Wood Look Porcelain Tile

Is Wood Look Porcelain Tile A Trend?

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Wood Look Tile Isn’t The Only Product That RESEMBLES Wood.

The popularity of Wood Look Porcelain Tiles may raise questions in some customers’ minds who want to invest in flooring products that will last, rather than wasting their savings in a trend that will soon pass.

Porcelain Tile Is A Superior Product. 

The term “Wood Look Tile” defines a category of flooring products that mimic natural hardwood floors by the look and the shape. This is a category that was dominated by laminate, vinyl, and engineered wood floors. Today, porcelain tile with the wood look became a new category in the flooring industry, and these tiles are now broadly available in larger sizes than their early examples. They come with immense color and style options. Besides, they offer more durable solutions to hardwood floors than other hardwood alternatives.

Wood Look Tile Is Not Just Graphics.

Porcelain tile that mimics hardwood floors is not a product that is as new as many would think. Manufacturers have been producing ceramic and porcelain tiles that mimic hardwood floors for decades. The graphical likeness has never been the challenge. However, making a long and narrow tile like a plank had been a real challenge. 
The success of the wood look tile came with the production of 6×36 tiles that really resembled planks. Soon after, porcelain tiles became the most popular product in the wood-look category over other hardwood alternatives. 

Wood Look Tiles Compared To Other Products?

Price

The Industry standard 8×48 Wood Look Porcelain Tile price varies between $1.89 to $3.99 per square foot depending on the country of origin.

Whereas the lowest-end laminate can be found starting at $.59 Luxury Vinyl can be as expensive as high 3 dollars.

Installation

Laminate and Vinyl installation vary between a dollar and dollar-fifty per square foot depending on the installer. They are also DIY friendly products. A handy homeowner can install these planks even without a flooring professional.

Porcelain tile requires skilled professionals. The perfection of the floors doesn’t only depend on the tile; it also depends on the installer. Whereas a right installer can create miracles with crapy tiles while a lousy one can cause a disaster even with the most expensive tiles.

Porcelain tile requires leveled floors prior to the installation or a clips system that will level the tiles.

Leveling with mud-set can raise the floors about 2 inches. It adds $0.50 to the cost of setting materials and an extra dollar to dollar-fifty to the installation.

Clips system adds a dollar to the installation.

When installing tile, every single tile needs to be leveled. Tile installation costs a minimum of $2.50 to $3.50 per square foot without setting material.

Porcelain Tile and Wood Tile Removal

Laminate removal is simple and may not require a professional. If you want to hire an installer to remove your existing laminate or vinyl floors, It won’t cost more than $1.00.

Tile removal is a job that you can do on your own by renting the equipment. However, it’s a dusty job that takes time. Most of the time, you’ll also need to rent a dumpster for your debris. A tile professional will charge you $1.00 to $1.25 per square foot.

Dents

Porcelain tiles won’t dent but Laminate and Vinyl do. 

Porcelain Tile is Scratch Resistance

It’s tough to scratch the porcelain. On the other hand, you have to be very careful when removing furniture over Laminate or Vinyl floors, even for cleaning purposes as they can scratch easily.

Porcelain Tile Cleaning

Porcelain tile comes with very low water absorption levels and almost nothing sticks to it. Additionally, it almost never stains and any dirt can be easily removed from porcelain tiles even with only water. 

You have to be careful when cleaning the Laminate or Vinyl. You should use special cleaning products. If you spilled something that stuck to your floors, you have to be very careful scrubbing it. You may scratch your floors. Besides, textured laminate is tough to clean. 

Waterproof – Flood Proof

Nowadays, most laminate manufacturers claim their products are waterproof. Yes, they are when you spill water on them however, they are not waterproof enough to use on shower walls or even bathroom floors. If there is a flood, you may find your floors floating. Humidity is also a factor that can ruin them.

Porcelain is 100% waterproof; we can use them in wet areas with no worry.

Porcelain Tile is Slipperiness

Most Wood Look Porcelain Tiles perform well in wet areas; we can use them in bathrooms, around pool areas.

Laminate and Vinyl are slippery.

Longevity

Porcelain tiles are famous for their durability since they last a long time. Laminate and vinyl, on the other hand, won’t last as long. They won’t last at all under heavy foot traffic therefore, we can’t use them in commercial surfaces.

Wood Porcelain Tile Color

Wood Look Tiles are available with a variety of options regarding its color, shade, and design. You can find them in every color and tone. 

Vinyl and Laminate planks are limited in color and shade when compared to porcelain tiles.

Health

When water leaks through the joints, it creates mold and mildew. Vinyl and laminate planks locking system is what makes the installation of these tiles both easier and cheaper. However, the locking system can’t stop the water from leaking through the planks. Laminate and vinyl planks are prone to create some amount of mold inside of your floors. Besides that, they contain plastic. On the other hand, wood look porcelain tiles are over 95% recyclable products. Well grouted floors won’t let the water leak through the joints. 

Verdict

When comparing Wood Look Porcelain Tiles with other wood-look products, there are numerous downsides of the porcelain tile: the installation that lasts longer is dusty and costs more.

However, when it comes to longevity, durability, maintenance, and health: wood look porcelain tiles are much better products. Not only do these products contain endless color and design options, but they are more stylish. Popular colors and designs may change as time goes by. But porcelain tiles with the wood look will be around as long as porcelain tiles will be around.

Wood Look Porcelain Tile 8×48 Became An Industry Standard.

Today, porcelain tiles that cover around 2.5 sqft per piece and above are the most popular sizes in the industry. Whereas planks up to 72″ long are now available, those tiles are not yet in a mature stage and tend to warp more than expected. They require an expensive clips system that can level the corner but can’t straighten the entire tile.
At Tiles & Stone Warehouse, we’re in touch with the largest, most trusted tile manufacturers across Europe on a daily basis. We believe possessing the knowledge that our customers can rely on is a duty and a responsibility. Therefore, we do not yet display wood tiles over 48″ long, nor do we display 6×24 6×36,6×40 tiles that we believe are too small. 

Plank sizes may be deceiving since the length seems large.

A 6×24 plank is the equivalent of a 12×12 tile while a 6×36 plank is the equivalent of a 16×16 tile. Since we would not accept these sizes for a remodeling project, we should also reject 6×24 and 6×36 planks. Many manufacturers dropped these sizes, as they are also out of style. When remodeling your floor, we recommend using an up-to-date tile size as much as an up-to-date tile style.

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