A few Questions after some research

[Jsf721]

I have decided I will be using a 12x12 Porecelain Tile matte with a PEI rating of 5, through Color, with a skid resistant rating of .63 wet and .68 dry.

Tech Data attached for anyone else interested. These took some finding and sadly the are only available online. Freight is additional but all the tiles I found locally in this spec were over over $ 5.oo/sq foot (got these spec at $ 1.79/sq ft plus delivery) so even with freight is works out less expensively online. This tile is only availibe exclusively through 1 distributor and therefore I feel that it is a private brand for this online entity. Per chance if some can recognize the tile and let me know who the manufacturer is that would be great.

I plan on doing a checker board pattern Light Gray and Charcoal Gray (Steel Gray)

http://www.builddirect.com/porcelain-tile/tile-steel-gray/productdisplay_6933_p1_10018049.aspx

http://www.builddirect.com/porcelain-tile/tile-steel-gray/Additional_6933_279004_10018049.aspx

So now the Questions:

1. I had an installer tell me my floor is pitched and would need a mud job or the pattern will look funny if he has to "go with the pitch". True or not? I wanted to use Ultra Flex thin-set and compensate for it that way and be done with it?

2. Epoxy grout-I sped that in my install and most installers are charging more for the install if I insist on using it becasue it requires them to stop every 3 sq feet of grouting it and cleaning it perfectly. Is this normal and is this necessary (Clean every 3 sq feet). I know the haze is very hard to remove without damaging the tile.

3. How many inches will the tile raise off the floor if I do a mud job as aposed to just thin set?

4. I have come up with 2 ideas after reading alot on GJ and online elsewhere (the 3rd is do nothing) for the transition for where the cars drive over. I have seen a regular tile get ground into a bullnose (does this weaken it?), I have seen an aluminum wedge that gets attached under the last course of tile. Are there any other options that are better from an astetic/durability standpoint? If I do a mud job, I am not sure the wedge would work depending on the height of the finished tile.

Thanks for sharing you knowledge and experience. Have a good one!!!!!!!!!

 

[Jsf721]

Too wordy? Lol

 

[motormitch]

First, I like the look of the tile, but I didn't see where it was stated that it was rectified which I've been told is the only way to go on a shop floor with oil and grease ext..

Here is the tile I plan to test for my shop due to the price and fact that these stores are convenient.

http://www.flooranddecoroutlets.com/porcelain-rectified.html

Less than a buck a sq.ft. and 20x20 so less grout.... Doesn't appear to be textured so I will need to get my hands on a sample before order 4K SQ.FT. and I will not have a cool checker board pattern, but that might get old and dated before long anyway.

 

[Jsf721]

Thanks for the link I will certianly check it out. The checkerboard pattern is just designed to make it more fun (for me) and my wife picks the house decore and I get to make the big decisions in the garage.

The tile I sent a link to is rectified and I have a sampe of each color. Would love to get a group buy together for these and drive the cost down. Not sure how many people are looking for tile but I sure am.

I will be visiting Lowes to re check their offering and labor (Installer) rates before I make a final decision. Home depot had nothing I wanted and the local tile stores are way too expensive.

I am going to use epoxy grout and therefore not worried about stains, I AM However worried about the installation of it going accordoing to plan.


Good Luck

Jeff

I will

First, I like the look of the tile, but I didn't see where it was stated that it was rectified which I've been told is the only way to go on a shop floor with oil and grease ext..

Here is the tile I plan to test for my shop due to the price and fact that these stores are convenient.

http://www.flooranddecoroutlets.com/porcelain-rectified.html

Less than a buck a sq.ft. and 20x20 so less grout.... Doesn't appear to be textured so I will need to get my hands on a sample before order 4K SQ.FT. and I will not have a cool checker board pattern, but that might get old and dated before long anyway.

 

[KPSquared]

Tile looks good. Don't know about the mud job.

Epoxy grout is overkill and yes, he will have to continually be cleaning up behind him.

I'm putting down cheap *** $0.59 sq. ft tiles from HD. PEI 4 Using Kerabond/Keraflex and regular grout.

My dad just layed down 200 sq. ft. and 1/8" grout lines look great.

Based on all my research on here, I'm 100% confident my plan will work.

 

[Jsf721]

I am sure you plan will work as well. Just make sure you have a slip resistance rating you can live with. Most tiles are not ment to be slip resistant when wet. I would shy away from Glazed finishes from my research and looking around.

Tile looks good. Don't know about the mud job.

Epoxy grout is overkill and yes, he will have to continually be cleaning up behind him.

I'm putting down cheap *** $0.59 sq. ft tiles from HD. PEI 4 Using Kerabond/Keraflex and regular grout.

My dad just layed down 200 sq. ft. and 1/8" grout lines look great.

Based on all my research on here, I'm 100% confident my plan will work.

 

[KPSquared]

Mine have a COF of .50 wet. About the same as bare concrete. Not the best but i'll be ok

 

[Jsf721]

If you can get higher than .6 that is what my research has found the minimum safe number to be. This is not an official number from Amy agency just what I have collected as I prepare for my purchase.

Mine have a COF of .50 wet. About the same as bare concrete. Not the best but i'll be ok

 

[Angelfire]

First, I like the look of the tile, but I didn't see where it was stated that it was rectified which I've been told is the only way to go on a shop floor with oil and grease ext...

I don't see how being rectified has anything to do with stain resistance or durability. Rectified simply means the edges are cut square to a tighter tolerance vs non-rectified.

 

[KPSquared]

If you can get higher than .6 that is what my research has found the minimum safe number to be. This is not an official number from Amy agency just what I have collected as I prepare for my purchase.

Ya. I'm .60 dry but not so much wet. I figure if its no worse than bare concrete I'll be good.

I know it will work for me but it might be to slippery for some. I'm not to worried about it.

 

[Angelfire]

To the OP, I haven't purchased any tile from this vendor but I did request samples. They arrived quickly and I was pretty impressed with them. It can't hurt to order up a few samples and put them through hell to satisfy your curiosity as to how they'll perform. Oh, and they're free!

 

[Jack Olsen]

I'm not sure why people overthink this so much. There are thousands of epoxy regret stories out there (although there are also many, many people who are happy with their epoxy), but for all the worries about membranes, special thinset and epoxy grout, I can't find the garage owners who jumped into tiling their garage too quickly or too economically and had anything go wrong. Now, I'm sure there are some nightmare stories out there, and my own experience is statistically insignificant. But I went with the cheapest ceramic floor tile I could find. It's PEI 4, and not rectified, or color-through, or anything special at all. Its coefficient of friction is .60 (wet or dry) and I've never slipped on it. I've had it for five years now, and I'm thrilled with it every time I step into the garage.

I've dragged 500# engines over it, and 800# cabinets. I use jackstands and jacks with impunity. I drop tools all the time. I get every chemical you can imagine on it. I put the same tile on top of my lift, and the car sits on top of it without any issues.

Now, after those five years, is it the kind of perfect surface that I'd expect to see in a high end kitchen? No. I've learned you can make pinhole burn marks on it with welding slag. And I have left some chips in it. If they looked bad, I'd simply spring for another 59-cent tile and replace it, but I've touched them up with some beige paint and it's fine. My grout and thinset were both the basic deal from Home Depot. I used brown grout because you can't stain brown.

Aside from the appearance, the great thing about tile is how much cleaner it stays than concrete -- it doesn't generate dust and the surface isn't abrasive-feeling. Anything you spill on it just wipes up with a paper towel. No stains. You can walk around barefoot on the stuff and not come away with dirty feet. It sweeps easier than concrete. And having 12" squares makes it easy to measure just about anything you set down on it.

If I were a pro installer, I'm sure I'd recommend a lot of things to insure that there were no issues over time. That's because if I had to do this 100 times, I'd want to be certain that I could warranty all of those installations completely. But I'm just a homeowner who had a slab with no reinforcement or moisture barrier and 80 years of earthquake-country damage to it. When I put my tiles down, I didn't know enough to worry about possible problems. Who knows, maybe I'm just lucky -- but like I said, I've had it for five years of pretty hard use and it's held up great.

 

[KPSquared]

Ok Jack. I'm a convert for sure. . .1000 sq ft of tile sitting in a pile ready to go.

What happens to your brown grout when you spill black used motor oil on it? Does it show? Does it clean easy?

I'm thinking black or really dark grey in mine. (Light grey tile) Still waiting on an answer for a good grout sealer.

 

[Jsf721]

Jack,

I agree with alot that you say. The big difference is you can always carve out a damaged tile and I replace it. i cannot do this myself. I wish I had the skill to not mess it up.

I'm not sure why people overthink this so much. There are thousands of epoxy regret stories out there (although there are also many, many people who are happy with their epoxy), but for all the worries about membranes, special thinset and epoxy grout, I can't find the garage owners who jumped into tiling their garage too quickly or too economically and had anything go wrong. Now, I'm sure there are some nightmare stories out there, and my own experience is statistically insignificant. But I went with the cheapest ceramic floor tile I could find. It's PEI 4, and not rectified, or color-through, or anything special at all. Its coefficient of friction is .60 (wet or dry) and I've never slipped on it. I've had it for five years now, and I'm thrilled with it every time I step into the garage.

I've dragged 500# engines over it, and 800# cabinets. I use jackstands and jacks with impunity. I drop tools all the time. I get every chemical you can imagine on it. I put the same tile on top of my lift, and the car sits on top of it without any issues.

Now, after those five years, is it the kind of perfect surface that I'd expect to see in a high end kitchen? No. I've learned you can make pinhole burn marks on it with welding slag. And I have left some chips in it. If they looked bad, I'd simply spring for another 59-cent tile and replace it, but I've touched them up with some beige paint and it's fine. My grout and thinset were both the basic deal from Home Depot. I used brown grout because you can't stain brown.

Aside from the appearance, the great thing about tile is how much cleaner it stays than concrete -- it doesn't generate dust and the surface isn't abrasive-feeling. Anything you spill on it just wipes up with a paper towel. No stains. You can walk around barefoot on the stuff and not come away with dirty feet. It sweeps easier than concrete. And having 12" squares makes it easy to measure just about anything you set down on it.

If I were a pro installer, I'm sure I'd recommend a lot of things to insure that there were no issues over time. That's because if I had to do this 100 times, I'd want to be certain that I could warranty all of those installations completely. But I'm just a homeowner who had a slab with no reinforcement or moisture barrier and 80 years of earthquake-country damage to it. When I put my tiles down, I didn't know enough to worry about possible problems. Who knows, maybe I'm just lucky -- but like I said, I've had it for five years of pretty hard use and it's held up great.