Floor Tiles - Granite or Ceramic?

DenpasarHouse

Hi Everyone, I'm hoping to get some advice on floor tiles. In Bali everyone seems to be crazy for granite floor tiles and these were included in the house package we've bought. But after checking out the type of tile we'll be getting I'm not so sure. They've got a glossy finish which is pretty slippery even before they're wet. And after checking the internet I find that they're really easy to stain and require a lot of maintenance. See How To Care For Granite Tile Floors | DoItYourself.com. If this is true, why are they so popular? I feel like I'm missing something. I'm not sure you could stain a glossy ceramic tile if your life depended on it.

Smoke

i personnally would use ceramic . granite is a pain to keep up on floors

DenpasarHouse

Hi Smoke, what do you mean by: [QUOTE]granite is a pain to keep up on floors[/QUOTE]

Smoke

keeping it clean and nice looking

DenpasarHouse

Ok, thanks.

Markit

Would skip the granite and ceramic tiles and go straight for terracotta - head over to Pejatin (Tabanan) and order the 30 x 30, should cost around 8000 each. Soaks up spilled water and then dries out without any staining or if it does stain looks like it should be that color as they are all individual as it should be for hand made.

DenpasarHouse

Thanks Markit, I'm sure they're nice but they sort of sound like more work than the granite. They have to sealed, don't they? I really after a set and forget type of flooring. Anyway, I soaked an offcut of the granite in Coca-Cola all day today and there was no noticeable stain and, as I can't find a ceramic tile I like, I think that the granite is going to be good enough.

gilbert de jong

got granite 60x60..no trouble or problems keeping it clean, have dropped heavy things but no chips or things like that (ceramic will chip) would not suggest using it on the bathroom floor, unless you want to break your neck.

DenpasarHouse

Thanks Gilbert. Yeah, my parents are getting on, so I'll definitely be using a non-slip tile in the bathrooms. I've been talking to a friend about it today, and he says that the older granite tiles were difficult to maintain but the newer ones were no problem. So it looks like we're going with granite. I have no idea what the difference is between the old and the new is though.

gilbert de jong

same here...no idea about the difference old and new, what is old and what is new by the way? mine have been layed 6,5 years ago..

DenpasarHouse

Sorry Gilbert, I've no idea when the old were replaced by the new. Can't find any info about it on the internet.

gilbert de jong

okey...same here, I asked the raja of tiles in singaraja and he doesn't know anything about a change in Granite tiles... he did however mention that there are two sorts of granite used for kitchentops, maybe that there's some mix-up or miss communication regarding granite tiles and granite used for kitchentops ?

DenpasarHouse

Yes, I think there's a mix up with what Americans call granite tiles and what we have available here. It looks like all the info on the web pertains to the American type of granite. Whatever it is that we're using here in Bali seems to be trouble free but there just isn't any information about it on the web.

joji gulapetis

Are the granite tiles you guys are talking about made from natural granite stone cut into slabs… like marble flooring? Or artificially manufactured tiles? :topsy_turvy:

DenpasarHouse

Excellent Gilbert, exactly what I needed to know. So it looks like what they call granite here is actually "artificially manufactured" (thanks Joji) granite. It's not a slice of natural stone like a slice of bread off a loaf. I'm definitely going with the granite now. Thanks Gilbert.

gilbert de jong

@ Denpasarhouse, here's some additional info I just translated from Indonesian (and I found an answer to the old/new granite :icon_razz:) : Sizes : ceramic (keramik) tiles are available upto 40x40cm. granite tiles are 60x60cm up to 120x120cm....any other size is "Granite-look". Hardness : granite tiles are a lot harder, because at production the tiles are being heated over 1000 degrees celsius and pressed by a 7200hp machine. So it's a lot more compact then ceramic tile. Shine-factor : when using a gloss-meter, the display will read between 60-80 for both ceramic and granite, so the shininess is about the same. The difference is that granite gives a very smooth shininess because of the polishing process at production (surface is like a mirror). While the ceramic because of the glazing, gives a "wavy" shininess (ceramics do not get polished). Scratching/chipping : ceramic is very fragile when it comes to scratching and chipping. Sliding furniture around or sandy shoe-soles is guaranteed to cause scratches, and dropping a phone or tv-remote can already cause chipping of the glazing. granite isn't scratch-proof, but it will take something really hard like a nail or another piece of granite to cause a scratch. [COLOR="#FF0000"]Stains :[/COLOR] Ceramic tile has no pores because of the glazing, so it's 100% stain-proof. Granite comes in two kinds these days, the first one is called "first generation granite tile" (in stores known as 'granite printing biasa'). The pores in this kind of granite tile will absorb anything, wich eventually will cause the tile to flex. So first Gen. defenitely not stainproof. The second kind is called "2nd and 3th generation granite tile" (in stores known as 'bukan yang granite printing biasa'). The pores in this kind of granite tile have been closed by a crystallization process, and are thus 100% stain-proof. Precision/accuracy : all granite tiles are accurately cut-to-size (zero difference in size). This makes it possible to lay the tiles very precise with 1mm raizor straight lines of space between the tiles. Ceramic tile comes in cut-to-size and in "not cut-to-size". When using the "not cut to size", the space between tiles need to be wider 2/3/4mm wide and there will be no raizor straight lines. Cut-to-size ceramics is the same as the granite, only a lot more lines since the tiles are smaller. Maintanance : ceramics will go dull and will look dirty over time because of the many little scratches, there is no way to prevent or repair this. The only option for having a beautiful floor again is to take out all the old tiles and put new ones in. When granite tiles loose their shine there's no problem, polishing the tiles with polishing powder or liquid polish (price of polishing powder/liquid is only IDR 50K). Your floor will look and shine like new in no time. If you have used the pored granite tile for your floor and have spilled something, it would need to be cleaned ASAP..definitely within 48 hours the spot needs to be cleaned with special liquid to remove stains from granite. Prices : ofcourse granite tiles are more expensive then ceramic tiles (average 3 to 4 times as expensive). The choice wich one to use is maybe not an easy one, just consider all positives and negatives of each tile, sort your thoughts and pick the one that is best suited for the task at hand.

DenpasarHouse

Aaaaaaah c'mon Gilbert mate, now you're just trying to make me look bad. Ha! Just kidding. Thanks again.

gilbert de jong

you're welcome Denpasarhouse, glad the info was use-able in the process of searching for an answer I have learned some new things too. For example the term 'granite' comes from the Latin root word 'granum', meaning grain. The geological definition of granite is, any plutonic rock in which the mineral quartz makes up 10 to 50 per cent of the felsic components, and the ratio of alkali to total feldspar is between 65 and 95 per cent. Commercially, any holocrystalline quartz-bearing plutonic rock is generally included in the granite group. Anyway, the "artificial" granite is heat resistant, harder, stronger, and more durable then the natural granite...this being said, I am sure there are quality gradients amongst the different brands...OMG, there's the next "problem" @joji...just a word of caution about marble floors...marble has also 2 definitions, the geological and commercial.... Geologically speaking, marble is a metamorphic rock consisting of fine to coarse-grained recrystallized calcite and/or dolomite. Commercially, the term marble is used to describe any crystallized carbonate rock, including true marble and certain limestones (orthomarble) that are capable of taking a polish. Travertine and serpentine, while not true marbles, are usually included in the commercial definition of marble. Meaning marble or granite isn't always natures marble or natures granite, and that goes for both tiles and slabs.

gilbert de jong

hahaha :icon_lol: you're right, I was showboating my new found knowledge :icon_e_geek: I'm sorry :icon_cool:

marklindsay

Thanks Gilbert Can you remember the cost per metre? and I presume you mean 600x600mm? thanks

gilbert de jong wrotegot granite 60x60..no trouble or problems keeping it clean, have dropped heavy things but no chips or things like that (ceramic will chip) would not suggest using it on the bathroom floor, unless you want to break your neck.