"Should there be gaps when installing ceramic tiles during decoration?" has always been a concern and troubling issue for many owners. Masons generally recommend leaving joints for a variety of reasons. However, leaving seams on ceramic tiles will involve another problem, and that is beautiful seams. How important is the beautiful seam of ceramic tiles? Just look at the success stories and overturning cases shared by netizens on Xiaohongshu.
Success Stories:
It’s ordinary before the seams, but it’s grand after the seams
Rollover case:
I felt ugly before the stitches, but I was so angry after the stitches
So, how should the beautiful seams of ceramic tiles be done to improve the beauty of the space? Today, Zhongtaojun will summarize the five knowledge points you must know to make beautiful ceramic tile joints.
01 Why do we need to leave gaps when laying ceramic tiles?
There are mainlyfour reasons:
- Prevent porcelain from problems such as arching and cracking due to thermal expansion and contraction in the later period;
- Avoid uneven paving caused by uneven moisture content of the mud and uneven pulling force caused by highly condensed mud after completion;
- It is convenient for masons to repair and correct. When the tiles are laid with errors or damage, they only need to replace some of the damaged tiles;
- Paving ceramic tiles with seams can reflect the beauty between lines and surfaces and enhance the appearance of the space.
In addition, the process of paving ceramic tiles with seams on the market is already very mature, and paving with tight seams has very high requirements on the water absorption, flatness, expansion coefficient and construction technology of the tiles, and the cost is relatively high. It’s not cheaper than doing beautiful sewing. Therefore, most owners will still choose to leave seams for paving.
Generally speaking, a gap of about 1-2mm will be reserved for tile seams and masonry tiles. If a seam is required, a gap of 2-3mm is usually reserved, so that the seam sealant can stay in the gap well. , it is not easy to fall off later. It is worth noting that due to the different thermal expansion and contraction rates of antique bricks and the larger gaps reserved for better appearance, the gaps are usually reserved at about 5mm. When combining multiple specifications, the gaps can be left larger.
02 What is the use of making beautiful seams on ceramic tiles?
The beautiful seams of ceramic tiles have at least two major benefits for home space:
- Waterproof and moisture-proof, reducing dead corners
The caulking agent has good waterproof, moisture-proof, anti-penetration, and anti-mildew properties. After solidification, the surface is smooth and does not stick to oil stains. It can effectively prevent the tiles from turning yellow and black after being used for a long time, and reduce the growth of bacteria and mold. Especially in places like kitchens and balconies where water is often used but are not waterproofed, the waterproof function of beautiful seams is very important.
- Rich color effects enhance the appearance of the space
In addition to its powerful functions, the beautifying agent also has excellent beautification effects. It is rich in color and has matte, glossy, metallic and other effects. According to the texture and color of the tiles, it can be matched with more surprising effects, adding icing on the cake to the home space and enhancing the appearance.
03 How to choose a seaming agent?
Actually, caulking agent is only one of the materials used for tile caulking. All the things used to fill the gaps between ceramic tiles are called caulks. Seam sealant is also a type of caulking agent. Caulking agents can be divided into two categories based on materials: cement-based materials (white cement and grouting agents) and resin-based materials (caulking agents, porcelain caulking agents, epoxy colored sand).
White cement is the earliest caulking agent, but it has been gradually eliminated due to its poor waterproof performance and easy cracking, discoloration, and peeling.
Caulking agent is equivalent to an upgraded version of white cement. It improves the waterproof and anti-fouling properties to a certain extent and can meet the waterproof and mildew-proof needs of ordinary families. Although the grouting agent has strong adhesion and wear resistance, it has low strength and average waterproofness, and is prone to mildew, alkaline efflorescence, and yellowing and blackening. Sometimes the seams will turn black even after beautiful seams have been done. This is most likely due to the use of cement-based caulking agent.
The common caulking agent currently on the market is generally water-based epoxy resin + curing agent + pigment, which is water-resistant, anti-fouling and has high hardness. However, if the technology is not in place, it will easily shrink and collapse after curing, forming Obvious V-shaped groove.
V-shaped groove
The upgraded porcelain caulking agent is oil-based epoxy resin + curing agent + pigment. It has high hardness, wear resistance, corrosion resistance, waterproof and stain resistance, and high color saturation. The disadvantage is that it only has reflective material. Compared with matte bricks and wood grain bricks, it is more suitable to be used with glossy bricks.
Epoxy colored sand Caulking agent, the main material is epoxy resin + pigment + quartz sand + curing agent. It has strong adhesion, anti-mildew, anti-penetration, anti-cracking, anti-alkali reversion, corrosion resistance, wear resistance, and excellent scratch resistance. It can be constructed on wet substrate surfaces, and is especially suitable for use in areas with a lot of oil and water vapor. Kitchen, bathroom, open balcony. Epoxy colored sand has a wide range of color options and can be matched with ceramic tiles of different colors, textures and textures. However, the price is more expensive and the construction difficulty is relatively high.
The price of beautiful joints on the market is generally between 30-60 yuan/㎡. The price will be affected by factors such as material price, gap width and depth, and construction professionalism.
If you want beautiful seams to look good, color matching is very important. The choice of seam color is mostly based on the color of the tiles in the space. Zhongtaojun shares five tips:
- Imitation stone texture tiles, choose the same seam color as the stone, simple and elegant;
- For white tiles, choose white seams to look clean, and choose dark gray seams for a sense of design;
- If you are not sure about other solid color tiles, choose white, and you will never go wrong;
- Wood grain tiles and matte tiles do not need to be decorated with beautiful seams. Use pointing seams or epoxy colored sand to make the seams look better;
- Never use pearlescent seams toPushing people for wealth will actually lead to filth.
04 What is the correct operation for beautiful sewing?
1. Seam cleaning
Be sure to clean all brick joints before making beautiful joints, otherwise the beautiful joints will not be strong. It is advisable to clean the brick joints to a depth of 3-5mm. If there is cement in the brick joints, it is recommended to use a special electric joint cleaner to clean it.
2. Apply wax
Applying wax can prevent the grout from sticking to the surface of the tiles. The operation method is to use a sponge to apply a thin layer of seam wax on the surface of the tile along both sides of the seam. Be careful not to apply the wax into the seams of the bricks. This kind of operation can also be replaced by masking and protection with masking paper.
3. Glue
Aim the glue gun at the gap within the area and apply along the seam from beginning to end. It can be done horizontally first and then vertically or first vertically then horizontally. It is recommended to build the wall first and then the floor.
5. Press seam
After each area is filled, use a tungsten steel seam pad to scrape it 1-2 times to scrape out the excess seams. The key point is that the edges of the tiles must be scraped clean. The head of the ceramic tile seam sealing piece is arc-shaped, which can form a slightly concave arc on the surface of the seam instead of bulging out of the surface of the tile. After the seam is cured, the gap will look narrower and thinner than it actually is.
5. Clean up excess caulking agent
After curing for 24 hours, you can clean up the spilled caulking agent. The cured caulking agent is like a tape and can be easily removed due to the waxing done in the early stages of construction. If there are residues of glue on the surface of the tiles, clean them with a special joint cleaner in time.
05 What should you pay attention to when sewing??
1. Construction time
After installing the tiles, ventilate the space for a few days to allow the material inside the space to dry before making beautiful seams. Do not make seams right after laying the tiles, otherwise the tiles may hollow out later and the seams will be deformed. In addition, the seams cannot be pressed immediately after applying the seam sealant, which may result in the glue not being pressed into the seams. However, if the time is too long and part of the glue solidifies, the effect will not be achieved and the gloss will also be affected. The correct time for caulking is about five minutes after construction.
2. Cleaning the gaps of glazed tiles
Since there is a thin layer of enamel on the surface of glazed tiles, it is easy to cause chipping due to excessive force when cleaning up excess caulking agent. Therefore, special attention should be paid to cleaning the gaps of polished glazed tiles. When pushing the joint cleaning tool horizontally, it should be parallel to the gap of the ceramic tile to avoid the angle change of the joint cleaning tool during the horizontal pushing process. At the same time, it is not advisable to use excessive force. In addition, communicate with the owner well before construction to avoid unnecessary wrangling and disputes caused by chipping of ceramic tiles later.
3. Make sure the brick joints are clean
If the cement stain residue is not completely removed, black edges or black spots will appear on both sides of the gap after gluing. The gaps should be thoroughly cleaned before gluing. If black spots are found after gluing, all the colloid in the gap should be cleaned out, the gap should be cleaned again, and then the material should be flattened. The black edges can be wiped back and forth with a special seam cleaner. Note that when the edge of the tile itself is darker in color, black spots may appear after the seams are applied.
4. Brick joints should be dry before construction
Note that caulking construction is not allowed when the ceramic tile gaps are wet. Moisture in the brick joints will affect the adhesion of the colloid, and may also cause the colloid to change color or turn white. The thermal expansion of water vapor will also cause blistering on the colloid surface.
5. Rework and repair operations
If the caulking agent is not fully cured and needs to be reworked, or if you want to dig out the caulking agent and start over, you can use a utility knife to dig out the parts that have not been completely cured; clean the gaps, and then reapply the caulking agent. If the colloid is too hard to dig out with a utility knife, you can use a heat gun to soften the colloid and then remove it with a shovel.
After reading this article, are you still worried that the beautiful seams of ceramic tiles will overturn? If this article is useful to you, please save it and forward it to your relatives and friends who have decoration needs!
