How to choose tile. Porcelain Tile Vs Ceramic

Practically everybody I know who has been involved in the interior design decorating, faced the same problem at some point- which tile to choose? That is, the porcelain one or the ceramic one? How come there are actually two types of tiles and would I miss the one I needed? What are the criteria?

The crucial difference between two types of tiles

The basic difference between porcelain and ceramic tile is that porcelain tiles are having minute spaces or holes through which liquid or air may pass, unlike the ceramic ones. The ceramic tile has a greater denseness and is much more “solid.”

 porcelain tile vs ceramic

As you may have guessed already, porcelain tiles are designed primarily for the exterior use while ceramic tiles are made for the interior. Which doesn’t necessarily mean you cannot use the porcelain type in your interior decoration. But reverse rule is not generally applied to the ceramics.

cross section diffrence between porcelain and ceramic tile

How many miles are you going to walk on them

Porcelain tiles are made for walking on them. That is, due to their solidness and density they can survive many thousands miles being trotted on their surface. Being highly resistant to splintering, abrasion and scraping, porcelain tiles are perfect solution for industrial spaces, office rooms and meeting rooms, bathrooms with a regular flow of visitors, such as at gas stations, supermarkets, train stations, etc.

ceramic tile looks like

They would serve you well on the floor and walls of a populated kitchen in a 24-hours operating diner. Ceramic tiles are designed for much more spare use. Consider that when choosing porcelain tile vs ceramic.

What makes porcelain tiles more solid?

example of porcelaine tile

Without going too much into the details of the factory process, I will point out the main difference in manufacturing process of porcelain and ceramic tiles. The porcelain tiles go through much more severe and long heating process than ceramic ones. Heating process at high temperatures as applied to porcelain, dehydrates the tile completely, hence the denseness of the resulting product. The ceramic tiles are much more fragile things.

Porcelain tile vs ceramic prices

As a result of less manufacturing investment, in terms of price ceramic tiles are winning.

example of ceramic tile

They are cheaper in general. The choice depends on you, as always in case of the interior design planning. Ceramics offer a bit finer feel to the texture, while porcelain tiles are stronger. You decide.

How to choose tile. Porcelain Tile Vs Ceramic
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