Frequently Asked Questions
Want to understand more about tile and why it's a good choice? Read our frequently asked questions and let us know if we can help with anything else!
Tile is a healthy choice, ceramic and porcelain tile is made from natural ingredients and free from toxic chemicals that can make you sick. Tile is the smart choice for a healthy home from the ground up! Tile is a hypoallergenic flooring option, naturally resistant to dust and other harmful pollutants that are known to cause a variety of health issues. Tile is a great choice if you suffer from allergies or asthma. Tile is impervious, meaning it's inhospitable to dust mites, bacteria, fungi, mold, and other irritants. Tile is inherently inorganic, emitting zero VOCs. VOC's are emitted by virtually all other types of flooring. VOCs are harmful gases that can cause headaches, nausea, and nose, eye, and throat irritation. VOC emissions are also a leading cause of "sick building syndrome". Tile is also a solid material meaning tile does not contain the binders common to other flooring and wall surfaces- binders like formaldehyde. Tile is also free from PVC, a resin commonly used in other surfaces to improve mechanical flexibility and heat stability. PVC contains phthalates and organotin, both regularly a subject of concern and discussion among health experts. PVC link.
- Tile is a sustainable building material, Certified Green.
- No other flooring or wall covering choice can compare to tile when it comes to longevity. When installed correctly Tile will last for many generations. This combined with tile being a zero-waste manufacturing material made it the most eco-friendly choice when it comes to flooring or wall coverings.
- Ceramic tile is plastic-free and completely recyclable.
- There are many tile options available that are made from recycled materials. Find some examples or here.
- Tile is Energy Efficient. Tile\'s inherent thermal mass reduces peak heating and cooling, which helps moderate temperature swings in your home. This means less work for your HVAC system and more energy savings for you.
- Manufacturers of tile have the lowest carbon footprint of any flooring choice! Tile manufacturers typically use materials found within 500 miles of manufacturing facilities, dramatically reducing the energy and emissions that come from long-distance shipping of materials.
Over the centuries, tile has represented the perfect union of art and architecture. The richness of tile adorns our greatest buildings and historical icons. Whether you are looking for a durable surface for your flooring or something with a wow factor, tile can and should fulfill both desires!
Short answer No. Why is this important? When considering a tile contractor to construct and tile your shower or bathtub surround please keep in mind that your shower will have an average of 1100" or water ran per year, in comparison the average rainfall for Seattle Washington is 36" per year! Make sure that whomever you choose to install your new shower tile has a plan for waterproofing before installing tile!
- Porcelain Tile, porcelain tile is impervious, meaning its water absorption is 0.5% or less. A great choice for any application. Easy to maintain and very durable.
- Ceramic Tile, similar to porcelain ceramic tile is fired clay. Ceramic is not fired as hot and long as porcelain making it a softer product. Ceramic tile also absorbs water at a much higher rate, making it a poor choice for most outdoor applications.
- Mosaic Tile, tiles having a facial area of less than 9 in². Typically mounted on sheets or strips with other mosaic tiles.
- Encaustic Tile, tile decorated with colored clays, inlaid and fired. Often referred to as Cement Tile.
- Marble Tile, marble that has been cut into tile sizes.
- Gauged Porcelain Tile Panels/Slabs; Large format tile that is gauged to a certain thickness, often only half the thickness of standard tiles and up to 63"x 126".
- Natural Stone, tiles cut from naturally occurring material, travertine, marble, etc.
- Feature Tile; tile that is used strictly to make a statement, express your artistic taste, and beautify your home. The choices are endless and as unique as you are! 3D tile, metallic tile, stone-look tile are just a few of the options.
- Brick joint or Running bond, Tile installation with each row offset, typically with half its length. (If the side to be offset is greater than 15", a maximum offset of ⅓ is recommended.
- Bullnose, trim tile with a radius on one edge, is used for finishing an edge.
- Backerboard; An underlayment material used as a substrate for tile. Some backer boards are waterproof and some need to be waterproofed for proper shower construction.
- Grout; the material used for filling tile joints.
- Honed; a satin surface with little or no gloss.
- Lippage; A detectable change in elevation between the edges of tiles sharing the same grout joint.
- Membrane; An underlayment material, usually in the form of a sheet or trowelable liquid applied to the substrate prior to tile installation. A couple of common uses of membranes would be to isolate substrate cracks from the tile and mortar (crack isolation membranes), waterproofing (waterproof membranes).
- Thinset mortar; A blend of cement, sand, and additional compounds to improve adhesion and add strength.
- Rectified Tile; A tile that has had all edges mechanically finished to achieve a more precise facial dimension.
- Trim; Various shapes of bases, caps, corners, moldings, angles, etc. to finish or trim tile.
- ANSI, American National Standards Institute, a standards development organization.
- ASTM American Society for Testing and Materials International, a standards development organization.
- NTCA, National Tile Contractors Association, Established in 1947, the National Tile Contractors Association (NTCA) is a nonprofit trade association dedicated to the professional installation of ceramic tile and natural stone. It is widely recognized as the largest and most respected tile contractors association in the world.
- TCNA, Tile Council North America. TCNA is a trade association representing manufacturers of ceramic tile, tile installation materials, tile equipment, raw materials, and other tile-related products.
- Coverings, The largest event dedicated strictly to tile. Experience nine miles of the latest tile and stone trends. https://www.coverings.com/
- CTDA, Ceramic Tile Distributor Association,
- CTEF, Ceramic Tile Education Foundation,
- TCAA, Tile Contractors Association of America.
- TCA Team, The TCA Team, a subsidiary of the TCNA, was launched to address the growing demand for tile installation consultations, inspections and expert witnesses.
- Tile Heritage Foundation, For research and preservation of ceramic surfaces
Kaleb is a true artist and perfectionist when it comes to installing tile. He did an absolutely beautiful job on our kitchen backsplash and it came out better than I expected. I would recommend him 100%. He is extremely professional, punctual, and gets the job done in a timely manner with beautiful results.
We recently moved to the Rutland area and were searching for a flooring guy. When we called Rutland tile Co and spoke to Kaleb,he got us into his schedule right away. He came out to see our tile job and was very informative .Soon after he ordered the materials we needed and scheduled the installation. When the day arrived, Kaleb was on time and explained what he needed to do, and got right to work. We did 3 rooms and it was not an easy job.Kaleb worked long and hard...The results were more than we expected..great job !!!
Kaleb did our very tricky large-format porcelain tile kitchen backsplash, which goes from the countertop to the bottom of the upper cabinets. He had thought out a plan before he came, but was also very open to listening to our ideas. At the same time, my recommendation is to always ask for Kaleb’s opinion on what will work best and why. It was hard to find anyone with the skills and experience to do this, but Kaleb had both, as well as professionalism — he came when he said he would, stayed until the project was finished, and was very neat during the whole process. And he has very high standards, for himself and others. Kaleb is coming back to do a custom silicone color to better match the tiles, as the one we chose turned out a bit darker than the silicone sample stick indicated it would be. In his words, he wants us to be happy!
Kaleb did an amazing job installing a stone fireplace surround. He was quick to respond to our request for the project and communicated expectations and provided good recommendations for the materials and layout. He had such attention to detail yet was able to finish the project quickly and left no dust or cleanup for us to do. I would highly recommend him!
Kaleb replaced our walk in shower floor after we had a leak. Right off the bat he was on top of things, responsive and professional. He stopped by to assess what was needed ahead of time so he would be prepared to work. He showed up when he said he would, communicated with us and got the job done. He is very clean (a plus with tile dust) and also offered us guidance on our kitchen backsplash. He also answered all of my husbands questions and entertained him. Highly recommend him!
We have used Kaleb "Rutland Tile Company" a few times He has remodeled 2 bathrooms completely from Tile walls and floors and shower enclosers, He also put in 2 heated floors 1 in the bathroom and 1 in another area I would definitely Use him again. Very professional and neat. Very responsible. If he mentions a heated floor DO IT you wont regret it we LOVE ours
Kaleb replaced a kitchen tile backsplash for me. He communicated clearly and promptly and always showed up on time. Kaleb was also helpful talking me through some design choices with the backsplash. Most importantly, he took the time to make sure the job was done carefully and the final product is beautiful. I highly recommend Kaleb at Rutland Tile Company!
