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| 45 Degree Angle Layout:Refers to when we lay the tile on a diagonal or a 45 degree angle to the room. |
B |
| Beveled: An edge that has been softened by a 45 degree angle. |
| Bisque:The fired body of the tile, aside from the glaze. |
| Border:A decorative or accenting strip of tile running through the field tile. Can consist of a solid strip of tile with embossing or design printed on the face or a mosaic cut into linear pcs. can also act as a border. |
| Bullnose:Tile with a convex radius on one edge. This tile is used for outside corners and anywhere the tile stops and drywall begins. |
C |
| Caulk:A filler or a sealer used to make watertight or airtight. |
| Ceramic Tile:Made of clay and fired at sufficiently high tempatures. |
| Chair Rail:A molded piece of tile with a profile that sticks out at the top and then gradually rececesses back. Usually used as a decorative finishing piece, sometimes also to create a framing effect. |
| Clip-ins:Cutting 4 corners of tile at the point of intersection to place an accent piece of tile there. |
| Cove Base:A piece of tile with a curled lip at the bottom designed to function as a tile baseboard. |
| Crazed/ Crackled:Cracks in the glaze of the tile that go through the glaze and meet the bisque. We recommend sealing these types of cracks found in some tiles. |
| Crown Molding:A large decorative finishing piece sometimes used at the top of a wall between the wall the the ceiling. Can be used to create a framing effect also. |
F |
| Face Mounted:A mosaic where the front of the tile is mounted on a paper or plastic sheet. These mosaics get mounted with the paper or plastic facing you NOT against the wall or floor. The plastic or paper gets removed once the mosaic is installed and the thinset is dry. |
Field Tile:The general tile covering an area of the wall or floor.
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| Floor Tile:Glazed or unglazed tiles of sufficient strength, impact and abrasion resistance to withstand the weight and wear of foot traffic. |
G |
| Glaze:The material or mixture that makes up the surface coating on a fired ceramic/porcelain tile. |
| Grout:A cementitious or other type material used for filling joints between the tile. New technology allows for increased protection in grout making it lower maintenance to it's user. |
H |
| Half Round:An accent liner, usually with a finished top and bottom edge, that can be used as a cap to finish off tile. |
| Herringbone:A pattern of connecting v-shapes alternating up and down; chevron. Almost zigzag looking. |
M |
| Matte:An eggshell-like surface, rather than a shiny or reflective surface. |
| Mesh Mounted:A mosaic mounted with a mesh netting on the back. |
| Miter:A usually perpendicular joint made by butting together tiles with the ends cut at an angle. |
| Mosaic:A tile that is 3" or smaller in size and any shape, sometimes mesh-mounted into sheet form. |
P |
| Pencil:A narrow liner used as a decorative accent strip inbetween tiles. |
| PH Neutral Cleaners:This is a type of cleaner that is safe for cleaning all types of tile and grout because it is neither acidic nor base. |
| Porcelain Tile: A type of ceramic tile made with a refined clay and is compressed under high pressure. This creates a dense, impervious and fine grained tile.
There are three types: - Glazed Porcelain - This tile has a neutral color body. Only the body of the tile is porcelain, and the surface is finished with a glaze. The color of the surface of the tile does not go all the way through. This tile undergoes a glazing and screen printing process, very similar to a ceramic tile, so the decorative character and colors are just on the top of the tile.
- Color Body Porcelain - A porcelain tile with a multiple colored glaze on the surface, where one of the colors from the surface of the tile go all the way through the body of the piece. Usually frost resistant and appropriate for commercial applications.
- Through Body Porcelain - The color goes all the way through the tile. The same color that you see on the surface of the tile goes through the main body of the tile. This is the most dense and durable man-made tile you can use indoors and outdoors. A true through body porcelain is unglazed.
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| Porous:Full of pores, allows liquid(s) to seep into or pass through. We recommend applying a sealer to any tile that is porous which helps prevent staining. |
Q |
| Quarry Tile:Glazed or unglazed, high-density ceramic tile. Because of how it is made by a process of extrusion from natural clay or shale, it is a good choice for all weather conditions and a suitable choice when tiling a garage floor. |
| Quarter Round:A trim piece used to help tile around the outside corner of a wall. |
R |
| Relief:Elevated areas or high and low spots on a piece of tile, usually a decorative accent or border tile. |
| Running Bond:Tiles installed in such a way as to have half of the tiles overlap each other in alternating courses. A standard brick-joint. |
S |
| Saltillo Tile:Adobe type tile made of clay and other natural raw products which are blended. This is not a kiln fired product, instead it is allowed to bake in the sun. |
| Sealer:A liquid that is applied to grout and/ or stone tile (which are porous) to protect them from absorbing stains. These sealers can either be water based or solvent based and vary on the length of time they protect the product they're applied to. |
| Soldier Course:Rectangular tile laid with the long sides vertical and the short sides aligned. |
| Stone Enhancer:Color enhancing sealer that can be either a penetrating sealer or a solvent based sealer. An enhancer will keep a stone looking like it does when it is wet except not glossy. |
T |
| Terra Cotta:Hard baked tile of variable color and water absorbtion. Generally unglazed requiring a sealer as to prevent staining. Mostly used in interior floor applications. Sometimes called "cotto". |
| Tile:A flat cladding or building material of relative thinness made of baked clay used to cover walls and floors. |
V |
V.O.C.::Stands for Volatile Organic Compounds. Gases and vapors emitted by various solids or liquids into the atmosphere.
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W |
| Wall Tile:This type of tile is rated for wall applications only. It is not recommended for floors or outdoor use in cold climates, because it does not have the strength and durability for foot traffic, nor is it frost resistant. |
