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A guide to selecting the right tile for your project
Whether you want porcelain, concrete, marble, or mosaic tile flooring, you'll find the most extensive selection at Twin Brothers Floors, your tile stores in Lutz and Zephyrhills, FL. There’s something for every budget, but you need to be sure it's the right one for your project. Since it’s so vital, we developed this guide to help explain the differences.
What is a ceramic tile?
As long as the tile composition includes clay, even if there’s another substance, it is considered a ceramic tile. That includes porcelain, a robust and heavy tile, ideal for high traffic busy rooms. Mosaics and glass-coated mosaics are often seen on shower floors or as accents, while the 4X4 squares are best for medium traffic floors. Others include terra cottas, the reddish-brown bricks that work so well in rustic atmospheres, and subway tiles, which are often seen as backsplashes but can be used on low-traffic floors. Stone tiles depend on whether they’re natural or stone look ceramics.
COF (Coefficient of Friction) means grip
Ceramic tiles can be slippery, and stone can be slick and even glasslike when highly polished and honed. Look for a COF rating of at least .50. That will enable you to decide if you have chosen the right one for your installation. You can also increase grip by selecting a textured ceramic or mosaic where installation includes more grout lines.
Other labels to look for are Grade 1, Grade 2, and Grade 3. Grade 1 and 2 are appropriate for medium to high traffic floors, respectively, but grade 3 is only for wall use. If you choose a glazed tile, look for the PEI Rating, a rating system developed by the Porcelain and Enamel Institute indicating a tile's level of resistance to wear. For floors, look for a PEI of lll (3) or higher. PEI l and ll are suitable only for walls.
Impervious means the tile is utterly impenetrable to water and can be used outdoors; vitreous tiles absorb a little more water and be used outdoors. Non-vitreous tiles are soft and highly porous; those and semi-vitreous tiles should only be used indoors. You might also see the word "density," but all that refers to is the ratio of water absorption to thickness; the less water, the heavier it becomes.
We provide free design consultations to help you find the right tile your home in Lutz, FL, Zephyrhills, FL, Tampa, FL, Town 'N' Country, FL, Temple Terrace, FL, North Tampa, FL, Land O' Lakes, FL, Odessa, FL, Brandon, FL, or New Port Richey, FL. The Twin Brothers Floors showrooms are located in Lutz and Zephyrhills, FL and we also provide free estimates. You’ll be glad you came in for your tile flooring project.
Impervious means the tile is utterly impenetrable to water and can be used outdoors; vitreous tiles absorb a little more water and be used outdoors. Non-vitreous tiles are soft and highly porous; those and semi-vitreous tiles should only be used indoors. You might also see the word "density," but all that refers to is the ratio of water absorption to thickness; the less water, the heavier it becomes.
We provide free design consultations to help you find the right tile your home in Lutz, FL, Zephyrhills, FL, Tampa, FL, Town 'N' Country, FL, Temple Terrace, FL, North Tampa, FL, Land O' Lakes, FL, Odessa, FL, Brandon, FL, or New Port Richey, FL. The Twin Brothers Floors showrooms are located in Lutz and Zephyrhills, FL and we also provide free estimates. You’ll be glad you came in for your tile flooring project.
