Quick useful tips when shopping for tiles

There is a vast room in buying a ceramic tile for wall and floor tiling other than the color and pattern which will work in a room. Every tile has its own manufacturing features and intended use, its uses are written on the label box as well when you went to buy them. There is a code written on it as well, in order to buy a good tile suitable for your intended usage, you need to understand these codes. This will help you in buying the ceramic tile which is right for your project, it is an easier way to save you money.

The first thing what you have to note is the rating of the tile. There are four to five rating categories listed on every box of the ceramic tiles for wall and floor tiling. Five normally uses for the glazed tiles and four are for unglazed tiles. Before buying a tile, make sure you have read the label thoroughly, its PEI rating, water absorption capacity, coefficient of friction, safety of tone and frost.

The first thing is the grade of the tile. The grade of the tile is rated between one to three. Grade one is considered to be the highest of the quality. Grade two is much similar to the grade one in many features but it is less expensive than the grade one. For floor tiling, grade one and two are more suitable for it. Grade three tiles are not very heavy on which you can walk on. They are more suitable for walls only. Keep in mind that you can use a floor tile on walls but never use wall tiles on the floor because they will be less heavy duty and will not suitable for walking purposes. Make sure that every tile that you have used for the floor is of grade one or two.

Water rating is another category which is another most prominent feature of the tiles. It is normally called PEI which stands for Porcelain and Enamel Institute’s wear rating. It makes the tile to resist abrasion and suitability as a floor tile. Only glazed tiles have got this feature. If you are buying an unglazed tile then you will not be having this feature.

The water absorption rate is another important category to be considered when you are looking at swimming pools tiling.ceramic tiles. It will help you in selecting a tile for the outdoors and the water area. There are four categories in the W.A rating and they are usually labeled as the percentage of the water resistant in every tile. These tiles are highly suitable for

The other most important category is the slip resistance, it is normally considered to be the coefficient of friction abbreviated as C.O.F

It is the force required to slide over an object across the surface divided by the object’s weight. The C.O.F numbers indicate the less friction resistant and the floor will be provided less traction. It will indicate that the floor will be less slippery.

Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/remodeling-articles/quick-useful-tips-when-shopping-swimming-pools-tiles-6818053.html