Choosing Ceramic Bathroom Tiles

Now that you have decided on going with ceramic for your bathroom tiles, picking out one that fits your needs should be easy right? Wrong! There are so many options of ceramic tile nowadays that a visit to a bathroom tile store can leave you reeling with the colours, textures and styles that you have to choose from. Ceramic bathroom tiles are a great choice as they are waterproof, easy to clean and timeless in their appeal. In spite of all the new tile options out there, starting from natural stone to fabricated varieties, ceramic still endures as the top choice for bathroom wall tiles and bathroom floor tiles.

It is important that ceramic floor tiles be textured. Although a super shiny slick tile is attractive and is perhaps even easier to clean or wipe down, safety is paramount. Walking on slippery tile can be dangerous, so tiles that can reduce the incidence of skidding must be chosen. This means choosing textured tile. Textured tile will allow for good traction even when it is completely wet.

Also consistently sized bathroom tiles will make the tiling job look uniform throughout. Remember that ceramic tiles are fired in a kiln; different locations can yield different sizes. These variations may be small but this can have a cumulative effect for a large surface area. Buying more tile than you need is a good precaution. It is recommended that one buy 10% more tile than the project calls for. Selecting straight-edged tiles will make tiling easier as well. Fancier edges may require a professional for a clean finish.

Even more important is making sure that you have enough tiles for the project from the same tile batch. Ceramic tiles have a tendency to differ from one lot to the next in terms of hue; in a brightly lit space like a bathroom, this can really stand out. For this reason, most tile stores have generous return policies where an unopened box may be returned for a full refund.

Generally for an average sized bathroom, floors tiles in the order of 30 cm X 30 cm are recommended as anything much smaller will appear busy as a result of the grout lines; cleaning grout is harder than tile. As for bathroom wall tiles, any size from mosaic tiles to large format tiles can be recommended as the wall is less likely to collect dirt as compared to the floor.

Choosing the colour of ceramic bathroom tiles is another important consideration. Lighter colours tend to make a room look larger, so if you have a small bathroom, err on the side of caution and go with tiles in the beige family to give a small bathroom the illusion of space. For a tiny bathroom a smart choice would be picking one tile type for the entire bathroom for a truly seamless look.