Austin SmithTile flooring can be elegant in any room. The chances are that if you’re looking for tile flooring or tile anything, you’re looking at ceramic. While ceramic comes in many different colors and shades, the type of tile you choose will depend on the size of the area you hope to tile. Factoring in your budget and overall goals for the look, choosing the wrong tile can put you over budget or ruin your vision. So here are some general tips when it comes to selecting the type of tile you want to put in.
Kitchens
A 12 × 12 inch tile, in any texture or color, is usually the top choice in the majority of kitchens as it is also easy to install. In most cases, a tile smaller than 8 × 8 is not recommended for this area of the house. Generally, 13 × 13 is the largest recommended tile for the average kitchen; however, if you have a kitchen with vast floor space you may want a tile as big as 18 × 18.
Also be sure to consider a textured tile in the kitchen, mainly if you are concerned about people slipping and falling on the wet floor. While textured tile is a less slippery when wet, you can also consider slate, brick pavers, quarry tile or limestone for non-slip kitchen flooring.
Bathrooms
Think texture for these rooms, particularly as smooth tile means slick floors. Popular size choices for bathroom tiles are 12 × 12 and 8 × 8, and like with the kitchen, the bigger the bathroom, the bigger the tile you will want to choose. The 4 × 4 tile is not recommended for the bathroom floor, as the bathroom is a high traffic area and the smaller tile will have more grout joints. These grout joints are hard to clean and will become quite dirty after a couple of years. A feeling of luxury is always achieved when a stone tile that harmonizes with a shower or Jacuzzi tile is used on the flooring.
Backsplashes
The 4 × 4 tile is recommended when tiling a kitchen or bathroom backsplash. The options seem endless in this realm. Hand-painted tiles can add to a theme, color mixing and the many color options allow a homeowner to put a custom look together for their rooms. You and your installer can get creative with the design, or simply choose a tile with a design already intact.
Tile always makes for a great investment in any room or walkway because tile flooring will last longer than any other type of flooring material. For this reason, it is not surprising that home values are increased with tile installation. Also not surprising is how many homeowners tile their high traffic areas such as, hallways, foyers, and frequently used rooms.
So when choosing tile, be sure to choose a size that works with the room! The options are endless.
>> Read more: bamboo flooring in kitchen/bathroom
