Why Porcelain Offers the Best Value in Tile

 

Tile is becoming a more popular floor covering choice for a number of reasons:

  • It creates a rich, elegant style for any room
  • Design options are limitless
  • Colors and finishes range from rugged earth tones to stunning metallic and glass tiles.
  • Grout, the color filler applied in the space between the tiles, can contrast or coordinate with the tiles or nearly match the color.
  • It's practical: tile's durable surface is stain resistant and won't fade or burn.
  • Both glazed and unglazed tiles resist absorbing moisture, so they're exceptionally easy to keep clean.

 

Tile can be cut from natural stone, such as marble or granite, offering a distinctive and beautiful look.  However, natural stone has its disadvantages:

  • It's porous, so it stains easily;
  • It can be very fragile and will break more easily than porcelain; and
  • It is very expensive.

 

Ceramic tile is the oldest known flooring material.  It has been made the same way for centuries:  a mixture of clays and other natural materials are mined from the earth, shaped, colored and fired at high temperatures. 

 

Various clays are blended to a fine powder and pressed together to form the body of the tile.  The pressed clay body is then dried to reduce the moisture content.  In the case of glazed tile, one surface is coated with a colored glaze made from a glass derivative called "Frit".  The glaze is permanently fused to the surface of the tile by firing in kilns at 2000 degrees Fahrenheit, forming a finished product that is hard and non-porous, with an impermeable surface.

 

Porcelain is a form of ceramic tile made from a very fine mix of clay and minerals - far different from regular ceramics - formed under extremely high pressure and fired at higher temperatures than standard ceramic tile.  The result is a material that is stronger and more durable than standard ceramic and very resistant to moisture and stains. 

 

Superior porcelain tile is especially resistant to scratching, staining and fading, and it never needs sealing.  Through-body porcelain tiles are colored throughout the entire tile, so there is little danger of color loss due to wear. 

 

Porcelain represents the best overall value in tile because:

  • It's available in various styles and faithfully replicates natural stone;
  • It performs better than standard ceramic tile or natural stone (much more durable and stain resistant, outperforming even granite); and
  • It is significantly more affordable than natural stone.