Marble floor tiles in hallway

madds

Hi,

I'm thinking of putting cream marble tiles on my hall floor. I had a tiler out to quote me for the work and he said that marble tiles in a hall are not a great idea as they will damage easily ie. scratch and the gloss will come off them. He suggested i put down polished porcelain instead as they are much more hard wearing.

Has anyone any experience of marble floor tiles? Would you recommend them or will they look bad after a couple of years?

Carlow52

madds wrote: »

Hi,

I'm thinking of putting cream marble tiles on my hall floor. I had a tiler out to quote me for the work and he said that marble tiles in a hall are not a great idea as they will damage easily ie. scratch and the gloss will come off them. He suggested i put down polished porcelain instead as they are much more hard wearing.

Has anyone any experience of marble floor tiles? Would you recommend them or will they look bad after a couple of years?

Marble is limestone and is too soft for such a high trafficked area if u want the shiny look, it will also stain easily enough

madds

Thanks. Looking through the related threads here it looks like polished porcelain would be a good substitute right?

gwhiz

Hi Madds

The tiler is correct, dont go near marble tiles in a hallway. My friend has these in her kitchen and they are scratched to bits and the gloss is gone completely and this is only after six months. No matter how much you wash them, they still look dirty. She went back to the place she bought them and they sent out one of their reps who was over from Spain and her took photos of the floor. About two months and 100 phone calls later, they said they would pay for the whole foor to be stripped and re-polished. Don't see how this is going to solve the matter. I told her to demand her money back (€2,000) and also instruct them to remove the tiles from her kitchen floor. Failing this, I told her to go see her solicitor. It's an ongoing battle with them but if it was me I would refuse their offer to strip and repolish the floor and get my hard earned cash back.
STEER CLEAR OF THEM FOR YOUR OWN SANITY ! :eek:

Now the next bad news is I have polished black porcelain tiles in my kitchen and hall and they are the biggest nightmare. They show up the slightest bit of dirt and if you have have dogs well thats another no no. When you wash porcelain tiles, they dry with a kind of chalky film on the top and the floor is full of dried in water marks. The only way to polish these tiles is to get down of your hands and knees and do each tile individually or else use a cloth on the end of a brush which doesn't work too good. If you search Boards you will see other threads regarding porcelain tiles and how to clean them and they say more or less the same as I have. They are the biggest regret ever and I HATE THEM. They constantly look filthy. When I was picking out the tiles for my kitchen, I was gonna go for a cheap black tile (€9.99sq yd) and then the porcelain tiles caught my eye and they looking amazing. They do look fantastic on the display, but a total different story when put down on your floor. Kicking myself everytime I look at them. My last attempt, is to find a proper cleaner for them or get a buffer. Maybe Im just cleaning them wrong but I have tried everything at this stage. So don't give up hope yet on the porcelain as the cream ones may not be as labour intensive as the black ones. I have to say, the ONE time I got down on my hands and knees and polished each one individually (equivalent to an hour in the gym), they looked amazing and stayed fairly clean for about two days.
Sorry for the long rant

madds

Jeez gwhiz, get off the fence will ya?

Seriously thanks for the advice and warning. My wife (the person who has the final say in this matter) has read your post and is grateful.

Will wait to see what some of the resident tilers in this forum have to say in response.

Carlow52

we have polished porcelain beige tiles in the hall for the past 5 years: dogs, grandchildren, etc and not a scratch. vacuum every day or 2 for sand, dog hairs etc and a belt of a damp mop with laminate floor cleaner whenever. Magic

gwhiz

madds wrote: »

Jeez gwhiz, get off the fence will ya?

Seriously thanks for the advice and warning. My wife (the person who has the final say in this matter) has read your post and is grateful.

Will wait to see what some of the resident tilers in this forum have to say in response.

No prob... From what Carlow52 says, I think I just chose the wrong colour tile. Black = nightmare :eek:
I will keep a close eye on this thread to see if I can get any tips on cleaning them.

Carlow52

gwhiz wrote: »

No prob... From what Carlow52 says, I think I just chose the wrong colour tile. Black = nightmare :eek:
I will keep a close eye on this thread to see if I can get any tips on cleaning them.

just looked at the back of a spare one : "porcelain 1,250 degrees C "

they were not cheap so maybe different quality also

gwhiz

Carlow52 wrote: »

just looked at the back of a spare one : "porcelain 1,250 degrees C "

they were not cheap so maybe different quality also

I cant remember what I paid for mine, think it was around €1,000 for hall and largish kitchen and that was just for the tiles. One thing I remember when the tiler was putting them down, I asked him did I need to get a sealer for them. They are supposed to be sealed before grouting and then again after and he said no that the tile I had was pre-sealed and I thought that was a big strange. Im thinking now was this a load of bullsh*t cause he didn't want the hassle of sealing them? Alarm bells ringing in my head here... HELP :eek:

shaneh34

Hi Madds

To be honest its all well and good everyone telling you to stay away from marble which in a way it is a product with maintenance but on the other hand there is no actual porcleain tile that looks like marble. If you are looking for the individual look of every tile been different then marble is the only way to go "beauty has maintenance" lets be honest about it, but it just really depends on how you want to go about maintaining it.

Obviously marble going into a hall way it will give you that wooh factor and if thats what your looking for then thats the way to go.

There are very few Porcelain tiles that look like marble, but i can give you some good companys to have a look at if your interested just send me a quick PM.

Shane

Lobsterlady

Just recently moved into our new build. I put Fontana Marfil (porcelain, factory polished) in the hall way, 40 x 40 tile, and 60 x60 of the same in the kitchen.
It's great, looks the business, easy to clean and doesn't show up the dirt.
Lots of good tile shops supply this tile, so shop around for the best deal.
HTH

Charlie_

My mother has black tiles in her kitchen - they show up every bit of dust and dirt there is and living on a farm is possibly the worst choice. I have pale cream porcelain tiles in my house running through from the hallway to the kitchen to living room - there are marble designs on them and they do not show up dust or dirt. I was advised that the less I cleaned them the better and the less products I use on them the better..........i hope they were right as im enjoying the not cleaning bit

gwhiz

Charlie_ wrote: »

My mother has black tiles in her kitchen - they show up every bit of dust and dirt there is and living on a farm is possibly the worst choice. I have pale cream porcelain tiles in my house running through from the hallway to the kitchen to living room - there are marble designs on them and they do not show up dust or dirt. I was advised that the less I cleaned them the better and the less products I use on them the better..........i hope they were right as im enjoying the not cleaning bit

I'm jealous Not much cleaning ! LUCKY YOU
I will be stuck with these black horrible tiles for the forseeable future :eek:

Joey the lips

madds wrote: »

Hi,

I'm thinking of putting cream marble tiles on my hall floor. I had a tiler out to quote me for the work and he said that marble tiles in a hall are not a great idea as they will damage easily ie. scratch and the gloss will come off them. He suggested i put down polished porcelain instead as they are much more hard wearing.

Has anyone any experience of marble floor tiles? Would you recommend them or will they look bad after a couple of years?

Your tiler is correct!But its a trad off, marble can be repaired and buffed easier than porceline! where as porceline is more hard wareing

Marble is also more expensive to lay and not cheap in treating.

I hope this helps but dont buy cheap marble or porceline in the hall as it gets the most traffic. Ask your tilers advice on a good retail outlet

madds

Thanks to all for their replies. I think we'll go with the porcelain tiles.

Wonky Knees

I have marble in hall. It does need treating and polishing but every two years seams fine. I placed mine on a 1/4 '' waterproof ply. Natural stone does have a look and feel that's hard to replicate. I agree with the cleaning issues but the main problem I have is that the floor is cold in winter - which is fine for me but a pain if you have kids with the flu who demand to walk about barefoot. If you go the marble route, especially for a kitchen, then underfloor heating needs to be considered.

Dublin3124

Hi guys,

Resurrecting this thread as I am hoping to get some information about porcelain tiles. At present I have a tiler putting down porcelain tiles in my hallway, kitchen and dinning room. Unfortunately there is an issue with floor level from the hallway into the sittingroom. The sittingroom floor is lower. It would be resolved if I continue the tiles into the sittingroom and then the whole of downstairs would have the porcelain tiles but is it a tad too much and would it be too cold?

Thanks

Joey the lips

Dublin3124 wrote: »

Hi guys,

Resurrecting this thread as I am hoping to get some information about porcelain tiles. At present I have a tiler putting down porcelain tiles in my hallway, kitchen and dinning room. Unfortunately there is an issue with floor level from the hallway into the sittingroom. The sittingroom floor is lower. It would be resolved if I continue the tiles into the sittingroom and then the whole of downstairs would have the porcelain tiles but is it a tad too much and would it be too cold?

Thanks

This makes no sense. If there is a difference in the floor levels just continueing the tiles wont resolve it.

The floor will have to be built up. If this is done why not lay what you want....

As for all porc tiles down stairs I cannot see a problem but i find tiles a little cold in the sitting room. Especially in the winter.

paddy147

A sitting room with a tiled floor??

Are you sure about going down that route?

Dont see that being too wellcomming or cosy.

paddy147

Tile a kitchen/dining area,tile a porch.......but dont tile a living room.You will regret it.

stephendevlin

Joey the lips wrote: »

As for all porc tiles down stairs I cannot see a problem but i find tiles a little cold in the sitting room. Especially in the winter.

Wood is also cold but I dont see it putting people off doing that.

Done with the right tile I can see it work!

stephendevlin

Also if your really worried about a cold floor you can get an electric mat under the tiles to heat them up. Other than that your option is carpet or a cold wooden floor :rolleyes:

paddy147

stephendevlin wrote: »

Wood is also cold but I dont see it putting people off doing that.

Done with the right tile I can see it work!

Show me an Irish house that is tiled right through it then please????


Wooden flooring is not cold and is also a renewable source too.Wooden flooring also has thermal and moisture underlay used (standard procedure) with it so its warm to the touch and comfy under foot.

Theres the difference.

You are not living in the Costa del Sol or in a warm mediteranian climate,where tiling a sitting room/living area is the norm..

You are living in Ireland in a colder climate,have a think about it for a second,with regards tiling a sitting room.

stephendevlin

paddy147 wrote: »

Show me an Irish house that is tiled right through it then please????


Wooden flooring is not cold and is also a renewable source too.Wooden flooring also has thermal and moisture underlay used (standard procedure) with it so its warm to the touch and comfy under foot.

Theres the difference.

You are not living in the Costa del Sol or in a warm mediteranian climate,where tiling a sitting room/living area is the norm..

You are living in Ireland in a colder climate,have a think about it for a second,with regards tiling a sitting room.

I have wooden floors all over the house.. They are feecking cold.

I work in a tile shop I can show you loads of houses that have tiles on all of the bottom floor including the sitting room.:cool:

Ive also sold tiles for bedrooms

paddy147

stephendevlin wrote: »

I have wooden floors all over the house.. They are feecking cold.

I work in a tile shop I can show you loads of houses that have tiles on all of the bottom floor including the sitting room.:cool:

Ive also sold tiles for bedrooms

Well,I have wooden flooring (20mm thick wide plank white oak) in my house and 25mm thick 600mm x 600mm solid marble too,the wood flooring is not cold at all.


The wood flooring has the propper thermal and accoustic underlay/insulation underneath it and is not cold to walk on at all.Infact its rather nice and very homely.

It does also help that the entire house is internally insulated (insulated plasterboard) and has a brand new zoned heating system.

Even on a reasonable sunny day,the house holds the heat from the sunlght and the whole house inside is nice and comfy.

Graftgirl

Lobsterlady wrote: »

Just recently moved into our new build. I put Fontana Marfil (porcelain, factory polished) in the hall way, 40 x 40 tile, and 60 x60 of the same in the kitchen.
It's great, looks the business, easy to clean and doesn't show up the dirt.
Lots of good tile shops supply this tile, so shop around for the best deal.
HTH

Hi Lobsterlady,
I know this is an old thread but I am purchasing fontana marfil for my home and I would love to know if you are still as pleased with your flooring or if there was any advice good or bad that you might have with regards to the tiles. Are they easy to keep clean? Did you find that there was maintenance with them etc?
Many thanks,
Graftgirl

builditwell

I put these into an extension approx two years ago, we have been back to do decorating in the house and they still look as good as new. The traffic areas have practically no scratches and still look brilliant. These were sourced from H.O.T. in dublin.

Graftgirl

builditwell wrote: »

I put these into an extension approx two years ago, we have been back to do decorating in the house and they still look as good as new. The traffic areas have practically no scratches and still look brilliant. These were sourced from H.O.T. in dublin.

Hi Builditwell,
Many thanks for your reply, great to know they are still looking well after 2 years, I will look into H.O.T in Dublin too, Many thanks,
Graftgirl.

paddy147

Down 2 years now and still looks very nice...imo.


600 x 600 x 25mm cream marble tiles with 600 x 200 x 25mm brown border marble tiles.

A quick blast of a steam mop and they are fine.:)