Tile in the toilet: types and design ideas

In most cases, tiles are selected as the material for finishing the toilet. In construction stores, the assortment of this coating is represented by many varieties, so it can be difficult for many to choose the option most suitable for a particular restroom. In addition, not everyone knows exactly what types of tiles exist, how much the choice should depend on the style of decoration of the room, and also what interesting compositions can be created in the toilet using a tile cover. All these and other nuances will be discussed in detail in this article.

Before considering specific options for tiles in the toilet, you should pay attention to the positive and negative qualities of this material. The advantages of the coating include the following characteristics:

• the tile is easy to keep clean, it requires minimal maintenance - wet cleaning as the surface becomes dirty;
• extraneous odors, such as detergents, do not absorb material;
• the service life of such a coating is quite long - up to 10 years;
• tiled parts are resistant to fire and even to some extent prevent its spread;
• it is important that the tile is a hypoallergenic coating;
• tile products withstand a fairly large load due to its high level of strength.

However, do not forget that for a coating of a tile material its negative nuances are also characteristic:

• some do not like the tactile feel of such a finish - it is regarded as rather cold to the touch;
• the tile does not contribute to the soundproofing of the room;
• to make a truly exclusive design of the bathroom using this coating, you will have to spend a rather large amount;
• despite its strength, fragility is characteristic of a tile - the material may crack if a heavy object is dropped on it or if the tile itself is dropped from the hands;
• it will be difficult for inexperienced users to finish tiling the surfaces on their own, so there will be additional costs for tile laying services.

There are several criteria by which toilet tiles are classified into different types. The first sign is the surface on which the material is located. Allocate tiles for walls, floors and ceilings.

A separate view is such floor and wall tiles as mosaics. It is a small product with parameters 1x1, 2x2 or 5x5 cm. Moreover, the shape of such mini-parts can be square, rhomboid, polygonal, asymmetric, round and even have an irregular shape.

In its turn, it is presented in stores not only in the form of single-piece, but also in the form of block products. Block versions are larger wall fragments, the size of which is approximately 30x30 cm. All small fragments are already located on such canvases, so you do not have to lay them out manually.

Materials for mosaic coating can be varied. Among them are distinguished such as glass, which includes metal oxides, as well as quartz sand and feldspar. Brass and steel used to create metallic mosaic variations. Metal tile cladding is carried out using a special rubber base.

The malt-type mosaic is created using dye, as well as pressed glass, and is excellent for heavy loads. The most expensive option is a stone mosaic, the raw material for which is the marble component, malachite, granite, jasper, as well as slate, onyx and malachite.

Porcelain tile materials are most often used as floor coverings. The composition of such cladding includes feldspar, clay, quartz sand, as well as dyes. The material is rough to the touch, but for such tiles strong sliding is not peculiar and they are considered safer.

However, among the negative aspects of porcelain stoneware, it is noted that it is cold to the touch. The cost of coverage is also quite expensive. In addition, during transportation and cutting of the material, it may exhibit increased fragility.

A separate variety is the “boar” tile, which has the shape of a rectangle, as well as a chamfer. Tiled parts have edges, beveled at an angle of 45 degrees, and a convex shape. In terms of size, such products come in two types - 7x10 cm, as well as 25x30 cm. The tiled “boar” tile is distinguished by a high level of strength, resistance to temperature changes and wear, as well as ease of maintenance. The texture can be matte, glossy, glass or imitating other materials.

Traditional ceramic options are mainly used for walls. Ceramic tiles have not only traditional shapes, but also more complex, polygonal shapes that resemble honeycombs in shape.

Not always is the tile in the restroom made plain. Often you can see the finish in the form of various patterns and color combinations. Some of the most popular patterns are:

• strips of horizontal or vertical type;
• "Chess" pattern;
• gradient transition from several tones;
• ethnic ornaments, abstractions (often they distinguish separate sections of the toilet, and not the entire wall).
• light background in combination with shiny elements arranged randomly;
• silhouettes of various objects, animals, plants.

Absolutely unique products of this type can be created using photo printing. The disadvantages of this design are the difficulty in caring for the material, as well as the high cost of designing a bathroom in this way.

Since the bathroom is usually small in size, they try to visually expand it using tiled finishes. And the correct selection of coating colors helps a lot in this.

• For the ceiling, in most cases, a white tone is used, while for the walls other shades can be used, in most cases neutral or pastel.
• The back wall, which is located behind the installation of the toilet, is often framed in the form of accent. It can be covered with dark tiles, for example, brown or gray, while the side walls remain lighter, but combined with an accent in color. Also on the back wall may be a tile with an ornament.
• Sometimes on the walls there is a contrast in the form of rectangular tiles horizontally arranged in a row at the level of the middle of the wall. They usually have a brighter tone than the main part of the coating is square in shape.
• If you plan to combine 2 or 3 colors in the design of the bathroom, remember that one of them should dominate 60% of the total. Using more than 3 shades is not recommended.

If we consider the tile cover for the restroom in terms of color combination, then it is worth highlighting the following color ensembles that will look most successfully:

• saturated pink with lavender;
• pale emerald with the color of a brick;
• gray with blue;
• milky shade of white with black;
• wine red with vanilla;
• blue with golden;
• beige with buffy;
• brown with yellow;
• light green with turquoise;
• fuchsia with lilac;
• olive with light gray.

Among manufacturers of tiles for decoration, various companies are distinguished, which are usually classified into groups based on cost and product class.

• Among manufacturers of low-cost coatings, it is worth noting companies Kerama Marazzi, Cersanit, as well as Keramin. Both domestic and German manufacturers are popular.

• The main countries producing tiles for the middle price segment with a high price-quality ratio are countries such as Italy, France, Spain, and Russian-Italian joint production is also noted. Examples include the brands Italion, Fap Ceramiche, Lafabbrica.

• Among premium products, tiles made by companies are distinguished. Grazia Venice, Laminam Kanka, Vallegunga Foussana.

It’s important to take into account a number of signs in the selection process which will help you choose the perfect tile cover for the toilet.

• Pay attention to product labeling. Red color indicates products of the highest quality, blue color is used for coatings with medium quality, and the most budget options are indicated by a green tone.
• In addition, resistance to chemicals is also marked. The letters AA indicate a high level of stability, B - medium, and C corresponds to a low level.
• The level of resistance to wear of the material is indicated by Roman numerals. It makes sense to choose such products (especially for the floor), whose stability is in the range from 1 to 3.
• It is better to pre-calculate the covered area, and this applies not only to the material, but also to the glue. So it will be much easier to determine the number of tiles when buying.

To nicely decorate the walls, floor or ceiling in the toilet room, you should remember about certain options for laying tile material.

• The most common is standard waysimilar to the brick laying principle. The edge of each new product is shifted by half the length of the elements from the previously laid row.
• Stackable It is used both horizontally and vertically, in accordance with the fact that horizontal or vertical tiles are used. The main nuance of such a facing is the location of the seam elements in the seam, with particular attention to the evenness of the seams.
• Vertical displacement It looks like standard masonry, but the tile shifts to the middle of the previous row along the vertical edge.
• Chess involves 2 options for the location of the coating: the alternation of vertical and horizontal rectangular parts, arranged in 2 pieces, or the color alternation of square elements of different colors. In this way, tiles can be placed both on the wall and on the floor.
• For spacious restrooms, you can use diagonal tiles placement.
• "Christmas tree" fits not only in the parquet finish of the apartment, but also in the form of tiles in the bathroom. However, laying in this way requires complex cutting with an angle of 45 degrees.

Finishing any room of the apartment, including the bathroom, is unacceptable without taking into account the style of the interior in which the room will be decorated. The design of the restroom can be made in the following styles, each of which has its own nuances of decoration.

• Loft style created using tiles that mimic brickwork. Moreover, communications, such as pipes, do not overlap. Tiles can be made in both white and red. Sometimes the dark walls of the panels trimmed with wood are combined with an accent tile cover under a brick.

• For a luxurious style Art Deco design with a tile in bright colors is suitable, which has a non-standard shape, for example, hexagonal. Floor tiles are chosen mainly in dark shades.

• Direction high tech allows the use of glass tile elements with a mirror coating, as well as cladding, designed for metal.

• Beige, white, light yellow and gray colors, as well as simple shapes will be a great idea for a contemporary style.

• IN eco style The toilet can be finished with terracotta floor tiles.

If it’s difficult for you to choose tiles for your bathroom, check out specific examples, in which the tiled coating looks very harmonious and original.

• The soft green tint blends perfectly with ivory, even if the shape of the tiles themselves in different color areas is different from each other.

• The lower half of the wall can go to the floor, thanks to the same ornament in the decoration. At the same time, a small element corresponding to the selected print should be present in the upper part of the wall painted in light.

• The flooring may overlap with the back wall. Having decorated these areas with black tiles, the side walls can be made white by the principle of contrast.

• If the tile is combined with the wallpaper in the toilet and is located in the lower half of the wall, then along its edge you can lay out elements with a pattern that will be combined in style and color with the upper part of the wall.

• The multi-colored composition of the tiles on the back wall will make the restroom design catchy only if these bright colors are diluted with the covering of the side walls painted in neutral light colors.

An overview of the stages of repairing a toilet with tile laying is given below.