The Many Types of Tiles Today

Generally, tiles are those square (or rectangular) coverings made from hard -wearing materials like ceramics, stones, metal, baked clay or oven glass. their main purpose is to

cover roofs, floors, walls, edges, sometimes object like tabletops.

Sometimes, thy are also used for floor coverings (flooring) in kitchens, bathrooms, parking lots. they are made from such materials as porcelain, ceramics, glass, stones or metal. Sometime ago, they were using Tiles Redlands for decorating styles. they are now available in a number of shapes, sizes, colors and textures.

these days, they are now preferred over those made of granite because of the many advantages.  Nowadays, tiles are having these advantages because they are highly stain and scratch-resistant, has low maintenance, easy to install, and don’t fade with exposure to sunlight or high or low temperatures.

We will get to know the different types of tiles for floors, walls, interiors, and bathrooms

Ceramic tiles

Ceramics are the most common type of tiling used for flooring. They are made from silica and clay that becomes hard at high temperatures. Within ceramics, there are two types of of tile designs: glazed and quarry tiles.

Glazed tiles lazed tiles come with a glaze coating, which is added after firing ceramic tiles to get in different colors and textures. they xcome in good styles and are availalb in different colors/

The quarry tiles are unglazed tiles mostly used in parking lots, footpaths because of its roughness and skid resistance. They come in red, grey and brown colors and come in square, rectangle, and hexagon shapes.

Porcelain tiles

These tiles are made from finely grained clay at higher temperatures compared to ceramic tiles. They are denser, stronger and absorb moisture better and costlier than ceramic tiles.

They are available in all finishes and use for both indoor and outdoor installations.

Vitrified tiles

The process used in making these tiles is called vitrification.They contain clay and silica materials and are harder than ceramic tiles. They have a low water absorption rate and can remain intact to and tear.

We can find various types in these like Glazed vitrified tiles, Porcelain vitrified tiles, and Double charge vitrified tiles which are different from one another in thickness, style, and color factors.

Glass Tiles

These tiles are made using sand and recycled glass (which makes them eco-friendly)… , The designs of these tiles are mostly used for decorating walls in the living room, also used in kitchen and bathrooms.

Because of their popularity, they are using these tiles in expensive places like hotels, palaces, commercial complexes. It actually makes the room brighter by its reflecting properties. There is no fading in these tiles and they are stain free.

Digital Tiles /Mosaic tiles

The digital printing technology is used in printing high-resolution images on the glazed tile surfaces. Nowadays, all glazed tiles are printed by this technology in all creative looks.

In a true sense, these are not particularly tiles. The arrangement of these smaller tiles in  on walls called mosaic style. They are arranged layer by layer on outside walls for decorative appearances.

Today, there ae several types of tiles on the market that we have to know their characteristics, especially those in the construction and manufacture.

Ceramic Tiles

These are the tiles used for the interior floors, swimming pools, exterior floors, walls and for special installation both in interior and exterior cases. Most types of tiles come under the category of ceramic tiles.

They are made from a mixture of clay and other materials. They are fired in a kiln. Te following are the various types of unglazes and glazed tiles.

The earthenware tiles are made of clay, while the stoneware tiles have a large quantity of silica that is present in the form of sand, crushed stoneware etc.

Silica in the stoneware tiles are added to prevent the shrinkage when the fixing process is carried out. Terracotta tiles are manufactured by the use of high-grade fired clay. When the firing is done twice unlike the case of terracotta tiles, we get the faience.

This is initially subjected to fire. After glazing the terracotta tiles, it is again fired. This will finally give Faience. The Faience is available in large variety of color change. This would help for improving the terracotta works.

Porcelain Tiles

Three factors like the manufacture, absorbing capacity and the breaking strength of porcelain tiles are vastly different from the ceramic tiles.

The porcelain tiles are also made from clay. But compared with the ceramic tiles, they make use of the heavy or denser clay.

During manufacture, porcelain tiles are subjected to heavy temperature for a longer time. This baking is carried out until all the water present in the element is evaporated.

This unique method of manufacture makes these tiles harder and denser compared to ceramic tiles. This is why porcelain tile is regarded as a superior product when they facto r durability, design, color and value factors.

Porcelain tiles are highly impervious to water. It has a water absorption rate lesser than 0.5%. The cost of porcelain tiles, however, is higher when compared to the ceramic tiles. The porcelain tiles gain more application in surface areas that have high traffic.

Actually, these tiles are a type of vitrified tiles. It is sometimes referred to as porcelain vitrified tiles. The porcelain tiles demand special cement for their installation. These tiles are harder and denser compared to ceramic tiles.

So, when these tiles are used for wall surfaces, the cement that has high adhesive property are used.

 The porcelain tiles that are polished are also available in the market. After firing of the tiles, they can be polished. This would bring a shine in the tile, without any glazing. Read

Finally, there are tiles based on application: Roofing tiles, flooring tiles,Wall tiles, and

Partition tiles.

The roofing tiles are earthenware and is a baked product. Its manufacture is similar to that of brick. The wall tiles as well as the floor tiles, are employed in the interior as well as the exterior of the building.

This is mainly employed based on the requirement of decoration or aesthetics. These belong to the class of ceramics and are calledwhite wares. Tiles that are used on walls and floor are available in both glazed and in the unglazed forms.

Mostly the wall tiles are glazed by a thin layer of glazing when it is available in the market.

Floor tiles are also designed to bring the beauty of flooring and movement. But it is subjected to higher load, pressure and other undesirable material action.

So, these tiles are made more durable, abrasion resistant, water impervious and easy clean form. Floor tiles along with the mentioned properties should also provide good aesthetics.

The degree of burning is the parameter that differentiates the wall and the floor tiles. When compared to floor tiles, the wall tiles burned at a lower temperature. After this, it is glazed and re-fired at a lower temperature.