When you are looking into new flooring for a certain area of your home, you have a lot of different options. If you know you want something that looks like stone, you may want to consider either limestone or ceramic tiles. But which one is better? How do you decide between the materials? Use these pros and cons to help you decide which one is the best option for your home.
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Limestone is a stunning material that is a naturally occurring rock. It is used in building and construction material because it is beautiful and highly durable. It comes in many different natural shades and tones, which makes it a suitable floor for many different home situations. With the right seal, it won’t stain or scratch and hardly ever shows any wear, even in high traffic areas.
Limestone can add warmth to the floor, whereas ceramic tiles are much colder and more sterile. The stone makes a great flooring material and is highly versatile because of its softness. It can be installed in slabs, bricks, planks, or tiles. Limestone flooring is highly attractive, long-lasting, and even non-slip for safety with pets and children. Limestone is well known for its timeless, rustic, earthy appeal and it is one of the most popular stones in homes. It has a soothing quality when you walk on it and since it lasts so long, it may be the longest lasting product in your home.
You have to maintain the seal on limestone so it will not erode. That means there is a little maintenance to do on it from time to time.
Ceramic tiles are created from clay and are fired, glazed, and fired again. They are very heat resistant, which makes them great for flooring, countertops, and more. They are a harder stone, which is more difficult to cut and harder to polish. This man made product does not come from natural stone, like limestone. It can come in a number of tailor made colors and textures so it is easy to customize.
This non-porous material won’t absorb any moisture so if you spill on it, there are no stains. Ceramic is durable and resists hot and cold temperatures without showing any damage. They are resilient and make good flooring in bathrooms, kitchens, mudrooms, and other high traffic areas. Ceramic tiles are also hygienic since they resist bacteria and other germs. They are easy to clean to keep things in an orderly manner.
Installing ceramic tiles is not easy and requires a professional job or a lot of research in order to get it done right. There is grouting to do and that also has to be sealed in order to keep it clean. Ceramic tiles can also crack and chip if you drop something on them.
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The beauty of limestone is that no two tiles are ever the same, meaning a stone floor will be entirely unique. With this in mind, most natural stones have some degree of tonal variation and it is common for calcite veining, fossils, fissures, vents and crystallisation to be present in limestone and marble tiles. These features and characteristics within natural stone are often what provide the charm of stone tiles and why many love the look of real stone. There is also the option of different finishes applied to a limestone, whether it be to create texture, tumbled and worn edges, straight edges, a sheened surface, matt tile or even a high polished surface. These finishes will each alter the tone of a stone slightly, providing even more possibilities of this natural product. External limestone paving will appear darker in tone when wet.
Porcelain is a manufactured product made to mimic the look of stone, as well as wood. Some porcelains have higher variations to replicate a particularly tonal stone, whereas other porcelains may be plainer in appearance and more uniform colour. All stone effect porcelains have some level of pattern or print repeats – this could be anywhere from every 20 tiles to every 100 tiles, dependant on the product. We list the pattern repeat on every porcelain product page. Although porcelain is a man-made product, the developments in machinery and print quality means there are a number of very convincing porcelains on the market, even imitating fossils, veining and the tumbled edges of a real stone floor. The majority of porcelain tiles come in a matt natural finish, whilst textured finishes and gloss finishes are also commonly available for some porcelains. External porcelain paving tends to stay a similar colour when wet.
When it comes to tile sizes and formats, this can vary from product to product, but generally speaking, natural stone is often in a ‘Free Length’ (FL) or ‘Random Length’ tile size. Free lengths have a fixed width (normally 400mm, 500mm or 600mm) and varying lengths ranging anywhere from 500mm up to a maximum of mm. This is a very versatile flagstone format that is laid as a random brick bond for staggered joints and a natural feel. The Dijon tumbled limestone flooring is also available in fixed rectangular tiles, square tiles and opus patterns, as well as Free Length (FL). Most limestones can be produced with bespoke pieces, e.g. bullnosed steps, pool copings and skirting.
Porcelain tiles can be diverse in size and format, however unlike natural stone, porcelain isn’t available in the FL format but only fixed sizing. The most common tile size for porcelain flooring is a large format 900x600 tile. This can be laid as a staggered brick bond or a straight stacked bond, depending on the desired look. Smaller formats such as square, metro, brick or hexagon are also on the market, particularly popular for bathroom tiles. Metro tiles can be laid as staggered, stacked or in the popular herringbone laying pattern. Another larger format option is x600 tiles which create big impact and minimal grout joints. The Hambleton Ivory porcelain flooring is also available in an opus pattern, alongside the rectangular 600x400 and 900x600 tiles. Most porcelain ranges do offer steps, coping or skirting on special order, but are manufactured in set sizes only. Read our FAQs for more on tile sizes and formats.
Whilst this may seem the least interesting part, knowing the difference between natural stone and porcelain regarding installation and maintenance is good knowledge to have - ensuring you have a floor that will look its best for years to come. First and foremost, both natural stone and porcelain tiles work very well with underfloor heating, following correct installation methods. Upon installation natural stone requires sealing and will likely need resealing every 4-6 years. As natural stone is porous, this sealant acts as a protective layer against water, oil and grease. Most porcelains do not need sealing and have a very low water absorption rate, with a porosity of under 0.5%. It is essential to use levelling wedges when installing large format porcelain tiles for best results as during the firing process, it is common for a slight bowing to occur. Read our full installation advice here.
Both natural stone and porcelain are very forgiving and easy to maintain, however, it is worth noting that natural stone requires a little extra care. It is important to only use stone friendly or pH neutral cleaners for natural stone as anything acidic can damage the surface, we recommend Lithofin Wash & Clean. Natural stone can be subject to staining, so it is worth spot cleaning as and when spillages occur. Read our full guide on cleaning and maintaining natural stone tiles. Porcelain is near enough stain resistant and the majority of cleaners are suitable to use, however we would still recommend a cleaner designed for porcelain such as Lithofin Conditioning Cleaner. Read our full guide on cleaning and maintaining porcelain tiles.
In terms of longevity, both materials offer a durable and practical surface, natural stone can be subject to surface scratches over time and exterior natural stone paving can lighten in colour overtime – many customers find neither of these factors are of concern and actually add to the authentic feel of the tiles. If you are wanting something more consistent and unchanging through the years, then porcelain is scratch resistant and is also UV stable so it will not lighten when used outdoors.
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