The average person is already accustomed to the idea that when buying ceramic tiles it is important to make the right choice. What should you pay attention to? What are the criteria?
The average person is already accustomed to the idea that when buying ceramic tiles it is important to make the right choice. What should you pay attention to? What are the criteria?
To do this, you need to carefully study the material itself. For example, when choosing a tile, it is necessary to take into account its technical characteristics, but also not to forget about the aesthetic and decorative selection criteria.
The beetle is truly a skilled politician, giving a general answer or pointing in the direction. To use such information you will have to “carefully study the material itself.” I'll try to take on some of the work myself. So, one of the important parameters is water absorption .
A high degree of water absorption means that the structure is porous, and a low one (the value approaches zero) indicates the density of the structure. As a rule, the lowest water absorption values correspond to higher tile characteristics such as mechanical strength, hardness, abrasion and chemical resistance (implies unglazed tiles) and frost resistance. At the same time, it is necessary to remember that the structural density is obtained through the use of appropriate raw materials and high firing temperatures, with the formation of a significant part of the liquid phase in the tile mass. This requires significant control over the dimensional characteristics, because There is a risk of varying not the flatness of the surface, but the size of the working size of the tile. For porous tiles this poses virtually no threat.
Petyaev Vasily is growing before our eyes, his comments began to look respectable and contain useful information. But I will add the following.
Tile water absorption is measured by the amount of water that a ceramic tile absorbs under certain laboratory conditions and is expressed as a percentage of the dry weight of the tile. Moisture penetrates through the pores of the material, which communicate with the outer surface of the tile, thus water absorption also measures the porosity of the product. For example, this type of porosity is called “open” (while with a “closed” type of porosity, the pores do not communicate with the outer surface in any way). Thus, water absorption corresponds to a porous structure, while dense, vitrified products are characterized by a low degree of it.
Porosity affects the physical and chemical properties of the tile. This is why EN standards use water absorption as a parameter to classify ceramic tiles. When choosing tiles, you must keep in mind that the lower the degree of water absorption of the tile, the more resistant the tile is to intense mechanical and hydrothermal influences.
The forming method affects the geometric configuration of the tile. As a rule, it is impossible to achieve such careful control over the surface and dimensions with the extrusion method as with the pressing method. these parameters into account when choosing ceramic tiles.
Extruded tiles should only be laid with open joints. And tiles made by pressing can be laid with both open joints and closed joints.
What are we talking about here? What are open and closed joints? The seams between the tiles or something.
The photo on the left shows an installation using an open joint, the distance between the tiles is more than 5 mm (10 mm is often found). The photo on the right shows an installation using a closed joint, the tiles are practically touching each other, the distance is 1 mm or less. Suitable for rectified tiles.
Thank you, it’s clear and understandable with closed and open seams. What are seams with a width of 1 to 5 mm called? They are most common in cladding.
Seams when laying tiles with a width of 1 to 5 mm are called ordinary. Indeed, they are the most popular.
The surface of the tile is also a very important selection criterion. On the one hand, glazed ceramic tiles have a wide range of colors and patterns, on the other hand, unglazed ceramic tiles are more uniform throughout the entire thickness without variations or interruptions in color across the entire surface and thickness of the tile. Directions for use are obvious, especially if high strength is required in conditions of strong abrasive influences on the tiles.
Choosing tiles with appropriate characteristics is certainly important, but not the only condition for the strength and durability of the cladding. Careful preparation and proper arrangement of floors and walls are required.
Wall and floor cladding is a multi-layer system consisting of a coating, a layer, a base, and there may also be a separating layer (hydro-, thermal-, sound insulation). External conditions influence and are reflected in the entire cladding system.
Surface hardness is a mechanical characteristic of the tile that determines the resistance of the surface to cuts and scratches when exposed to objects rubbing against the surface. Such impacts cause damage, often visible to the naked eye, which is especially noticeable on a bright, shiny and monochromatic surface.
As a rule, glazed and unglazed ceramic tiles are relatively hard, and scratches only affect the aesthetic properties of the cladding, without damaging its functional qualities. Other materials are less resistant to such damage; often the cut passes through the entire facing layer, and the material loses not only aesthetic, but also functional properties.
Surface hardness is measured on the Mohs scale.
What is the Mohs scale? How is surface hardness measured? What values on this scale are typical for ceramic tiles?
Information about surface hardness and its measurement on the Mohs scale is described in detail here .
I will give the characteristic values of surface hardness on the Mohs scale for ceramic facing materials:
An important criterion for choosing ceramic tiles is abrasion resistance. It indicates the resistance of the surface to wear due to exposure to dirt, sand, furniture, shoes, and cleaning products. It is important to understand here that if the tile is glazed, then we are talking about resistance to abrasion of the glaze. The methods for testing abrasion resistance are different for glazed and unglazed tiles.
Explain how to use this criterion. After all, the seller’s answer “The tiles are abrasion resistant” will always be the same. Although I believe that abrasion resistance is different for a home or office space. How is it measured, and what values should it be if you are supposed to walk barefoot, in soft shoes, or in street shoes?
Olga Vladimirovna , you raised an interesting question. I suggest first reading the article entitled “ Abrasion resistance, wear resistance ,” which is presented on the website. This short article discusses methods for testing the abrasion resistance of unglazed and glazed tiles and provides relevant standards. Wear resistance classes are given for glazed tiles. I think this will be a detailed answer.
Thank you, the information in the article is detailed and accessible. I hadn't seen her before. It turned out that I asked a question, and this led to the appearance of an article on the site, nice.
Frost resistance is the ability of ceramic tiles to withstand freezing repeatedly in a humid environment at temperatures below zero degrees Celsius. Freezing of non-frost-resistant ceramic tiles can cause cracks and tiles to break off. When using ceramic tiles, the following pattern has been observed: the lower the water absorption, the greater the likelihood that the material is frost-resistant. However, there are highly porous ceramic materials characterized by a high degree of frost resistance. For example, bricks, the water absorption of which is 10-15%. Frost-resistant tiles are necessary for covering surfaces that are exposed to a humid environment and low temperatures.
More detailed material on this topic is presented in the article Frost resistance .
When choosing ceramic tiles, an important criterion is slip resistance on dry (groups R9 - R13) and wet (groups A, B, C) surfaces.
Could you explain what these groups are and how to use them?
I suggest first reading the article entitled “ Slip Resistance on Dry and Wet Surfaces ,” which is presented on the website. This voluminous article talks about the coefficient of friction (dynamic and static), methods for testing tiles to determine the degree of sliding, and the relevant standards are indicated. I think this will be a detailed answer.
It turned out to be a sensible article. Now I think we can sum up intermediate results. Returning to the topic of discussion “Criteria for choosing ceramic tiles”, we have outlined the following important aspects that you should pay attention to, so these are:
In my opinion, all the important criteria are listed, and as a free bonus for ceramic tiles there is ease of cleaning and surface hygiene. Like this.
Despite the fact that the ease of cleaning and surface hygiene for ceramic tiles is obvious, a detailed article on this topic has appeared on the website. Those interested can familiarize themselves with it : Ease of cleaning and surface hygiene .
As a brief annotation to the article, I will give an important quote from it: Ease of cleaning should be considered not as a property of an individual tile, but as a characteristic of the cladding system as a whole .
In the above list of criteria for choosing ceramic tiles, I did not find a characteristic related to the tile’s resistance to household chemicals and other chemical agents. In production lines (oil and fat factories), service workshops, car washes, canteens and kitchens, difficult operating conditions for coated surfaces are encountered. Perhaps this criterion has its own special name, but, in my opinion, it should be in the list of criteria.
In this case, it is appropriate to talk about two technical characteristics of ceramic tiles, namely, stain resistance (ISO 10545-14) and chemical resistance (EN ISO 10545-13). Detailed information on both characteristics is presented in the article Stain resistance . Olga Vladimirovna , you are right, these characteristics can be used as a criterion when choosing ceramic tiles.