those materials on a wood framed floor.
Have you gone to any tile showrooms? What they have at HD is truly maybe 1/1000000 of what is really available in tile, and a real tile showroom is a great place to get ideas and speak to people who are familiar with all the bajillion options. Even if you don't end up buying anything from them, it's a nice place to browse and be inspired and narrow down what it is that you really think you'd like. Generally speaking, there are no rules about what size goes where...
What do you like? There is no reason you can't mix things. The sky is really the limit when it comes to tile. And there's no reason why you can't use stone in wet areas or on the floor. There would be differences between that and say, a glazed ceramic or porcelain in terms of how it's treated initially and in the long term, however, so I would recommend reading up over at the John Bridge Tile Forum before you jump into choosing materials. The most important decisions to make when it comes to tile are those that will affect the durability and the longevity of your install.
s there any real difference between ceramic tile that is $1/sf to $4/sf?
You want to look to see if the color is all the way through or just on the surface. If you get a chip, what would show?
Quote:
Are there any quality issues that I should be on the lookout for?
Quality issues in tile would be obvious on inspection. What is really important is the installation, because a bad install will crack even the best tile.
Quote:
I am probably going to use 12 inch squares on the floor and possibly 4 or 3x6 inch tiles for the backsplash. What size should I use for the shower?
Whatever you like. Smaller tile has more grout, which means more to seal and clean. Larger tile means more cutting. It depends what look you're going for and what is available in the style you want. You could always use the 12 inch tiles in the shower and the backsplash tile as the floor and an accent strip if you wanted to.
Quote:
They also had some pretty mosaics for borders in tumbled stone. Would it be ok to mix cermic tile with a tumbled stone border in the shower and on the kitchen floor?
That would be fine, and make for an interesting installation. You can also use small dots of the tumbled marble between the larger tiles. There is no end of ways to design tile installations.
Quote:
The tumbled stone looks a bit porous to me. Is that not a good thing to have on the floor?
Once it is grouted and sealed it isn't anymore porous than anything else, really. You want a not-so-slick finish on the floor tiles for safety.
And I thought that tiles were tiles! I looked at that John Bridge forum and felt even more overwhelmed....
The floor tile is going in over a poured concrete slab. Good point, Eva, about checking that the color goes all the way through- worth breaking one to find out.
Great idea, splatgirl, about the tile showroom. I actually tried to stop at one this week, but it was the one night a week that they were closed! Just my luck.
I did not know that tiles had to be treated! I did know that the grout had to be sealed. What kind of sealer do tiles need?
You all will laugh at this- I brought one of the cheap tiles home. It was a natural color with flecks of brown in it. I thought that it was a nice neutral that wouldn't show every speck of dust. My husband's comment was, "Of course that's cheap. No one wants to buy it because it already looks dirty."
LOL
Porous tiles like granites and marbles have to be sealed. The sealer is a clear liquid that comes in a bottle, you wipe it on, let it penetrate and wipe off any excess. It's easier to seal all the tiles at once before you install them. If you have a particularly porous tile, you may need to periodically reseal them, again, not a big problem, wipe on, let sit, wipe off. One every six months is the usual interval.
After you install your sealed tiles, you will grout. Grout will fill the divots and holes in tumbled marble, so keep that in mind when choosing the grout color. Once your grout is dry, you will wipe on a similar type of product which will seal the grout, and periodically clean and re-seal to keep your grout from getting nasty looking.
If you have dark grout, you won't have to seal it more than once; white or light will of course require more maintenance. Epoxy grout is more expensive and harder to work with but has the advantage of having silicone which repels stains, so it won't need to be sealed or maintained other than normal cleaning.
In terms of not showing dirt, some people like a busy pattern because it doesn't show dirt, others don't like it because they are never sure if it's clean! They prefer to see the dirt so they can clean it.
John Bridge is a wonderful site for ANY tile, stone, shower, countertop, backsplash etc. questions! Those guys know what they're doing!
i'll take some pictures of my tile floor in my master, i mixed 2 sizes tumble with 3 different sizes of ceramic. i bought VERY cheap ceramic, but it's ok quality... ceramic does tend to be a different color on the inside, porcelain tends to be color all the way through and the price reflects it.
my floor is a mess right now cause i finally got around to the counters yesterday. Can pictures wait till monday by chance?
Well, that you will be tiling on a concrete slab means the sky is even more the limit than if it were a wood framed floor. That's a good thing.
You think your head is spinning now? If you do get a chance to go to a tile showroom, you may need medication
Really, though, it's a great place to be inspired. Unfortunately in my case, I am usually long on inspiration and short on budget, and I have a tendency to fall in love with the $50 a square foot stuff.
splatgirl, you know what's funny? my mom and i will go into a tile store (or whatever) and we'll both fall for very similar items, but time and time again hers will be $50+ and mine will be like $3 soooo funny happens every time.
thanks so much for the info and advice! 12 years in our home, and I have never resealed the tile in the bathrooms (we have touched up the grout, but not resealed it). Hmmm...
My contractor's coming tomorrow to go over some details. Hopefully I will be able to go to the tile showroom after that, if there's still time. It's difficult on the weekdays because I work FT and have 3 boys to run around in the evenings to different sports. Try to take hubby along this time to see if he has the expensive taste (a pair like Dulci and her mom).
I never knew there was a difference between porcelain and ceramic either!
We are the premier IKEA Kitchen Installer in Massachusetts. Our company offers complete in-house design service followed by an impeccable installation.
Custom. IKEA. Doors. The idea for Semihandmade came from a desire to offer the same craftsmanship we produce in our Los Angeles-based Handmade studio to a wider audience, at a lower price.
Our House ‘takes the pain’ out of the design and installation process by providing hassle-free service every step of the way. Serving CT and the greater NYC area.
soooo funny happens every time.
