Tiles on the terrace

Hello everyone,

our house construction is progressing well now. So, I am slowly starting to think about paving, the terrace, and so on.

I would like to cover the terrace with tiles. I really love the barefoot feeling you get on the tiled paths in hotel complexes in the Mediterranean regions.

But before I rush off to get quotes from tile installers, I wanted to quickly find out what to pay attention to and what experiences you have had with this.

I would like tiles with a slight relief. It should be completely sealed, so no sand in the joints.

what experiences you have had with it

Tiles can get very hot in summer

That also depends on the color.
In general, I had thought about that too. However, when you see older houses where the entrance or the stairs are tiled, almost everywhere something is coming loose. I have also seen this multiple times with terraces.
I could imagine that cracks can often occur if the ground settles even slightly over time, unless you practically build the terrace on a second solid "floor slab."
There are about 2-3 cm thick terrace slabs that feel like porcelain stoneware, have you ever considered those?

Tiles are not laid with sand in the joints, that is done with paving slabs. Paving slabs are always frost-resistant here (if you bought some from Egypt, it could be different, hehe), tiles also come in non-frost-resistant qualities (if they are actually intended for indoor use). Tiles are laid on solid substrates, terrace slabs (with air joints) occasionally also on pedestals, and paving slabs on a sand bed.

That also depends on the color. In general, I had thought about that too. However, when you see older houses where the entrance or stairs are tiled, almost everywhere some tiles come loose. I've also seen this happen multiple times on terraces. I can imagine that cracks often occur if the ground settles even slightly over time, unless you basically build the terrace on a second solid "floor slab." There are terrace slabs about 2-3 cm thick that feel like porcelain stoneware; have you considered those?

I wanted to lay beige tiles with a bit of gray, so dirt wouldn’t show immediately. The temperatures should then stay within limits. At least I haven’t noticed anything negative at 32 degrees in Greece. We would accept cracks and slight settlements over the years. Knowing myself, in 20 years at the latest I’ll be fed up with the color and want something new.

I haven’t looked at porcelain stoneware yet, I’ll take a look. Thanks for the tip. Is it robust enough? I have a small 2-year-old elephant at home. Although tiles probably have the same problems there.

Floor tiles are often porcelain stoneware... The slabs I saw can also be placed on pedestals, so only on the corners, and I believe they are supposed to withstand 300kg. I, weighing 90kg, jumped next to the corner on them and they held...