How to choose the right tile and calculate its quantity

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Important tips that will save you money and nerves, because the purchased tile will not disappoint with chips and uneven corners and will not make you regret the chosen color.

What color to choose a tile

If you already have a fix idea, pick a dream color and let it be the starting point for the rest of the shades. The main thing is not to overdo it with accents.

You shouldn't choose more than three different colors. To navigate in all the variety of design options, it is best to look for photos of ready-made premises.

Is the room you want to decorate is small and you need to visually expand it? Use light colors. The classic bathroom option is white tiles.

If you think it is too commonplace, give preference to beige, peach or blue.

Andrey Lyamin-Borodin General Director of the Rewedo.ru internet service for ordering repairs

The floor and walls, lined with one type of tile, mostly light and glossy, visually expand the space and add air.

It is believed that cold colors create the effect of freshness and coolness, while warm ones soothe. One of the modern trends is interior decoration in natural shades.

Dark tiles create a depressing impression. Contrary to popular belief, dirt is clearly visible on it. Use dark colors carefully. For example, to decorate the floor and the bottom of the walls.

Avoid very bright colors such as scarlet or gold. In such rooms, you will get tired very quickly.

Use bright or patterned tiles to create accents or zoning a room.

When choosing a tile for the kitchen, match its color with the headset.

How to choose the shape and size of the tiles

Most often, stores offer square or rectangular tiles. If you're doing your own repairs, stick with these classic options. It is much more convenient to work with them than with tiles of an unusual shape.

Want to achieve different visual effects? Use rectangular tiles. Place it vertically on the walls, and you will stretch them in length, horizontally - in width. To visually expand the room, lay the floor tiles diagonally.

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Do not choose very small tiles for small spaces. Also give up the idea of decorating the room in a mosaic style. It narrows the space a lot. Do not use very large tiles. With it, there will be large seams on the walls, which will also be unprofitable to divide the room into parts.

Avoiding extremes is also worth it for reasons of economy.

From the point of view of practicality and cost of work for the walls, it is better to choose medium-sized tiles. Too small or, conversely, large format can cause extra charges for installation. Mosaic tiles are on average more expensive than regular tiles and will also be expensive to work with.

Andrey Lyamin-Borodin

How to calculate the number of tiles you need

Measure the length of the walls and their heights and multiply these numbers. Subtract the area of the door from the resulting product (if necessary, also the area of the bath). Calculate your floor area.

Then calculate the area of one tile, also multiplying its length by width. By dividing the total area of the walls or floor by the area of one tile, you will determine the amount of the latter.

When in doubt, use any online tile calculator.

Do not forget to add 10-15% to the obtained value, as part of the tiles will inevitably be damaged during transportation or installation.

Naturally, this is the most primitive way of calculating tiles. With an unusual layout, you may need the help of professionals who will draw up the correct drawing and, based on it, calculate the required amount of materials.

How to choose a tile of the desired structure and quality

If you choose tiles for your home, it makes no sense to give preference to super-resistant materials, which are necessary for decorating common areas. It is unlikely that the same number of people will walk in your kitchen or bathroom as attending cinemas or exhibitions.

Choose tiles with a wear resistance factor from I to III (III - for the floor) and do not overpay.

If you are not going to arrange a large freezer or solarium from your apartment, then the temperature resistance of the tile should also not be taken into account.

When choosing a bathroom tile, pay attention to characteristics such as water resistance and embossing (for the floor).

The best quality tiles are Italian and Spanish. To save money, combine expensive tiles with cheap ones.

Many Russian manufacturers, for example Kerama Marazzi, Keramin, Italon, offer tiles of quite acceptable quality. It can be taken as a base, dotted with a more expensive and expressive one, or, for example, a mosaic.

Andrey Lyamin-Borodin

But buying tiles with huge discounts must be done carefully. The fact is that a low-grade product, passed off as a higher quality one, can get on sale. The coating from such a tile will come out sloppy.

How to check the quality of tiles

Defective tiles are chips, cracks, uneven geometry and a difference in height between different tiles. If, having bought a tile and unpacking it at home, you find such defects, go to the store and return the defective product.

Andrey Lyamin-Borodin

There are ways to check the quality of a tile before purchasing:

1. Consider the tiles against the light: this way possible cracks and other imperfections are better visible on it.
2. To assess the flatness of the material, place two tiles against each other and check how tightly the surfaces fit. Take a couple of tiles from different boxes and attach them to each other in the same way.
3. To assess possible slippage, drip water onto the tile and slide your finger over it.

If you opened the packaging with tiles and found a defect, write a claim. In this case, you can either independently bring low-quality tiles to the store, or ask a broker to come (it happens that half of the packaging is already on the wall).

The broker will draw up an act of non-compliance of the goods with the declared characteristics and send your claim to the manufacturing plant. There your appeal will be considered and, if it is deemed justified, the product will be replaced with a proper one. As you can imagine, the procedure is not quick. If a renovation is in progress, it is often easier to buy a new pack of tiles.

Can the tiles be returned to the store in case of a calculation error? According to Andrey Lyamin-Borodin, this is possible if you bought a large stock of tiles and you still have whole packages. According to the law, tiles can be returned within 14 days from the date of purchase, excluding that day. Some manufacturers offer customers buyback as a bonus, but this only applies to budget tiles.