tiling house

[tanya]

hello. we just bought a vacation rental in Florida. We are looking to tile the major parts of the house(875square feet). We are torn on whether to use 12" tiles or 16" tiles though...is the larger tile more asthetically pleasing for a whole house? Also, we have no idea what kind of tile to buy, We know we want to stay within $1 or under a square foot as this is the specs for our quoted price...but we have no idea what kind of tile to buy. glazed, ceramic, porcelain,grades, PEI's ect... the areas to be tiled are the kitchen the hallway the two bathrooms and the florida room which extends the length of the house on the back. If there is someone who can offer any assistance on this matter or tell us a good place in Missouri or Florida to buy tile we would greatly appreciate it. We do not mind using discontinuted or overstock tile as well. Whatever is more cost-efficient in the end. Thank you so much for any help you provide!! tanya

[Jo]

[NorMinn]

I have neighbors with 6" tile, white with dark grout, that looks like crap. Others have 12", white, gray grout. We have 20" taupe colored porcellain tile that resembles old stone. Same color grout. I hate grout lines and don't like to emphasize the grout. Our floor is concrete slab, and adjoining rooms have terrazzo with similar colors. We love it. Have area rugs in dining and living rooms. Colors depend on your taste, of course, but also on the furniture style and type of use. I would steer clear of light colored grout if it is going to get some abuse - dirt, food spills, pets, etc. Small time, to me, looks like McDonalds. Our floor would go with casual or formal, easy to maintain.

[dadiOH]

For that price, learn to love Saltillo. Even it will run more by the time you add in thinset, grout and sealer.

-- dadiOH _____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.0... ...a help file of info about MP3s, recording from LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that. Get it at

[Jeff Cochran]

In general, larger tiles make the rooms feel larger. But if you have smaller rooms or tight halls, a smaller tile actually makes it look larger due to seeing more tiles. But buy a box, take them home and lay a few down and look at them to be sure.

Your tile distributor wll.

Good luck. Maybe saltillo (Mexican pavers) will hit that for the tile cost, but grout, mortar and labor will kill that $1 a foot price easily.

At a buck a foot you have very little choice. Talk to your tile dealer about the options available in your price range.

If you're going to do all the rooms the same, you may want a smaller tile so it'll stay looking good in the baths. A 12" or even a 9" maybe.

Tile Outlets of America has some decent buys, and some distributors will have overstock or clearance tiles, but not usually in large quantities. You're loooking at 950 square feet with alloowances for cutting and breakage, not a couple boxes that may be left over from a job. Maybe if you tile different rooms differently.

If this is your first tile job and a DIY job, practice first. And even then, start somewhere it won't show.

Jeff