Ceramic Tile - FAQ




What is the difference between Ceramic & Porcelain Tile?
There are three basic styles or types of Ceramic Tile.
Ceramic Tile, Porcelain Tile and Glass Tile - With Ceramic Tile being a generic term for both Ceramic and Porcelain Tiles.
Actual Ceramic Tile is made primarily of clay mixed with various minerals and water then heated or baked to create solid tile.
Ceramics tend to be porous, so the top is usually sealed with a glaze, which in turn gives the tile it's final color, design and texture.
Glazed Ceramic Tile properly installed will provide the end user with a extremely durable, easy to maintain, and for all intent and purpose a permanent floor.   

Porcelain Tile has a primary ingredient of extremely fine sand that is processed under pressure and extremely high temperature producing an high density glass like material. This porcelain material professes a natural very low absorption rate of water at less than 0.5%.
One of the early selling points of Porcelain Tile was that if it got chipped, it would not show up as much as a ceramic tile because the sand color went all the way through the tile.
Today that is no longer true because some of the current makers of
Ceramic Tile, add a surface glaze to produce wider color options.

Both tile formats are basically fire proof, do not emit toxic fumes, do not support allergens, absorb odors or harbor bacteria. Both offer  floor, wall and decorative tiles in an almost unending variety of
colors, patterns and textures.
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Is one tile better as a floor tile?
If you are talking about using them in a home, a porcelain tile or a Glazed Ceramic with a wear rating (more on this later on this page) of IV or V (4 or 5) will provide a hard, scratch and wear-resistant long lasting floor with little maintenance.  
Remember, that up to now Ceramic Tiles offered the widest choice of color and designs required for home decorating.
In commercial use, the Porcelain Tiles would be the way to go because of their hardness.

Can ceramic tile be used outdoors?
Here in New England you would normally want to use a frost proof unglazed Porcelain Tile in an unheated area (floor and wall) and outside on the ground. 
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Do Ceramic or Porcelain tiles need sealing?
Ceramic Glazed Tiles are already protected from stains by the glazing, but if the tile is an area like a bathroom floor, tub/shower surround kitchen counter you should seal the grout. Use a penetrating sealer on any unglazed tiles and grout.
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What do the various tile ratings mean?
One of the first rating s developed was by The American National Standards Institute known as ANSI is a test for permeability to water and consisted of four ratings:
  • non-vitreous - tile with water absorption of more than 7.0%
  • semi-vitreous - absorption of more than 3.0% but not more than 7.0%
  • vitreous - absorption of more than 3.0% but not more than 0.5%
  • impervious- absorption of 0.5% or less
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PEI Class Ratings
The Porcelain Enamel Institute ratings are not for tile quality but are an indication of manufacturer's recommendation of use for which the tile has been designed.
A PEI 2 tile is designed to be used in areas of low traffic and low chance of staining, such as walls, back splash and a floor area exposed to bare feet or stocking feet.
These tiles are primarily designed for aesthetics, using colors, high gloss finish, and vibrant designs on the tiles.
A PEI 5 tile (the highest rating) is constructed for extra heavy duty foot traffic with the primary mission of achieving abrasion resistance first, and the appearance of the finished tile being the final step.

  • PEI Class 0 - No Foot Traffic - Wall Tile only.

  • PEI Class 1 - Very Light Traffic - Very low foot traffic, bare feet or stocking feet only.  (Master Bathroom, spa bath)

  • PEI Class 2 - Light Foot Traffic - Slippers or soft soled shoes. (second floor bathroom areas and bedrooms)

  • PEI Class 3 - Light to Moderate Traffic - General Residential Use. ( but not   in main entrances or kitchens subject to extremely heavy use or apt to experience dirt/sand track in.

  • PEI Class 4 - Moderate to Heavy Traffic - High foot traffic or areas subject to outside dirt/grit track in. (residential entry, kitchen floor and counter tops)

  • PEI Class 5 - Heavy Traffic & Commercial Floors. (residential, commercial and institutional floors) 
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Homogeneous Porcelain Tile
This was the the basis for the break through technologh that developed the porcelain class of ceramic tile. It was genericly named "through and through tile, because the surface color was the actual body color and all the characteristics including color and density were consistant through out the tile.

Rectified Tile
This term generally indicates that the tile has had a finishing process of sawing or grinding, after a tile has already been fired, allowing for minimal size variations between individual tiles. Current standards allow non-rectified porcelain tile to have size variations of up to 1.5% through out all sizes of tile.
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