3 safe solutions when choosing granite tiles

The variety of flooring in modern life is truly rich. It all depends mostly on the location and the room when choosing what flooring to choose.

Tiles are suitable for use not only in the home, but also in public buildings and places. In addition to their purely functional application, they offer a variety of types and options for aesthetic design. Their use in the home has always raised many questions, which we will try to answer in this article. .

Tiles are the most preferred for the home, especially when it comes to rooms that are more heavily used or prone to dirt and moisture. These include the hallway, kitchen, bathroom, wet rooms, terraces, and other outdoor areas. This is because tile maintenance is very easy, quick, and they are quite durable. To make the right choice of granite tiles , there are a few basic things that we should pay attention to.

Porcelain tiles are artificially created under high pressure, and the materials for their manufacture are clay, feldspar, quartz sand and mineral segments. Thanks to this method of production and processing, they acquire much lower porosity, high strength, resistance to impacts and wear . Of course, these qualities and method of production also lead to their higher price. Porcelain tiles are most often used for outdoor flooring, but in the home they are preferred not only for terraces and verandas, but also for floors in the kitchen and hallway precisely because of their strength and durability to impacts and mechanical impacts. In addition to these qualities, they are easy to clean and are resistant to moisture. Their use for walls is not particularly preferred, mainly because of their high weight and the limited number of colors and decorations available on the market. However, if the building allows, placing them on the walls is a very good choice. How to choose the right porcelain tiles? It all depends on where it will be placed, your capabilities and, most of all, your personal taste!

Where will it be placed?

This is probably the first question you need to answer when you decide to purchase granite tiles.

The main rule when choosing any tiles is that their characteristics should match the requirements of the place where they will be placed. The most important characteristics to pay attention to are water absorption capacity, shrinkage resistance, surface hardness, resistance to temperature amplitudes, resistance to the action of chemical reagents, frost and wear resistance. In order to choose the right product, you need to familiarize yourself with the properties of different tiles and understand what classes they correspond to according to the classifications of European standards, also adopted in our country, and only then decide which of them will be most suitable for your project.

One of the most common technical classifications for ceramic tiles, to which porcelain tiles are also subject, is according to the European standard EN ISO 13006. It determines that tiles are divided into different groups, according to two parameters, namely - water absorption and the method of production. Accordingly, the smaller the number of the group, this means that the lower the water absorption coefficient and, accordingly, the higher the cold resistance. Groups I and II are considered cold-resistant, while group III is suitable only for internal use, due to its high water absorption and low cold resistance.

When choosing tiles for flooring, it is absolutely essential to pay attention to their strength, resistance to breakage and/or cutting, as well as their wear resistance, which is determined by their resistance to friction. According to the European standard EN 154 (PEI), there are 5 groups of tiles according to the wear resistance indicator. The appearance of the tiles is no less important. The established European standards determine that tiles must have precisely defined dimensions, absolutely correct angles and a perfectly flat surface. If there is gloss, it must also be uniform. By paying attention to these things, you guarantee yourself a longer (even eternal) use of the tiles.

As for granite tiles, it turns out that there are no restrictions on where to place them. They are suitable for both outside and inside our homes. The recommended area of application of the tiles is determined by their type. Namely, you should pay attention to whether you choose matte or polished granite tiles according to the place of their installation.

Matte or polished?

Very often, whether a floor covering should be polished or matte is among the main questions of the consumer.

Before explaining the differences, advantages and disadvantages of each type, it is good to clarify that very often glazed porcelain stoneware, which has a smooth surface, is called "polished". This is not entirely correct, but it has become a practice anyway. In other words, for a porcelain stoneware tile to be "polished" this can happen in two ways. One is through machine polishing, which occurs after the final shaping of the tile itself and is considered the highest quality and correct way. The other option is through chemical polishing, which is achieved by using various chemicals that make the surface smooth. However, with this type, there is a possibility that darkening or loss of shine may occur in the future, when using stronger chemical cleaning agents.

So, the main advantage of polished granite tiles is that they are really very easy to clean . In addition, it is a great choice when it comes to creating more depth and space in a room. Most users choose polished granite tiles for indoor floors because, when its surface gets wet, it becomes very slippery and not so safe. But it is also very suitable for wall cladding, it can be used for interior cladding and facades. In addition, polished tiles repel dirt and have a permanently pleasant shiny appearance. We should also add here that outdoor areas, sidewalks, staircases, floors in production rooms or other places where there is a possibility of getting wet, it is best to cover them with granite tiles with an anti-slip (relief) surface. It is, of course, also suitable for rooms where there is no possibility of a person entering with wet shoes or feet, such as the bedroom, for example.

As we can assume, matte granite tiles have a matte, not so smooth surface. There are other types, such as granite tiles, whose surface is wavy or very rough. These types were created precisely from the point of view of safety. In addition to being safer and suitable for most rooms and places, matte granite tiles also have their drawbacks. It is more wear-resistant than polished, but stronger than it.

Yet we should not forget that the appearance also plays a big role in what kind of granite we will choose. Many people think that the variety is not that great, but the surface of this material usually resembles that of natural stone, not only the most common types - granite and marble, but also rarer types, such as travertine and other mineral limestones. Depending on the preferences of the user, there are those that imitate an aged surface, roughly hewn stone, wood, leather and even solidified volcanic lava. In general, modern technologies allow designers to choose granite tiles among a huge variety of colors, with a uniform or heterogeneous surface, matte or shiny, creating the illusion of other materials, etc. There are even collections that resemble the appearance of a parquet board, and from different types of wood. Moreover, the structure of the wood is imitated very accurately on the surface of the granite tiles. If the line resembles roughly hewn stone, many manufacturers, for greater believability, even incorporate pieces of solid natural stone into the material.

Remember that although design is a key factor when choosing a given tile (not only from granite), it is not decisive for its quality. Very often you can see tiles with a similar design, which are at different prices and from different manufacturers, and then you should pay attention to the characteristics and quality . Accordingly, the price-quality ratio also plays a role here. It is very likely that tiles at a higher price are of much better quality.

Care and maintenance

Like everything, the rule of proper maintenance applies to granite tiles if we want to use them for a long time and without problems. There are a variety of cleaning products on the market, and their instructions must be followed strictly. Very often, the user cleans the surface with washing powder and a soft cloth, after which it needs to be rinsed thoroughly and dried. This is quite enough to thoroughly clean the surface of the granite tiles, which we have already mentioned is one of the easiest to maintain.

With matte granite tiles, there may be a little more difficulty in cleaning. This is logical, because of its more porous surface, which could retain dirt. However, there are preparations that do a great job. With stronger and specific preparations, strictly follow the manufacturer's instructions for use. The inherent density and low water absorption of granite materials ensure that they are easy to maintain. These tiles do not require the use of sealing materials or pastes. These coatings can only negatively affect the quality of the tile. The most important thing when cleaning a granite floor covering (especially when it comes to polished types) is to make sure that the floor is well dried before stepping on it.