Description

Decorative tilework or tile art shouldbedistinguished from mosaic, where forms are made of great numbersoftiny irregularly positioned tesserae, each of a singlecolor,usually of glass or sometimes ceramic or stone.

These are commonly made of ceramic or stone, althoughrecenttechnological advances have resulted in rubber or glass tilesforfloors as well. Ceramic tiles may be painted and glazed.Smallmosaic tiles may be laid in various patterns. Floor tilesaretypically set into mortar consisting of sand, cement and oftenalatex additive for extra adhesion. The spaces between the tilesarenowadays filled with sanded or unsanded floor grout,buttraditionally mortar was used.

Natural stone tiles can be beautiful but as a naturalproductthey are less uniform in color and pattern, and requiremoreplanning for use and installation. Mass-produced stone tilesareuniform in width and length. Granite or marble tiles are sawnonboth sides and then polished or finished on the top surface sothatthey have a uniform thickness. Other natural stone tiles suchasslate are typically "riven" (split) on the top surface so thatthethickness of the tile varies slightly from one spot on the tiletoanother and from one tile to another. Variations in tilethicknesscan be handled by adjusting the amount of mortar undereach part ofthe tile, by using wide grout lines that "ramp" betweendifferentthicknesses, or by using a cold chisel to knock off highspots.

Tags : bathroom tile , glass tile, roof tile, floor tiles, howtotile