Tiles for Exterior and Interior

In modern construction, the decoration of the tiles cladding is considered a classic. It is used for indoor and outdoor use. In this article, we will see the main nuances of the selection and installation of this finishing material. This will help you to control the coating process or even do all the work yourself.

Types of tiles

According to production technology, two groups of materials are distinguished:

• natural: extracted in pit, undergoes additional calibration and processing before being sold, varies by race
• Artificial: made of natural and artificial raw materials, which allows us to imitate the decorative characteristics of a natural analog, reduce the load on the base surface, and guarantee resistance to external influences.

The natural elements of the facade can be acquired in the following options:

• Granite – has good wear resistance, strength, hardness, density, different colors which can be polished
• Lime tiles – easy to process, well polished, has low strength, hardness, high porosity, white tint, yellowish-white, gray. The material attracts with a democratic price
• Sand tiles – similar in appearance to lime tiles but has superior strength, poorly polished. There are several varieties of sand tiles: pisolitic, lithographic, oolitic, shell rock.
• Marble – has good wear resistance, heat resistance, strength, colors different, but it can fade, turn yellow, stain
• Crystalline and clayey shale – has resistance, is prone to delamination

from other rocks, labradorite, syenite, gabbro, breccia, porphyry, dolomite, quartzite, travertine is used for decoration.

Natural cladding tiles for interior decoration and facade work is supplied in the following formats:

• tiles 300×600 mm
• matrix 300×300 mm
• irregularly shaped wild tiles
• slabs are massive slabs

Artificial facade elements are provided in the following variants:

• Clinker – made of refractory shale clay, which is placed in a mold and burned at temperatures of around 1200 ° C. The finishing tiles are decorated with traditional brick or chipped tiles
• Concrete – this material is obtained by pouring a high-quality mortar into a mold, followed by exposure to vibration to compact and remove air voids;
• Architectural – a type of concrete tiles that contain white cement and sometimes paints;
• Polymeric sand – elastic material based on polymers with added sand to reduce costs;
• Resinous – made based on a binder. Well imitates natural vitrified tiles;
• Ceramic granite – made by pressing and burning kaolin, white-burning clay, lintel, and sand. Suitable for interior decoration of apartments and facade works.

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Advantages and disadvantages

The advantages of natural tiles cladding:

• high coating resistance
• large selection of breeds
• solid appearance
• variety of tones, shapes
• Fire safety
• Environmental friendliness
• resistance to external influences

Artificial tiles for interior decoration has the following advantages:

• aesthetics
• thermal insulation capacity
• soundproofing
• low coating weight
• the ability to mount on any surface
• imitation of more expensive natural tiles
• chemical resistance
• UV resistance
• durability
• long-term preservation of original decorative features

Disadvantages:

• High cost compared to other finishing materials
• The significant weight of the structure, which requires special preparation of the base surface
• most suitable for outdoor decoration.
• Masonry options
• Block masonry involves the use of untreated flat plates. The most used sand tiles, lime tiles, shale, dolomite, which have an acceptable cost due to the lack of processing. Artificial decorative tiles for interior cladding is rare as it offers little savings. Externally, the masonry resembles authentic buildings made of natural tiles.

The difficulty with using a die is that you will have to separate uncalibrated pieces of different sizes for finishing. In this case, it is necessary to achieve the absence of gaps, large gaps, and an aesthetic alternation of large and small elements.

The masonry of “Castelo” is made of almost rectangular bricks. The facade of such elements has an irregular or chipped surface, which allows it to imitate medieval buildings. Lime Tiles, granite, slate, sand tiles, marble porcelain slab, as well as artificial tiles of the corresponding texture are used for such decoration.

The plateau masonry is made with rectangular/square elements with faces divisible by 50 mm. The material is the same as the “Castelo” masonry. Completely across the facade, this type of finish rarely fits. Most of the time it is used on a pedestal, to face corners, windows, doors. The edges of the tiles are well finished, so the material is easy to install, but requires the careful selection to distribute the small and large tiles evenly.

If you chose “Plateau” masonry, try alternating square and rectangular elements, “collecting” aesthetic mosaics.

The “Shakhriyar” masonry consists of rectangular plates of the same size with rustication. The surface of the elements can be torn, chipped, sanded or even polished. A more aesthetic option is a natural relief, similar to the facade of an old building. In addition, this unified material is easy to place, even for inexperienced tilers.

The “Assol” masonry is made with slate or sand tiles slabs, which are placed on a wide groove parallel to the wall of the house. Also for these purposes, an artificial tile is made, which is easier to install. The result is an unusual volumetric surface with irregular projections. If it is difficult to place “Assol” on natural slabs, since they have different lengths and thicknesses, the artificial tiles are quite simple to install.

Rondo masonry is a monolithic pebble finish that creates the effect of a seaside village. Typically, these elements are used to face a balcony, pedestal, corners or door. The peculiarity of the installation is also the heterogeneous size of the tiles. First, large monoliths are placed and the gaps between them are filled with small pebbles.

Coating technology

Before carrying out the work, it is necessary to acquire basic and auxiliary materials, as well as to prepare the surface. The composition of the adhesive is selected depending on the type of finish. For the façades, dry cement mixtures are produced, which are diluted with water. This option is suitable for gluing natural elements, including creating complex relief surfaces. Mixtures based on epoxy and polyurethane are used to work with deformable or smooth substrates.

When choosing an adhesive, check the following characteristics:

• preservation period of adhesive properties
• thixotropy
• frost resistance (the ability of a material to maintain its properties during a number of freeze/thaw cycles
• the thickness of the adhesive layer.

In addition, to complete the job, you will need:

• Grinder with disk to cut tiles
• Drill with a mixer to prepare the solution
• Container for mixing glue and mortar
• Spatula and spatulas
• Rubber hammer
• The wooden bar for the bottom line
• Metal brush to clean the surface
• Brush to moisten materials and tiles bases
• Measuring and marking tools
• Conical bag or syringe gun to fill the joints with mortar
• Brush or spray for water repellent application
• The adhesive application surface must be prepared in order to guarantee a good adhesion of the adhesive. In this case, the wall of the room must be plastered, the cracks and cracks in the masonry and concrete must be sealed, the boards must be well fixed, the protruding elements are placed.

For wooden walls, it is better to assemble a solid box, which will become the basis for tiles decoration.

The process of gluing tiles includes the following steps:

• moisten the back of the coating element
• apply glue to the wall with a notched or smooth trowel
• apply a layer of glue-up to 1.5 cm thick on the tiles with a spatula
• the formation of grooves in the volume of the glue with a notched trowel or smooth edge
• fix the tile on the surface of the base for 8 to 10 seconds
• glue the next element
• grouting after cladding the wall with a tapered tool. It will prevent the masonry from being destroyed due to the penetration of moisture in the seams and will give the surface an aesthetic appearance.

If the glue enters the front of the tile, it must be removed immediately, as after hardening the tile tiles under the tiles for interior decoration will be damaged. For the same reason, laying starts from the top – so the glue mixture will not reach the front of the tile.

Before starting work, place the elements on the floor to find the tiles of the right size. This is especially true for working with non-standard tiles, which are better to alternate in size and shape according to the chosen concept.

The installation is done from top to bottom or from bottom to top in the corners. For this, it is better to use separate corner elements. The choice of installation scheme depends on the type of tiles and work skills. If you start to put them under, it is easy to prevent the elements from sliding under their own weight. When finishing from top to bottom, the glue does not reach the surface and does not impair its appearance.

The windows and doors are finished from end to end along the edge, if possible in terms of tile geometry. The mixture is applied to walls and tiles. After finishing a certain amount of work, the joints are sewn and filled with mortar.

For the surface finish, the mixture manufacturer’s recommendations should be followed. Decorative cladding tiles for outdoor decoration must not be placed in the cold or with an outside temperature that is too high.

The coating must be carried out above ground level or with a slight deepening because during operation the coating can peel due to temperature differences.

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