Quarry tiles are a really old building material that has provided us with beautiful, strong floors for centuries. They are used all over the world and come in many different shades, forms and colours.
Types of Quarry Tiles
There are two main types of quarry tiles. The oldest types are those that are made from slabs of pure stone or aggregate. The second type are those that are made using an extrusion process from various crushed or powdered aggregates.
Solid stone quarry tiles are now relatively rare. They are expensive and very heavy making them difficult to transport and harder to install. In addition, it is difficult to get them in large batches that are exactly the same colour and shade.
Man made quarry tiles are in comparison light and far cheaper. Because they are manmade, the shading and exact colour of them can be controlled during the production process. You can also choose how they are finished. If you want to stick with the natural matt finish you can, however if you want a shiny surface the tiles can either be polished or glazed.
The Most Popular Quarry Tiles
Traditional quarry tiles are flame red. However, they are now available in a range of red or brown shades as well as in black. Quarry tiles are primarily used on floors, but using them on walls is also becoming popular. As a result of this, they now come in several different sizes, but are still mostly square rather than rectangle in shape.
You can have tiles fitted inside or outside your home. If they are going outside it is important to use tiles that are designed for this purpose. The finish on exterior tiles looks the same to the naked eye, but it is in fact very different. Exterior tiles are designed to withstand getting wet and extreme changes in temperature.
Getting your quarry tiles laid by a professional greatly enhances the overall look of those tiles. In theory, you can do it yourself, but it will take you far longer and the results are never as good as when you used an experienced tile layer.
Quarry Tiles UK sell a huge range of quarry tiles. They offer them in several different colours, sizes, finishes and have exterior as well as interior tiles available.