Floor Tiles!

7 years ago

We are building a new house with an open plan living area of about 98 square metres. The area has various zones: the kitchen with large island, (the kitchen also has a double door to a conservatory) a dining area (with double patio doors to the garden) an area for the children to store toys and do colouring, crafts and play computer games etc, there is also a living room area with large Portland stone fireplace (red brick hearth). It is all going to be a very high traffic area, there are lots of adults, children, dogs and frequent guests at our house. The house is on a small holding where we breed horses (just to paint the bigger picture) there is also a utility room, office and roomy hallway downstairs.
The BIG question is...... natural or porcelain floor tiles, we love the look of tumbled limestone or travertine tiles but have been put off by horror stories of stained grout, high maintenance measures and damage to tiles from cleaning fluids etc. I'm not a fan of real wood floors as we had one before and it got water damaged twice! It's too fragile for us! Have looked at wood look high end vinyl too. HELP!!!!

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Comments (5)

PRO
Bath Bespoke
7 years ago
Take a look at Silestone flooring. We use their counter tops in many of our kitchens, and it performs and looks superb.

https://www.silestone.co.uk/kitchen-cladding/?gclid=CjwKEAjw_bHHBRD4qbKukMiVgU0SJADr08ZZy6T0Re9EYYXqPgvFShPC0isiQoeYnamblA_gHfwQKxoCx9_w_wcB
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PRO
Floors of Stone
7 years ago
Hi Kelly,

Sounds like an exciting project!

We sell a lot of natural stone and a lot of porcelain, and in our experience as long as laid and cared for properly, both can work brilliantly in a family home.

Tumbled limestone and travertine can look amazing, especially if you are wanting a more rustic look. If you go for an unfilled travertine, we would highly recommend slurry grouting (filling in the pits and voids) so that it is easier to maintain and clean.

It is really important with natural stone to seal it. We recommend sealing once before and once after grouting, with perhaps a third coat around busy thresholds or near ovens/dishwashers etc in the kitchen. The sealer we sell lasts around 5-7 years, so not something you have to do too often.

In terms of cleaning, you need to ensure you use natural stone cleaners or pH neutral cleaners, so you don't strip the protective sealer, leaving the stone prone to staining. To clean, it's simply sweeping or vacuuming (without the beaters on) and mopping. The beauty of natural stone is it ages and settles into the home the longer it's laid.

Porcelain is really hard wearing, and most don't need sealing, although you can always apply a coat of sealer after laying in order to give added protection and seal grout lines to reduce the chance of staining. We also have wood effect porcelain tiles, which are really realistic if you did want the look of wood.

I hope this helps, but if you do want any more help or to chat through options, please don't hesitate to get in touch on 01509 234000 or email us on enquiries@floorsofstone.com and we can make some recommendations. We also offer free samples of all of our tiles.

Good luck with your project!

Sophie // Floors of Stone
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You're welcome! This is an exciting project and I really hope you'll share the results, whatever you decide to do! I think metro tiles are the right way to go. You've already got pattern and bold colour covered so something more simple is probably right for the walls. Besides, it's a classic design. You could do it with a dark grout if you wanted to make a bolder statement. [This Houzz story[(https://www.houzz.co.uk/magazine/decorating-10-different-ways-to-use-classic-metro-tiles-stsetivw-vs~25104664) about metro tiles shows them mostly with dark grout and might help you visualise it. Marble would definitely work and look incredible. Just be careful to bear in mind the structure of the unit and how much weight it can hold. You have to consider the weight of the surface material, the sink, and the water it would have in it when full. Maybe even think about what you're going to fill the cupboards with and how heavy that could be. Perhaps it would be worth reinforcing the vanity in some way. Other than marble you could use tiles or just varnish the surface really well. All of these options will look great in different ways. Even though you're not DIY-ing it, take a look at this "how-to" to give you a better idea of the process. Also check out these Houzz photos of other homes with dresser vanities to give you more inspiration!
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obobble
7 years ago
We chose porcelain tiles from the Edimax Slaty range. Could not be doing with sealing and caring for 150 square metres of natural stone, no matter how beautiful when done properly. We have 2 large dogs and live in the country.

The tiles come in three colour ways and several different sizes ( giving scope for interesting pattern layouts), and if you choose your grout colour wisely the two darker versions at least are very good at hiding paw prints between mops.
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PRO
Stone Age
7 years ago
Hi Kelly,

Sounds great! It sounds like natural stone would really compliment the existing decor of your property, especially with you having an existing stone fireplace. Our Parsons limestone is a really robust stone and we often recommend it for people who have animals and are concerned about muddy paw prints! Here is a link http://www.stone-age.co.uk/parsons.html

Here's an example;

Natural stone is a porous material so we seal all of our stones with an impregnated sealer to offer a layer of protection. We also recommend a terrific floor cleaner which tops up the sealer each time you use it. You can also seal the grout if you are worried about this staining.

Porcelain is also a great option as it is so durable. We have a huge range of porcelain and you can view our full collection on our Clifton Stone site. http://www.cliftonstone.co.uk/products/porcelain.html

If you would like any further information or would like to discuss your project, please feel free to get in touch!

Our London team can be reached on 020 7381 9090 or you can call Clifton Stone on 0117 923 8202

Best wishes,

Jodie
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PRO
Walls to the floor
7 years ago
Hi!

You could consider microcement.

It's seamless, requires no joins however large the area.
It has the appearance of marble, stone or polished concrete.
It's waterproof, easy to clean and durable.
On top of that it's available in many colours and can be applied over almost any surface, including existing tiles. It's only 3mm thick so there's no need to adjust existing fittings.

Please feel free to visit
www.wallstothefloor.com for more information and to see more pictures of our work.

All the best with your project!
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Floor Tiles!

Comments (5)

Bath Bespoke

Floors of Stone

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obobble

Stone Age

Walls to the floor

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