Characteristics of a floor tile, quality, chipping

Hello esteemed community,

we are currently searching for our floor tiles. We have now found a floor tile that appeals to us visually.

It has the following characteristics:

[*]Material: porcelain stoneware
[*]Dimensions LxW: 90x45
[*]Rectified: yes
[*]Slip resistance: R9
[*]Abrasion class: IV
[*]Glazed: yes
[*]Surface property: matt
[*]Color: light beige

I have read a lot about various quality features. Statements like "XL tiles might not look even" are now making us uncertain (are 45x90 even "XL"?). Furthermore, the selected tiles are not through-colored, which in my opinion is a disadvantage. The dealer gave us the following statement regarding this:

"The tile is rectified/calibrated and not through-colored, meaning the color of the body is roughly that of the tile. The tile is also universally usable with R9 and is extremely hard and very easy to care for due to the additional glaze protecting it against influences.

Through-coloring:
Many customers today ask for through-colored tiles because they fear that in case of chipping another color will be visible. Nowadays, tiles are fired very hard and have a hard surface that is very resistant to external influences. The tile would most likely crack completely instead. Even if a piece were to break out of the tile, you would see this on a through-colored tile just as on a non-through-colored one and it would also always leave residues (dirt and water) when mopped.

My recommendation:
Always calculate 1 extra package as a reserve. If something eventually happens, you always have the option to replace 1 tile of the same batch. This is quite easy and quick and always looks better than a crack or chip (whether through-colored or not)."

What do you think, is he right? Are there any other valid reasons speaking against the tile (apart from the price surcharge of the tiler)?

Confused regards, ntsa86

[*]Material: porcelain stoneware --------------------> very hard, insensitive

[*]Dimensions LxW: 90x45 ---------------------------> tiles are considered large format if over 0.10 m²

[*]Rectified/Calibrated: yes --------------------------------> means the edges are broken or chamfered/are machine processed to a uniform size with 90 degrees. Each tile is absolutely the same size and allows a narrower joint of 1.5 to 2 mm when laying, which in my opinion looks better with such large tiles.

[*]Slip resistance: R9 -----------------------> means slip-resistant up to an inclination angle of 3° to 10° on the inclined plane.

[*]Wear class: IV ---------------------------> exposed to footwear and slight scratching contamination

[*]Glazed: yes ------------------------------------> are easier to maintain

[*]Surface property: matt -----------> small scratches are less noticeable than on glossy tiles

[*]Color: light beige -----------------------------> a matter of taste, I personally find it nice

all in all, I would agree with the dealer.

Many thanks Sigi. How is the situation regarding a possible unevenness of the floor? I have read that large-format tiles tend to be more prone to unevenness. I do not want/cannot assess this. Best regards ntsa86

The substrate must be prepared for large-format tiles. There are certain tolerance limits for how many mm tiles can warp, but I don't have that in mind at the moment. I would definitely inform the related trades about the selection of the tiles.

Hello,

we had the same tile format installed on our ground floor.

Therefore, a small note from me:

Our tiler strongly advised against the planned half-bond pattern, as tiles of this size, as has already correctly pointed out, always tend to "cup" slightly.

When laid in a half-bond pattern, noticeable unevenness can occur.

On the advice of our tiler, we then had them laid in a third-bond pattern, which we also like very much, but for the tiler it was still a big puzzle to achieve a level surface.

It looks like this now:



Regards,

Dirk

In a wild pattern you have the least problems and the least risk of cracks etc. - just for the record.