I’m just going to do this post over. What can you tell me about ceramic tile? Quality, price, install price. It will be approximately 400 sq ft. Concrete slab on grade, in kitchen/dining area and small laundry and furnace rooms.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: 400m,

I'll be watching this thread as I plan to do a slight kitchen re-model and suspect the floor may have to be changed.

Install price is going to vary greatly depending on your location. Go to actual tile showrooms so you can view it in person, rather than going by the pictures online. Sometimes you can get samples as well that you can bring home and see if you like it.

"Porcelain tile is stronger than ceramic tile. It is harder, denser, tougher, and less porous than ceramic tile. Porcelain has a very low absorption rate, making it virtually impervious to water damage even after prolonged exposure."

The downside to tile floors in the kitchen (which I have) is they can break if something hard/heavy enough falls on it. I have dropped dishes and glasses on wood, vinyl and tile floors. They typically always break, but on tile they absolutely shatter (the dropped object that is)! Have to go over every nook and cranny, I was finding shards and slivers months later, after I thought I got it all.

All I can recommend is if you are going with thin grout lines, get rectified tiles. And prep/even surface is key. If there are any uneven edges under the tiles, they can crack if the thin set or other mastic is not properly applied. Don't want high spots of that under the tile too, it can lead to cracks.

I went with porcelain tile throughout the entire house, including the kitchen. I love the distressed wood look. I've been pretty impressed with how touch the porcelain is, so far.

My father did tile as his profession and I’ve done enough jobs with him to now do my own.

Agreed with going to a tile store to get what you are looking for. Prices run the the range and some based on finish and material can be costly. They will be able to help with color selections and grout choices as well as matching caulk.

Installation is not too bad as you can rent tools for making cuts based on the material. You should be able to apply direct to the slab, but if you are thinking of adding heat, additional $$ for underlayment.


The tile store will also have a list of professionals too. Your price may vary based on your layout or decorative pattern and tile size. Amount of cutting around and other floor obstacles will impact the labor costs. Installing 18” x 24” in a 20’ x 20’ open room will be less labor than an odd shaped layout with several cuts and additional waste.

I hope this is what you were looking for. Let me know if you need additional information.

I forgot to add, yes I’ll need heat under the tile. I put that in my bathroom and I like it.

Beautiful kitchen flesh.

Porcelain all day. Shops use it (auto shops) because it’s strong enough to sustain dropping a jack on it as it will not break. It’s made at temps over 2000 degrees F.

Porcelain is the way, I personally prefer the stone look but they pretty much make them in just about any style you can imagine. Pick a grout color that matches closely to your tile, maybe even a shade or two lighter, so they blend in. You do not want high contrast grout lines.

Are you in Hawaii or Altoona ?

Lots of variables.

I did floors in FL over the slab.

I used tile that looked like wood with thin grout lines. The grout color was lighter than the tile and you can see the grout.

I used another color grout that matched better on a pantry and the grout looks almost invisible. Two different looks.

I don't like the heat under the tile as it is not repairable unless you rip it out.

I have used both electric and hydronic wall and kick plate heaters to keep the spaces warm, and it does fine if they are properly sized.

Ceramic tile comes in different hardnesses.

In the process of doing two bathrooms.
When installing the vanities, one of the tiles needed a new drill bit for every hole.

The other one bit for the complete installation.

I have red Oak in one kitchen. Open floor plan.

Looks good, feels good on my bare feet.
Harder to keep clean than tile.

The supply hours I use have mini setups with the wall, floor, and accent tile in little alcoves so you can see the tile installed.

Choose something you will like for a long time.

I am taking out the tile is about 70 years old.

I recommend:
Grout darker than the tile, as grout eventually gets dirty and light grout with dirt looks...dirty.

Use epoxy grout. Does not absorb liquids or anything that will stain it. A little toxic to work with, so ideally use a suction fan system that pulls air off of the floor laterally. A ceiling fan will bring the vapors into the installer's face.

Tile is very practical, looks great, but dishes easily break when dropped. There is a different product, sort of a modern linoleum, that looks excellent and also is 100% waterproof. A little bit pricy to install, but probably better as there will be less dish breaking.

Wife and I also went with porcelain. Couple keys:

1. Get two or three pieces of each hue/color/pattern you like. Place them in spots throughout the house and see how the light plays on each. Decide then. (We actually picked ours cause they had dog fur on them and we never noticed after a week)

2. We went with a pattern which had 20 different wood grains imprinted on them. Of the 900 sqft, I noted only two tiles of the same pattern "close" to each other (none next to each other)

3. Darker grout as noted above.

4. DO NOT make a rash or overly quick decision on type and pattern.

5. When being installed, have the tile length of the tile aligned with the length of the slab/footprint. Unless your slab is near perfectly square, this will look best.

6. Save a few pieces (I saved the half box not used, about 15 pieces) and some grout. You might need to replace something after the pattern is no longer made.

To the OP and others who may want to comment...have you considered LVP as a viable option? I wasn't considering this, but after some research, longevity, ease of installation, time to install, it seems like it could be a great way to go.