Why To Choose Tiles For Your Bathroom

If you’re decorating your bathroom this season, and you’re looking at surface coverings for those walls and floors, then you’ll probably be considering tiles. Here are 4 reasons why to choose tiles for your bathroom…

1) Water resistant

Whether it’s the bath time water splashed over the tub’s edge by your over-excited child, or the billows of steam from that hot relaxing shower, your bathroom’s walls and floors are going to face lots of moisture. That’s why it’s important to choose surface coverings that are resistant to water.

Tiles have been used to clad wet areas since the Roman times! Porcelain, ceramic and glass tiles are especially well-suited for bathroom decor. On the walls, they catch those droplets of water vapour and stop them from soaking into the plaster or paintwork. On the floors, they gather those pools of water and help to stop it from rotting away at the floorboards!

Make sure you go for a water resistant grout to bridge the gaps between the tiles!

Top tip: If you’re using natural stone tiles or crackle glaze tiles, it’s important to seal them to protect them from moisture!

Above: Vintage Wood Tiles

2) Anti slip

Picture the scene: you’ve had a nice, long shower and beads of water are rolling down the walls, onto the floor. You step onto your wet, smooth-faced linoleum or laminate, and your feet slip out from under you, and you come crashing down onto the floor or the bath tub’s siding. Ouch!

Unless you’re riddling the room with bath mats, then it’s a good idea to install textured, anti slip floor surfaces. There are hundreds of stylish anti slip tiles to choose from; including lots of wood effects and stone effects, which are perfect for creating a natural look!

3) Durable and long-lasting

Another great benefit for using tiles in the bathroom is their durability! Porcelain tiles in particular are very hard-wearing, and will last for years to come. So why’s it so important to have a durable surface in your bathroom?

Well, since it’s a room that is often dripping wet, and it’s usually the space where the toilet is located, the bathroom is an area that undergoes extensive cleaning. In the UK, the average homeowner cleans their bathroom twice a week! That’s a lot of scrubbing, and a lot of ferocious chemicals! So it’s important that your wall and floor coverings are sturdy enough to take a good cleaning.

Above: Memoir Encaustic Effect Tiles

4) Small change, big difference

If you’re tired of your bathroom’s current look, but you don’t have the budget for a huge overhaul, then tiles are a great choice for you! By using certain tiles on the wall or floor space, you can instantly, quickly and affordably transform the look of the room.

Creating a statement floor in your bathroom is a great way of injecting character into the room, whilst allowing you to keep the rest of the decor fairly plain. Pattern tiles, which have made a huge comeback just lately, are fantastic for achieving this effect.

Likewise, it doesn’t take much to freshen up those bathroom walls, if you’re limited in your budget! A feature wall of metro tiles in a herringbone layout with a contrasting grey grout would make a profound statement. Alternatively, you could easily create a sought after natural scheme with the introduction of some stone effect or natural stone tiles.