What kind of tiles to choose on the floor in the kitchen and in the hallway?

When we start a global repair, first of all, we think about which tile to choose on the floor in the kitchen and in the hallway. A decade ago, tiles were laid mainly in the bathroom and toilet. Now he can be in any room, even in the bedroom. Of course, the modern choice of flooring is great: laminate, linoleum, parquet and so on. But why do most people tend to tile, when it comes to flooring in the hallway and kitchen?

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Advantages of tile

Before deciding which tiles to choose on the floor in the kitchen and in the hallway, it is necessary to decide for themselves what exactly this decision will be the best. It will help in this correct estimation of the advantages of tile - they are as follows:

• Tile is very hygienic. It easily lags behind dirt, it can be washed with plain water and with the help of household chemicals, while using brushes and abrasives. That is, practically all kinds of pollution can be removed by available means.
• The tile is very durable and durable. As you know, the floor of the kitchen is constantly exposed to splashes and various contaminants from food, fat, sometimes the dishes fall. And the corridor is a place where dust, mud, moisture, sand from the street are applied from the street, ladies can walk on their heels. It turns out that these are the two rooms we clean most often, they are amenable to a significant load. No laminates and linoleum can not withstand such tests, but tiles - easily.
• The tile has a long service life of about 50 years. It is fire resistant and easy to restore.

Important! After the repair, be sure to leave a pair of tiles for such a case. If necessary - you just replace a separate section, not the entire floor.

• Tiles are environmentally friendly. Clay or granite chips, of which, in fact, this flooring is made, are absolutely harmless to the human body.

Important! Environmental friendliness is one of the decisive factors when choosing the material for flooring in public catering establishments( cafes, restaurants) and health facilities.

• The tile is quite aesthetic. In building stores such a variety of types, colors, sizes of tiles, that just eyes scatter. It can be selected for any interior and color scheme.

Important! There is even a tile, which in appearance resembles a tree, skin, cork or natural stone.

About why we should choose as a floor covering in the hallway and the kitchen, we discussed the tiles. Therefore, we turn to the next important point - how to choose floor tiles for the corridor and the kitchen?

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Which tiles to choose on the floor in the kitchen and in the hallway?

In order to make the right choice, it is not enough just to inspect the proposed options in the storefront and buy the most beautiful one. It is necessary to know all the characteristics of the tile and its features. We will briefly introduce you to important information.

Strength

This parameter determines what will happen to the tile after the impact of a heavy object, with constant contact with dirty shoes, thin heels and in general with great patency.

On wear resistance tiles are divided into 5 classes. On the box you will see the designation PEI from I to V:

• The first two classes do not interest us, as they are suitable only for rooms with low traffic and infrequent use( bath, bedroom, storage room).
• V class is designed for production facilities, such as walk-through institutions, shops, restaurants and the like. It, in principle, you can choose, but given the direction of this tile, a variety of colors and exquisite design, you will not get. In such a tile in the production of granite crumb is added and the ceramic granite is obtained( gres).He is heavy-duty, but modest in appearance. Yes, and cost such material is quite expensive, which is not appropriate.
• It turns out that the only optimal option when deciding which tile to choose on the floor in the kitchen and in the hallway is tiles of III and IV classes. It is designed for active use, high traffic, walking in shoes and frequent cleaning.

Important! For the kitchen there is enough and III class, and for the hallway is better suited IV.

Water Resistance

Waterproof tiles are achieved by firing at high temperatures.

Important! If you choose tile for a private house, then the absorbency index should be about 3%.For an apartment - up to 6%.

Friction coefficient

This characteristic is also very important. Floor tiles should not be slippery.

Important! Smooth surface in combination with spilled water or after wet cleaning becomes traumatic.

Determine the desired values ​​to understand which tile to choose on the floor in the kitchen and in the hall:

• If the packing coefficient of friction is specified from 0 to 0.4, then this slab is slippery - it should not be taken for the kitchen or the hallway.
• Friction coefficient of 0.75 and above is the best option. Usually it is a matt tile or with a relief surface.

Important! Strongly embossed and rough tiles are also bad, it's hard to wash, so find the "golden mean".

Chemical Resistance

Quite often when cleaning we use household chemicals and can often shed something other than water. Therefore it is very important that the tile does not change its appearance in such situations. Without going into details, we should note that the one with the label "A", "AA" or "B" is worth choosing.

Tile size

Manufacturers produce a wide variety of floor tiles, not only in appearance, but also in size. It can be a small 10x10 cm, and a huge 60x100 cm. More often the standard size is 30x30.

Important! In order not to confuse the floor tiles with the facing( wall), look at the designation on the box( the foot must be painted).In addition, it is thicker than facing.

Choosing, proceed from the dimensions of the room:

• Be sure to calculate at what size of the tile will be less waste.
• Please note that large tiles will look nice only in a large room.
• Small tiles are also not very practical to take.

Important! If you tear the tile yourself without problems, then numerous interlacing sutures will create a problem over time. Most of them are eaten by dirt, which is difficult to clean.

Which tiles to choose on the floor in the kitchen and in the hallway? Proceeding from the above, for these premises the optimal choice will be tile wear-resistant, resistant to moisture and chemicals, and matt, so as not to slip on spilled water.

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Create beauty in the kitchen

Having understood these parameters, you can proceed with color selection:

• If the kitchen is big and light, then the choice is limitless, down to dark colors. The most important thing is that it harmoniously combined with the color range of walls, furniture set and apron.
• Very light colors and white color - not the most successful option. On this floor in the eyes will rush every speck and speck, as indeed, and on a purely black tile.
• Not such a stamp will be tile with a picture.
• In a spacious kitchen, you can put a large tile or make a custom layout( in staggered order, with a combination of two shades, "labyrinth").
• In addition, the kitchen floor should be in harmony with the flooring of adjacent rooms. It can be a beautiful contrast or one color palette.
• For a small kitchen, the optimal size of the tiles is 30x30 cm, and it is desirable that it be light colors. Dark tiles will visually make the kitchen smaller.
• If you have chosen a luxurious expensive tile on the floor, make a plinth of the same tile or frieze from this collection. Plastic skirting in this case will look simple and cheap.

Important! In conclusion, practical advice from experienced housewives: in order to intertwine seams less absorbing dirt and retaining their original appearance for longer, rub them from time to time with paraffin. It does not distort the color of the grout, but it will be an excellent protective barrier against contamination. In construction shops, however, there was an epoxy grout. It retains its appearance and color for a long time, but it is too expensive and difficult to install.

We design the floor in the hallway:

• If the corridor is narrow and dark, then choose a medium-sized and light tile, preferably with a divorce or no contrast pattern.

Important! It will look beautiful in this case, a tile imitating a stone or a tree. You can buy a rectangular tile and make a "deck" or "herringbone" layout. Diagonal placement of tiles visually removes the unevenness of the walls.

• If the hallway is square and spacious, you can use the "maze" or "chessboard" layout. It will be beautiful to look at the panel in the center. And you can use decorative inserts - they usually are in the collection of well-known ceramic manufacturers, and the layout is offset.
• An interesting option is the so-called "Metlakh tile".It is similar in characteristics to a sin. Its feature is that it consists of small bright fragments, from which you can put a colorful "carpet".At a price it will come out expensive, but it will look spectacular.

Important! The only disadvantage of tile is that it is cold. But there is a good way out of this situation: put a warm floor under the tile( it conducts heat well).Its installation will not be difficult, but it will allow you to walk barefoot all the year round.

In addition, the problem of the cold floor can be solved by zoning the space of the corridor:

• the area where they are trampled in shoes, put on shoes-striped, lay out with tiles( 1-1.5 sq. M or slightly more);
• further lay a laminate, linoleum or a parquet - that to you is more to liking;
• junction can be straight or curved, and you can combine two covers with a special docking pin( they are also flexible).

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What kind of tile manufacturer should I choose on the floor in the kitchen and in the hallway?

The quality and service life of the floor covering directly depends on the integrity of its manufacturer. To date, the store has a fairly wide range of tiles of different brands, so, what tiles to choose on the floor in the kitchen and in the hallway - you can choose yourself. Take into account only such recommendations:

• Excellent quality tiles produced by Italian, Spanish, Portuguese manufacturers, but it is from an expensive price segment. They have no equal in the design of collections.
• The Czech and Polish tiles are slightly inferior in quality, but on the order of magnitude cheaper.
• There are also good products of domestic factories, maybe they are not so diverse and colorful, but rather budget-priced.

Important! The main thing is not to take cheap tiles. In it, a very large percentage of the marriage( about 25%, instead of 5% of the allowable).

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What is required for laying floor tiles?

After deciding on how to choose floor tiles for the corridor and kitchen, it is worth considering the preparation of the necessary inventory for its styling. In order to lay out the flooring with tiles, first of all, stock up with the necessary tool:

• Tile cutter or sawing machine.

Important! In any case, no matter how hard you try, not all the tiles will exactly go where you want. Just try to optimally choose the size to cut as little as possible, otherwise - the room will look messy.

• Water level, simple construction or laser.

Important! The floor is not ideal, so that the tile is laid flat, always check the level. If the irregularities and overshoots are too large, you can first fill in the self-leveling floor and then lay the tile.

• Mixer and container for mixing tile adhesive.

Important! The mixer can be replaced with a drill or a screwdriver with a suitable nozzle.

• Trowel, spatula, spatula.
• Rubber mallet.
• Crosses.

Important! The size of the cross should correspond to the width of the seam in millimeters. Although some European brands produce tiles, which can be laid back to back, without seams.

• Roulette, building pencil, corners.
• Duster with cleaning bucket.

And of course, besides the tools you will need: the tile itself, glue for it, grout, plinth and thresholds.

Important! Do not forget to add a few tiles in excess of the required number in case of a fight or subsequent replacement, if ever there is such a need.

But most importantly - you need a first-class master who not only accurately calculates the number of necessary building materials, but also performs his work flawlessly. If you can perform simple laying in even rows yourself, then the figure laying the tile still entrust to the professional.

Important! Since the tile on the floor will adorn for many years, the slightest defect in laying will make your eyes look awkward until next repair.

Now, knowing the answer to the question of which tile to choose on the floor in the kitchen and in the hallway, you will certainly make the right choice. Do not forget only that buying materials is only half the case. Beauty and life time also depend on the quality of the installation itself.