The Best Bathroom Tiles
Floor tiles have been around since the early days of civilization. The Egyptians used to mix clay in special ovens and heat it to certain degrees and out came concrete.This is more or less the same concrete that we see in many homes today. The Romans also perfected the art of floor tiles with their architechture reaching awe inspiring proportions. The Greeks have also been known for marble tile structures as early as the 10th century. Today, floor tiles, precisely bathroom tiles, have evolved and we now have ceramic tiles, porcelain tiles, marble tiles, concrete tiles and terra cota. But which bathroom tiles are the best?
The question of which bathroom tiles are the best depends on one’s preference. There are many types of bathroom tiles. Concrete tiles are still common in many previous century homes. People preferred concrete tiles because they were safe and there was no danger of slipping and falling. In the previous century, they could also be easily swept using a broom. But when it comes to bathrooms, concrete tiles were not the preferred choice because of a number of factors. One factor was cleanliness. It is important for bathrooms to be extremely clean and it is harder keeping concrete floors clean because there are many places for bacteria to hide. Anti-bacteria washing detergents not not work best with concrete tiles.
For cleanliness’ sake, people prefer their bathroom tiles to be either made of marble, ceramic or porcelain. This is because these are easy to clean and keep tidy. The white color found in many porcelain and ceramic tiles makes it easy to visibly notice any uncleanliness. Cleaning detergents also work best on these surfaces.
It is good to mention that although these bathroom tiles are an all-time favorite in many homes, they pose problems. One of the problems is their slippery nature. There have been numerous cases of people, especially children and senior citizens, slipping and falling in bathrooms. This can be caused by such a minute thing as stepping on a bar of soap. For years, interior designers have been battling with how to balance between the visual appeal of marble, ceramics, porcelain and safety. Now there are products such as EasyGrip which assist people who are walking around marble or ceramic floors have a handle in order to minimize falls.
Marble is considered the most expensive of the types of bathroom tiles. It is also the most visually appealing. Homes that have marble floors tend to sell for more money and therefore if you are contemplating selling your home, one of the best ways to increase its resale value is to upgrade your bathroom floor to marble tiles. These are easy to install and you can purchase them in any tile store or major retail chain or simply call a handy man and he or she will be happy to procure marble tiles for you and install them. So we see that this is all a matter of preference. Some people are more concerned with safety than beauty and will therefore easily choose concrete tiles
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Where To Buy Bathroom Tiles
Bathroom tiles come in many different colors, shades and types. Tiles in and of themselves are not a new thing. Ever since the Egyptians began setting up structures, tiles were being used. They found a way of making concrete tiles by baking clay in special ovens and mixing it with other oxides. The concrete slabs that emanated from this are more or less the same quality as what we have today in old homes. But technological advancements have since resulted in many different types of bathroom tiles as we see them today. We now have ceramic tiles, concrete tiles, porcelain tiles.granite, marble and tera cota. Some, like marble tend to be more expensive and therefore limited only to high income homes. Porcelain and ceramic are a little bit more common and can be found in many homes. But where would one buy bathroom tiles?
1. Internet
The Internet is as good a place for bathroom tiles as for any other thing you would be shopping for. It exposes you to a wider range of sellers over a wider area as opposed to if you tried to shop for tiles by going from one store to another. It is also easier to conduct research over the Internet because you can read reviews left by others who have already purchased what you want to purchase.
The Internet is also ideal in conducting price research. Because of free markets, prices may vary from place to place and in these tough economic times, you want the lowest price possible but still get the best quality. Even if you are planing to shop offline, conducting price research over the Internet before you go out and shop is the recommended thing to do.
Offline
Bathroom tiles can be bought at any major convenient store. In the US, large scale retailers such as Walmart, the Roomstore, Lowes and Home Depot stock a variety of bathroom tiles. Hoem Depot has a do-it-yourself section where you can not only buy the tiles but also furnish you with tools and expertise on how to install them. Installing bathroom tiles can be easy, but removing the old ones can be quite a task and a certain level of expertise is required. It is therefore recommended that you seek the help of home improvement experts.
Handymen
In the US, home improvement is big business. Other than buy bathroom tiles from the tile store and come home and begin to struggle, the other best thing is also to contact a home improvement specialist. In the US these are known as handy men. A handy man is someone who will come into your house and for a small fee make some improvements. If you request the services of a handyman to install your bathroom tiles, he or she will most likely come with their own set of bathroom tiles. Others will direct you where to buy them and them charge you to install the tiles.
All in all, the homeowner has these choices when choosing to buy bathroom tiles.
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Pros And Cons Of Bathroom Tiles
One of the most intimate places in a home is the bathroom. This is where most people spend their most private moments especially getting clean. It therefore goes without saying that people will be particular about the hygienic conditions in the bathroom. Other than just the type of cleaning detergent that people use in the bathroom, the type of floors one has will determine whether it is possible to keep the bathroom completely spotless. Bathroom tiles are the sole determinant of this.
There are many types of bathroom tiles. They come in ceramic, porcelain, concrete, granite, marble, and tera cota. These are the standard bathroom tiles found in many homes. Bathroom tiles have many advantages:
1. Hygiene
A bathroom with the right kind of tile can actually boost its hygienic standards. Porcelain has been popular for many years because its easy to clean. Porcelain bathroom tiles respond well to anti-bacteria bathroom cleaning detergents. Bacteria can be very resilient and they find easy hiding places. Porcelain diminishes the type of surface that contributes to germs and bacteria.
2. Beauty
It has been observed that people associate beauty with cleanliness. A beautiful bathroom also denotes hygiene an gives guests and other visitors a pleasant first impression. The right bathroom tiles contributes to the way the bathroom looks and can even enhance feelings of relaxation for those that visit that bathroom
3 Resale value
It is common knowledge that for a home to sell better than it was bought, certain renovations have to be made. One of the best places to modify and add the resale value of your home is in the bathroom. Ugly bathrooms turn off potential buyers and depress the home’s overall value. If a home has concrete bathroom tiles, converting these to ceramic or marble can greatly enhance the value of the home.
Let us examine a few downsides of bathroom tiles.
1 Danger of slipping
While bathroom tiles such as those made of ceramic and porcelain or marble are extremely attractive, there is always the danger that someone who is not alert can slip and fall. There are countless episodes of people, especially, seniors, falling and injuring themselves in the bathroom after slipping and falling. It is not hard to imagine hows slippery ceramic or porcelain is especially if one steps on a bar of soap.
2. Cold
Marble, ceramic and porcelain are very attractive and actually form the majority of the bathroom tiles in many parts of the world. But without a carpet or rug of some kind to step on when getting out of the shower, a ceramic, or marble or porcelain floor can be very cold to the bare feet. This is especially the case during winter.
3. Some floors are hard to clean
While ceramics and porcelain are common and easy to clean, there are homes especially those that are old that still have concrete bathroom tiles. While this promote safety and it is not easy to slip and fall on a concrete floor, these can be hard to clean and can be breeding grounds for bacteria.
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