The Ultimate Guide to Full Body Vitrified Tiles: Advantages and Applications

Full Body Vitrified Tiles

In modern architecture and interior design, vitrified tiles have gained significant popularity due to their versatility, aesthetic appeal, and sturdiness. They are used in residential, commercial, and public spaces for flooring, wall cladding, and even exterior applications.

Vitrified tiles are a type of ceramic tile known for their exceptional durability, low porosity, and high resistance to stains and scratches. They are created through a process of vitrification, which involves fusing clay with other minerals at high temperatures. The result is a dense, non-porous tile with a glass-like surface that offers enhanced strength and longevity.

Vitrified tiles come in various types, including:

• Full Body Vitrified Tiles: These tiles have the same composition throughout their thickness, making them extremely durable and suitable for high-traffic areas.
• Double Charged Vitrified Tiles: These tiles have a double layer of pigment, offering a wide range of designs and patterns.
• Soluble Salt Vitrified Tiles: They have a printed design layer fused with the tile’s surface, resulting in cost-effective yet visually appealing options.
• Digital Printed (Glazed) Vitrified Tiles: These tiles feature intricate and high-definition designs, created using digital printing technology.

The growing importance of vitrified tiles stems from their ability to offer a blend of style, durability, and ease of maintenance, aligning perfectly with the demands of contemporary lifestyles and design trends.

Understanding Full-Body Vitrified Tiles

A full-body vitrified tile, also known as a full-body porcelain tile, is a type of ceramic tile that is characterised by having the same colour and composition throughout its entire thickness. This means that the colour and design of the tile extend from the surface to the back.

These tiles are created using a process of vitrification, where a mixture of clay and other minerals is fired at high temperatures to create a dense and durable tile. Full-body vitrified tiles are primarily made from a mixture of clay, feldspar, silica, and other minerals.

The key feature of full-body vitrified tiles is their exceptional durability and resistance to wear. The composition of these tiles is designed to create a dense and durable material with consistent colour and composition throughout the entire thickness of the tile. This uniform structure allows unique usage for the tiles.

Because the colour and composition are consistent throughout, even if the tile chips or wears down, the underlying material is the same colour as the surface. This makes them particularly suitable for high-traffic areas where the tile’s surface could be easily compromised.

Advantages of Full-Body Vitrified Tiles

Full-body vitrified tiles offer several advantages that make them a popular choice in various architectural and interior design applications:

• Durability: These tiles have the same composition and colour throughout, making them exceptionally durable and suitable for high-traffic areas.

• Scratch and Wear Resistance: The dense composition and hard surface of full-body vitrified tiles make them resistant to scratches, abrasions, and wear, ensuring a longer lifespan.

• Stain Resistance: Their non-porous nature makes them highly resistant to stains, spills, and moisture, making them easy to clean and maintain.

• Versatility: They come in a wide range of designs, colours, and textures, offering versatility in creating various aesthetic effects to suit different design preferences.

• Fade Resistance: Full-body vitrified tiles retain their colour and appearance over time, even in areas with prolonged exposure to sunlight.

• Suitability for Outdoor Use: Their durability and resistance to weather conditions make them suitable for both indoor and outdoor applications.

• Low Water Absorption: The low porosity of these tiles means they absorb minimal water, reducing the risk of cracking or damage due to freeze-thaw cycles.

• Hygienic: Non-porous surfaces prevent the growth of bacteria and mould, making them a hygienic choice for spaces like kitchens and bathrooms.

• Design Continuity: Chipping or wearing down the surface reveals the same colour and composition underneath, maintaining design continuity.

• Value for Money: While they may have a higher upfront cost, their durability and low maintenance needs provide long-term value.

• Sustainability: Their durability reduces the need for replacements, leading to less waste over time.

Applications of Full-Body Vitrified Tiles

Full-body vitrified tiles offer superb strength and durability, warranting special applications for these tiles. Although the durability and versatility of these tiles make them suitable for all areas, the following will take precedence:

Residential Spaces

• Kitchen: Full-body vitrified tiles are resistant to stains and moisture, making them a practical choice for kitchen countertops.

• Bathroom: Full-body vitrified tiles are popular as vanity counter tiles in the bathroom.

• Entryway: Their durability makes them suitable for high-traffic entry areas, like the front porch or the entrance of the home.

• Hallways: Use them to create seamless pathways that can endure frequent movement.

• Staircases: Full-body vitrified tiles can withstand the wear of foot traffic on stairs.

• Balconies and Terraces: Their resistance to weather makes them suitable for outdoor spaces.

• Utility Rooms: Their resistance to spills and sturdy scratch-resistant surfaces make them a functional choice for laundry rooms, tool rooms, etc.

Commercial Spaces

Commercial spaces ranging from retail stores to luxury hotels can all use a sturdy surface like full-body vitrified tiles. Here are a few popular uses for tiles in commercial areas:

• Hotel Lobbies: Hotel lobbies often lay out the first impression of the facility. Polished full-body vitrified tiles help create a scenic ambience and luxurious floor patterns.

• Shopping Malls & Stores: Shopping malls and retail stores see a lot of footfall. Some large malls may even have electric motor vehicles to ferry people around inside the mall. Fully vitrified tiles can bear all the traffic without wear.

The shopping centre can also use full-body vitrified tiles as a backdrop to display shelves and items. Polished black salt and pepper (S&P) designs are the most popular display backdrops for retail stores.

• Schools & Educational Institutions: Schools and institutes see high foot traffic through their corridors every day. Fully vitrified tiles are a sturdy and budget-friendly solution to natural stones or other tiles.

• Public Spaces: Public spaces like bus stops, train stations and platforms exchange thousands of people every day. Fully vitrified tiles can handle the flowing mass of people well.

• Staircases: Stairs in Public and commercial spaces need special attention and finish to maintain longevity and safety of the infra and users. Prefabricated full-body vitrified tiles for step-stones enable both with ease.

• Landscaping: Landscaping, outdoor seating, and garden décor, vitrified tiles provide an option for all. Due to their breaking strength, 1.2 to 2 cm thick full-body vitrified tiles can be installed without adhesives.

This quality allows them to be scattered across the garden to create a pathway or simply for decorative purposes, provide outdoor seating, and even parking spaces.

Leading tile brands for commercial and residential spaces, like H&R Johnson, offer different full-body vitrified solutions for all possible tiling applications. For instance, Johnson’s Meteor tiles are purpose-built for outdoor applications, while Johnson’s Elite Marbonite polished tiles perfectly fit your kitchen counter and home applications.

How to Select Full-Body Vitrified Tiles?

Try to list the space of the application, footfall or traffic expected, and the area available for coverage. Use the list to consult with a tile expert at the leading tile brands to find a solution and plan your budget. Brands like H&R Johnson also have experience centres across the country where you can visit to see and experience real tiles before you buy them.

Your budget for tiling would involve the cost of tiles and the cost of installation as well. Also, purchasing 5 -10% extra tiles always helps as you may not find the same tile design a few years down the line.