What is Porcelain Tile?
How is Porcelain Tile Made?
Porcelain tile has a very similar manufacturing process to ceramic. First slabs of colored clay are cleaned and mixed into a bisque. After which, the bisque is formed into a desired shape, fired at a low temperature first to clean the formed bisque, and then coated in a glaze. Finally, the glazed bisque is fired one last time at temperatures averaging 2350 degrees fahrenheit.
Porcelain Tile Usage
Porcelain tile is dense, impervious, fine grained, and smooth with a sharply formed face. The color may run consistent through the body of the tile (full-body) to minimize the appearance of chipping. Glazed porcelain tiles are much harder and have more wear- and damage-resistance than ceramic tiles, making them suitable for any residential and light commercial application.
Our Mountainside and Carrara Elite porcelain tile are excellent examples of porcelain tile applications for high traffic areas. They both are made of impervious porcelain and have a higher PEI rating of IV—the second highest. Mountainside comes in a 12”x24” in. maximum size making it a great floor tile in residential applications. The Carrara Elite comes in sizes upwards of 24”x48” making it useful for commercial applications.
Glazing also results in a porcelain tile usually having a much lower water absorption rate than ceramic tiles, making them more frost resistant and a perfect accent for exterior and interior uses. Our Spanish made Mallorca porcelain tile in geometric and floral glazing options will add dynamism and energy to any bathroom or kitchen floor.
Additional Tile Education Resources
To learn more in-depth about ceramic, porcelain, and their unique differences and applications, read through our Surface Art Tile Education page. In our last blog post we wrote about ceramic tile.
