Floor Tile Grout Line Width

However large tile can be challenging to install.

Floor tile grout line width.

Ann sacks reveal metallic glass tile available through empire kitchen bath. The tile council of north america and accompanying tile organizations recommend an average grout joint width of 3 16 inch for every 1 16 inch variation in the size of the tiles. More often than not i will use 1 16 grout lines on vertical surfaces and 1 8 lines on floors. Grout must adjust for these differences between tiles so understandably there can be some variation in the width of a grout joint.

Rectified tiles are perfectly uniform with precisely defined edges requiring the least amount of grout. Generally it is advisable to use a grout joint at least two times the average difference between the largest tiles and the smallest tiles. Note that using the smallest grout possible will increase installation time. Circumstances should the grout joint be less than 1 16 1 6 mm.

Regular format tiles are what i install on most of my jobs. Grout including sealed grout tends to wear more quickly than tile and become more porous and prone to staining. Because of this minimizing the width of grout lines is advisable. Large tiles give you so much design freedom.

Let s talk about grout size options. If smaller spacers like 1 8 are used it will accentuate the size difference of handmade tile. For example if you take two 12 inch tiles and compare them side to side and there is a variation of 1 16 inch in the two tiles you are recommended to use at least a 3. Large format tile installation needs to be considered differently from regular tile installation.

Large grout joints will require the use of sanded grout. All other cuts of tile from tumbled to chiseled to punched contain slight variations in shape and size. Because a medium size grout line is easier to work with and in most cases can hide some slight imperfections it is often the choice of both experts and the average diy homeowner. Due to the amount of size variation in the tile the actual grout joint width may need to vary from what is requested or specified.

The actual grout joint size should be equal to three times the variance in actual tile facial dimensions. First the smallest grout lines less than 1 8 inch are ideal for rectified tiles. Actual finished grout spaces will vary from 1 8 to 1 4 if 3 16 spacers are used. And tile as large as 48 is becoming common.

Tiles that vary in size and shape need large grout joint widths 3 8 to 1 2 inch. A small grout line width about 1 16 inch is possible if the flooring tile is consistent in size also called a rectified tile as mentioned above. To figure out the size of your grout lines you also need to add the size of the lugs to the size of the spacer if you use the spacers between them. Finished grout lines will vary from 1 16 to 3 16.