Kitchen remodeling is coming up soon, and SWMBO and I have a disagreement. I would like a ceramic tile, she's skeptical. Her biggest concerns are:
Ease of cleanup -- specifically, spilled food or drink getting into the grout. I figure proper sealing of the grout takes care of that, she's not sure.
Dropped dishes -- damage to the dishes, damage to the floor?
How easy is it on the feet, to stand on a ceramic tile floor while preparing a meal? (I'm the primary cook, so I'm not sure why she's worried about that...)
Consider using the larger sized, ADA certified slip-resistant, porcelain tiles. The larger size tiles result in far fewer grout lines, the porcelain wears like steel and the slip resistant surface prevents falls due to moisture on the surface.
The material is hard, so if you have butter fingers, use floor mats in the appropriate areas.
I would never use anything but porcelain in a kitchen or bath. After having dealt with inferior coverings, I learned years ago to use a timeless color / design and fix the floors one final time so I would never need to deal with it again.
I have also installed quarry tile throughout the rest of the house as we have lots of animals, children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. It is wonderful having tile, as cleaning the house is so much less tedious.
I guess every material has it pluses and minuses. I did my kitchen over
20 years ago with ceramic tile over a slab, and it still looks like new. One suggestion I would give is use a darker grout rather than a light one. Any dirt will not show as readily. I sealed the grout and I cannot find any staining or dirt.
To me the effect on feet is not a problem, and if it was a mat or rug would negate that. All in all, I am glad I did it with ceramic tile and would do it again in a heartbeat. If done correctly and not rushed, it will last a lifetime.
I've had ceramic tile kitchen floor for 30 years now.
Her biggest concerns are:
No sealer was ever applied to one kitchen. The other IDK for sure, but doubt it and if it was, it's long gone by now. Cleaning is not a problem, just typical mopping is all that's done. The grout is like concrete. I guess if you poured oil into it or something you could have a problem, but normal stuff, I haven't seen an issue. Grout also comes in various colors, darker I guess is better.
I have dropped some things that you think would break and they have not. But it's definitely a lot more likely than if it's vinyl. I have a couple cracked tiles, not sure they it's related to dropping though. I've never dropped anything, looked and seen it cracked. The cracking appears to be random and maybe due to not enough mud under it.
I have no problems, it fine with me. Modern shoes provide a buffer, no?
What do you usually wear in the kitchen? I'm a sock guy. Ceramic tile could be cold and hard. Have you considered in floor heating if you think cold will be an issue - especially as you age?
i'd also put down a clear plastic matt in the high traffic areas around the sink/counters, kitchen table and fridge IMO.
shatters glass really well. :) can damage the floor if you have a poor install of any kind. and once you get a broken tile the patch job will stand out.
i use a very thick rug to stand on and that helps a lot, but you have to be graceful enough to not trip on it... :)
i'd never do tile or wood flooring in a kitchen (we have wood now and it is holding up ok, but shows spots where we've dropped things at times).
when i was a kid we had shag carpeting in the kitchen. talk about gross...
Not a whoile lot worse than hardwood or vinyl. I would definitely NOT use hardwood or laminate in a kitchen, except fot the stuff that looks like tile or stone and is made specifically for use in kitchens, bathrooms, and foyers. Normal laminate swells like crazy if it gets wet. Personally I would use a porcelain tile over a ceramic, any day of the week. The difference in price is a small portion of the complete job - and the quality is SO much superior.. That said, I have solid vinyl sheet floring in my kitchen and downstairs bath, porcelain tile in my foyer, and the bath and kitchen specific "laminate" tile product in the upstairs bath. I have 14mm laminate in my basement rec-room/office. and hardwood just about everywhere else (except for stairways and upstairs hall) We have anti-slip mats in the kitchen, upper bath, and foyer as well as at the sliding door from the deck to the hardwood dining room.
My parents had a ceramic tile bathroom floor. It was slippery as hell. I was young at the time, and I fell a few times. But when my parents got old, they fell several times, my mother broke her hip, and smashed her head on the bathtub because of it. She ended up in the hospital. It was very dangerous. These were small tiles about 1.5" each. I would never recomment ceramic tile in a bathroom. Besides that, those tiles came loose many times from water splashed over the tub and my dad was constantly repairing that floor. After mom went to the hospital, and dad was deceased, I went there and bought some indoor-outdoor carpet and taped it down with two faced tape. She was very pleased when she got home.
Grout is either plain Portland cement or Portlant cement + sand. (Yes, I know there are epoxy grouts, never tried it, don't want to). Both are porous, sealer mitigates that. However, sealer may not last forever; is that a big deal? Certainly not if the tile is going on a slab, probably not if on a wood subfloor. It can always be resealed.
Nothing is easier to clean up than a tile floor unless it is a tile floor with light colored grout. IMO, IME, YMMV. __________________
The dish could break, the tile could chip. ___________________
The thing that kills feet is surface that is both hard AND flat. If a floor is hard but less than flat it is much easier on feet. For example, I tiled our hole house with Saltillo tile which is very irregular on the surface. That irregularity means the pressure points on your feet are constantly changing as you walk or even move slightly. Now, that irregularity is not matched by any other tile I know of but some have a lesser irregularity. ____________________
Comments Some have suggested using large tiles to minimize grout area. One could use relatively wide joints too. Small tiles are easier to lay because they can follow an irregular laying surface; bigger tiles - 16"+ - need a better surface, more attention to spreading thinset evenly.
Some strongly favor porcelain tiles vs ceramic. There are two primary differences...porcelain is color through (chips less apparent) and denser, said density resulting in less water absorption which is why they are recommended for wet areas (I don't consider a kitchen to be a "wet area). They are not necessarily more slip resistant than glazed tiles as any tile can be made slip resistant, all will have a coefficient of friction available both when wet and when dry.
The down side of porcelain is that it is harder to cut (also pricier).. Use a diamond wet saw? That will certainly cut it but every cut edge will have chips (same for ceramic). I much prefer score and snap as it leaves a clean edge and is faster; true, the edge will be sharp and will need to be honed a bit but less so than needed to hone out chips.
You probably just did not get the right tile. The porcelain tile in our bathroom has small bumps on it so it is not slippery when wet. You don't really notice them until you run your fingers over the tile. The Lea Acero tile in the living room, kitchen and most of the rest of the house can get slippery when wet but we have rugs in the traffic areas, particularly near the doors by the pool where you might come in with wet feet. This stuff is as hard as chinese algebra and things that fall on it usually break but I have not lost a tile yet.
I had ceramic in my last house and eventually will here too. Choose wisely. Gloss finishes can be slippery when wet but there are other finishes that are safe. My bathrooms are a matte finish and never had a problem.
Do not go with a wide grout line as it is easier to clean a narrow one. There are urethane grouts now but I have no experience with them. I used epoxy grout and love it. No sealing, stays cleaner, very durable.
You may find it good to use a mat or rug in front of the sink. Actually a good idea with any flooring.
As for cleaning, only thing we ever used is water and a sponge mop. Made cleanup easy.
Our kitchen has a black and white checkerboard ceramic tile with black grou t. The black grout shows no stains whatsoever. There are a couple of small chips where things were dropped and my wife made them less visible with mar ker.
Be sure to not use glossy tile as it will be slippery. I've seen wall tile used on the floor and the smallest amount of liquid makes it like ice. Also , make sure your subfloor is solid or you'll find the grout or tiles cracki ng from the flexing.
If you use a sealer, use the penetrating type. It will have to be resealed periodically. I have a customer who used epoxy grout. Epoxy grout does not stain and is waterproof. However, it is difficult to work with and almost i mpossible to clean up from the tile surfaces after it hardens.
Maybe I used the wrong word. What I am talking about are actually "tooth" marks from the diamonds sparsely attached on both sides of the blade's rim. Masking tape can help on the bottom side of whatever being cut on a table saw because it reinforces the area where the blade exits but I can't see it doing anything for tile when the chips are at the blade's entrance.
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.