Before you take those tiles home
Knowing the measurements of your room will help you while choosing tiles. PHOTO/Rachel Mabala.
What you need to know:
Tiles have fast cemented their place as a flooring solution. With many home owners opting to add a spark to their space using tiles, find out what you need to know.
To renovate her house floor, Alice Birungi wanted something flashy for an elegant look.
She quickly thought about tiles.
But which tiles was she going to use? Would she use the same tiles for the living room and the kitchen?
Tony Kiguli, the tile fixer, had to go with Birungi to upper Nakasero, where the tiles were bought. He helped with advice of which type, style or size could do the job.
She chose 60x60 tile size for her living room, 50x50 for the kitchen and the bathroom. While the tiles in the sitting room were glazed with glass, the others did not have the glass effect. Glazing is a finishing done on a tile making it easy to clean. Plus, it is stain resistant.
“The glass glazed tiles can be slippery when wet, the reason they are not recommended for bathrooms or outdoors and the kitchen. Porcelain tiles are more absorbents of water than the glass glazed ceramic tiles.” Kiguli says.
What to consider
When buying tiles, one may first need to consider how big the house is, it could be measured in square metres since these tiles are sold in square metres. Knowing the measurements of the house will help you know the number of tiles needed.
Tiles have different sizes ranging from 60x60 to 30x30. While small sized tiles are suitable for small spaced rooms like the bathroom or the kitchen, larger tiles will help your living room feel bigger and airier.
Tiles can be manufactured to look and feel like almost anything, including real stone. This is one of its advantages. The real stone look is popular in kitchens and bathrooms, although it can literally work great anywhere. These designs are popular with porcelain type of tiles.
Pricing
Centerpieces, which normally comprise four tiles cost an average of Shs500, 000. According to Tony Kiguli, a plumber at Tile Fixer, this is made in an exclusive design and is normally set in the centre of your room (as the name suggests).
The rest of the tiles are in the range of Shs45,000 per square metre. Most of these tiles are porcelain tiles. According to Kiguli, they are stronger and also water-resistant which makes them fit for bathroom installations or outside use.
On the other hand, ceramic tiles come in the range of Shs25, 000 per square meter. Ceramic tiles are suitable for indoor use because they are slippery when wet as compared to porcelain tiles.
Installation
Kiguli says the average charge for installing the tiles is Shs15, 000, but most of the time, it depends on the installer.
Tiles may or may not be glazed. Glazed tiles are stain proof and are easy to clean, while unglazed tiles will give you a natural feel but need more attention in terms of maintenance since they are easily stained.
