Tile & Mosaic

Foundation Flooring has an extensive list of both porcelain and ceramic tiles to suit every homeowner's interior décor and home style. The tiles in our showroom are available in a wide array of patterns and colors so you won't have a hard time finding the right flooring solution for your home.

Pros of tiles

Tiles constitute a smart choice for American homeowners because of their numerous advantages:

• High resilience – if installed professionally, they will last for decades
• Waterproof and extremely scratch resistant
• More affordable compared to similar flooring solutions (marble, travertine or natural stone)
• Stain resistant and easy to clean
• Waterproof and extremely scratch resistant
• Works extremely well with area rugs, mats and radiant floor heating
• Tiles are a greener flooring solution (less toxic coatings and emit fewer harmful fumes)
• They are versatile and can compliment any decor

Cons of tiles

Despite the great benefits, tiles also come with a few disadvantages:

• Tiles don't absorb noise and are not recommended for high sound volume areas of your home
• They are very slippery when wet; the risk of falling and injury can be reduced by placing an area rug or small mat on top of the tiles
• They are sensitive to impact and can break
• High end porcelain tiles are fairly expensive

What are tiles?

Tiles are an excellent flooring choice for areas of your home regularly exposed to dirt and water. Made from natural minerals and materials, ceramic and porcelain tiles are resilient, easy to clean, available in a plethora of styles and require little maintenance. Cleaning tiles simply implies wiping the debris/spill/dust with a damp cloth.

Porcelain versus ceramic

Homeowners think of porcelain and ceramic as two distinct materials. However, porcelain is just another form of ceramic. The main difference here is that porcelain is made from finer clay dust – feldspar, kaolinitic minerals or quartz – and is fabricated at higher temperatures.

This process makes them more resilient to moisture, deep abrasion, frost and normal wear and tear. These benefits also reflect on porcelain's price. Ceramic tiles are also quite durable and include a high resistance to scratches, flame, slip, stains. They are extremely easy to clean and will not fade if they are exposed to UV rays.

Tile ratings

Even though all tiles look and feel solid, some types are more durable than others. Tiles are rated according to the hardness factor on a five point scale:

• Class 5 – can take heavy traffic and are a good choice for commercial and industrial floors
• Class 4 – ideal for areas exposed to dirt, water and debris such as the balcony, outdoor kitchen or a residential entryway
• Class 3 – suitable for light to moderate traffic areas such as bathrooms or kitchens
• Class 2 – great for light traffic rooms where you are likely to wear slippers, such as the bedrooms or a guest bathroom
• Class 1 – cannot take too much traffic and are recommended for rooms where you walk barefooted
• Class 0 – tiles in this category are not suitable as a flooring solution from the durability point of view