Bathroom tile manufacturers: an overview of the most famous and selection features

At the moment, ceramic tiles are the most popular material for finishing bathrooms. Manufacturers of bathroom tiles produce products of various shades and textures, which makes it possible to create interiors of various styles.

Finishing for this room should have:

• low coefficient of water absorption;
• slip resistance;
• resistance to chemically active environments.

The most popular manufacturers of ceramic tiles

The choice of material for lining the bathroom depends on the design solution of the room, the physical properties of a particular material, its quality, and cost. All these indicators are somewhat different from different manufacturers, the most popular of them are:

1. The KeramaMarazzi group has been producing ceramic tiles in Russia since 1992. Production is carried out on Italian equipment, at a plant located in Orel. The quality of products is ensured by cross-control of compliance with Italian technologies at all stages. It features high dimensional accuracy, high quality glaze, easy to cut. Bathroom tiles "Kerama Marazzi" are available in several series:
   • "British" - the highlight of which is inserts with London landscapes.
   • "Japanese" - concise with rich colors.
   • "Classic" - based on various national colors.
   • "Alpine" - with motives corresponding to the name.
   • "Modern" - with sophisticated patterns and bright colors.
   • "Techno" - with avant-garde style and textures of stone or fine wood.

1. The production facilities of Azori, which entered the market in 2006, are located in St. Petersburg and are equipped with Italian SFCMI production lines. Azori bathroom tiles are produced in the following series:
   • Color Inspiration (launched in 2006) stands out with a textured striped pattern.
   • "Harmony of colors" (2007) imitates the texture of wood, stone, metal, textiles in its four collections.
   • "The Mood of Colors" (2008) is aimed at lovers of the classics, also includes tiles with floral and dynamic motifs, the size of the products is 20x40 cm.
   • Line Geometry is a new series of eight collections that imitate the textures of expensive textiles, wood, and marble.

1. JSC Nephrite-Keramika produces ceramic tiles in Russia according to European technologies on automated lines of Italian production. The company manufactures wall, floor tiles and decor elements of Economy, Premium and Elite classes Jade - bathroom tiles can have dimensions from 20x20 to 33x33 cm, relief or smooth surface, matte or glossy texture. Some bathroom decorations imitate oil painting on canvas. To create a modern design, you can highlight the Forte collection, which is distinguished by juicy and bright colors, a special texture with a glaring relief, and an imitation of antique mosaics.

1. Uralkeramika has been producing ceramic tiles since 1960. This is the main activity of the company. A variety of collections of products with an exclusive design allows you to choose tiles for any bathroom interior:
   • "Gerberas" is distinguished by bright colors and floral motifs.
   • "Dakar" is made in warm golden colors.
   • "Egypt" includes a large assortment of tiles, panels and borders with patterns of this theme.
   • "Palermo" is a calm collection with unobtrusive ornaments, convenient when combining colors and materials.

1. The Golden Tile group of companies has been producing ceramic tiles for almost 70 years. Production is located on the basis of the Kharkov tile plant. Technologically, the Golden Tile enterprise is a full cycle of production and sales of products, from the extraction of raw materials to distribution centers throughout Europe. In addition to wall and floor tiles, related products are produced. Bathroom tiles "Golden Tile" are produced in a variety of styles: classic, avant-garde, modern, empire, vintage, minimalism and others.

1. Cersanit is one of the largest Polish manufacturers of ceramic tiles, sanitary ware, furniture and bathroom accessories. The operational characteristics of wall, floor tiles and decorative elements correspond to French and Italian counterparts. The Tsersanit bathroom tile is especially distinguished by its design solutions, which are completely different from competitors' products. Among the tile patterns, there are practically no classical motifs - preference is given to abstract patterns, combinations of small images and plain elements, which gives the bathroom interior some exclusivity. Series of tiles "Kersanit" are classified by size: 33.3x33.3 cm, 25x30 cm, 25x50 cm, 29x59.3 cm and others, which allows you to choose the required size of products for facing surfaces with solid elements. Most of the collections include several variants of ornaments and shades, which are usually used in combination in the interior of one room. Modern textures of products imitate natural wood or stone, perfectly combined with elements with images of flowers, trees, abstract drawings into a single composition.

1. The Minsk company "Keramin" is one of the first tile manufacturers in the former USSR. Since 1996, Keramin has been cooperating with the Italian equipment manufacturer SACMI, on whose lines the production of porcelain stoneware was started. Bathroom tiles "Keramin" are mainly produced in classic design, but there are also modern collections.
2. The Belarusian enterprise "Berezakeramika" specializes in the production of exclusive floor and wall tiles. The combination of classical and innovative technologies in the production makes it vapor and waterproof, environmentally friendly, frost-resistant and shock-resistant.

Recommendations for choosing ceramic tiles in the bathroom

Facing design selection

When choosing ceramic tiles for the bathroom, in addition to the desired style solution, it is necessary to take into account a number of nuances that are relevant for the design of any premises:

1. Artificial lighting can significantly distort the original shade of the material.
2. A vertical pattern, such as that of Wenge bathroom tiles (thin stripes on a lighter background), contributes to the visual increase in the height of the room.
3. It is necessary to take into account the dimensions of the room - dark and bright colors visually reduce the room, light ones increase it.
4. Bright and large patterns give surfaces integrity, but reduce space.
5. Under artificial lighting, glossy surfaces, for example, if Onyx tiles in the bathroom are used for their cladding, glare, which tires the eyesight.

The choice of tile quality, depending on its grade

Material with UNI EN certificate can be 1st, 2nd or 3rd grade. Each of them is marked with a certain color:

1. red marking - the first grade, in which 5% of the marriage is acceptable.
2. blue or blue marking - the second grade, where 5% of rejects are also acceptable, but product tests are carried out at a distance of 2 m from the sample (for the 1st grade - 1 m).
3. green marking - the third grade.

When purchasing products of Belarusian or Russian production, the variety, acceptable percentage of defects and size tolerances are indicated on the package.

Determining the physical properties of a tile

The symbolic marking on the packaging indicates:

• The drawing of the foot is a floor tile, the image of the palm is a wall tile.
• Laboratory flask - resistance to chemically active substances.
• The coefficient of chemical resistance - in descending order of the letters AA, B, C, D. Since ceramics in the bathroom are constantly in contact with various detergents, the recommended value is AA.
• Wear resistance is marked with Roman numerals. Class III is sufficient for all living quarters, for a bathroom, in particular, class I
• Other parameters (shown in the figure below).

Additional inspection of ceramic bathroom tiles upon purchase

When purchasing ceramic products for the bathroom, for example, in the OBI supermarket - bathroom tiles, preferably, should be evaluated according to the following criteria:

• Enamel condition - it should not have scratches, cracks, chips, other mechanical damage. An uneven surface of products (the presence of convexities or concavities), blotches of paint, foreign inclusions are not allowed.

A yellow or red stripe on the enamel is a factory marking of defects when sorting tiles.

• If you rub the face of the tile on a rough surface, there should be no traces left on quality products.
• Water absorbency test. A few drops of water are applied to the wrong side of the tile. In the case when moisture remains when wet, such a tile cannot be used in rooms with a high humidity regime.

A large assortment of bathroom tiles from various manufacturers makes it possible to select a facing material for any design solution and financial possibilities. Before buying a tile, you must first evaluate the room for which it is intended, calculate the surface area and the number of tiles, with a margin of about 10-15%.