Review of manufacturers of ceramic tiles for the bathroom

Currently, ceramic tiles are the most popular material for finishing bathrooms. Manufacturers of bathroom tiles produce products in a variety of shades and textures, which makes it possible to create interiors of a wide variety of styles.

The decoration for this room should have:

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

The most popular manufacturers of ceramic tiles

The selection of material for tiling a 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. Product quality is ensured by cross-checking compliance with Italian technologies at all stages. It is distinguished by high dimensional accuracy, high-quality glaze, and is easy to cut. Bathroom tiles "KeramaMarazzi" are produced in several series:
   • “British” - the highlight of which is inserts with London landscapes.
   • “Japanese” – laconic with a rich color scheme.
   • “Classics” - based on various national colors.
   • “Alpine” - with motifs corresponding to the name.
   • “Modern” - with sophisticated patterns and bright colors.
   • “Techno” - with avant-garde style and textures of stone or precious wood.

2. The production facilities of the Azori company, which entered the market in 2006, are located in St. Petersburg and are equipped with Italian SFCMI technological lines. Azori bathroom tiles are produced in the following series:
   • “Color Inspiration” (launched in 2006) features a textured striped pattern.
   • “Harmony of Colors” (2007) imitates the textures of wood, stone, metal, and textiles in its four collections.
   • “Mood of Colors” (2008) is aimed at lovers of the classics; it 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.

3. JSC Nephrit-Keramika produces ceramic tiles in Russia using European technologies on automated Italian production lines. The company produces wall and floor tiles and decorative elements of the Economy, Premium and Elite Jade classes - bathroom tiles can have dimensions from 20x20 to 33x33 cm, a textured or smooth surface, a matte or glossy texture. Some decorative elements for the bathroom imitate oil painting on canvas. To create a modern design, you can highlight the “Forte” collection, characterized by rich and bright colors, a special texture with a glare relief, and an imitation of antique mosaic.

4. Uralkeramika has been producing ceramic tiles since 1960. This is the main activity of the company. A variety of collections of products with exclusive designs 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 for combining colors and materials.

5. The Golden Tile group of companies has been producing ceramic tiles for almost 70 years. Production is located at the Kharkov Tile Factory. 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.

6. The Cersanit company is one of the largest Polish enterprises producing ceramic tiles, sanitary equipment, furniture and bathroom accessories. The performance characteristics of wall and floor tiles and decorative elements correspond to French and Italian analogues. Bathroom tiles “Cersanit” especially stand out for their design solutions, which are absolutely 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 monochromatic elements, which gives the bathroom interior some exclusivity. The Kersanit tile series are classified by size: 33.3x33.3 cm, 25x30 cm, 25x50 cm, 29x59.3 cm and others, which allows you to select the required size of products for covering surfaces with solid elements. Most of the collections include several variants of patterns and shades, which are usually used in combination in the interior of one room. Modern textures of products imitate natural wood or stone and are perfectly combined with elements with images of flowers, trees, and abstract drawings into a single composition.

7. 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 began. Bathroom tiles "Keramin" are mainly produced in classic designs, but there are also modern collections.
8. The Belarusian enterprise Berezakeramika specializes in the production of exclusive floor and wall tiles. The combination of classical and innovative technologies in production makes it steam and waterproof, environmentally friendly, frost-resistant and shock-resistant.

Recommendations for choosing ceramic tiles for the bathroom

Selection of cladding design

When choosing ceramic tiles for the bathroom, in addition to the desired style solution, you need to take into account a number of nuances that are relevant for the design of any room:

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

Choosing the quality of tiles, depending on its type

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

1. red marking is the first grade, in which 5% of defects are acceptable.
2. blue or dark blue marking is the second grade, where 5% of defects 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 – third grade.

[note]When purchasing products of Belarusian or Russian origin, the grade, acceptable percentage of defects and size tolerances are indicated on the packaging.[/note]

Determination of physical properties of tiles

The symbol marking on the packaging means:

• The image of the foot is for floor tiles, the image of the palm is for wall tiles.
• Laboratory flask – resistance to chemically active substances.
• Chemical resistance coefficient - in descending order of 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. For all residential premises, class III is sufficient; for the bathroom, in particular, class I is sufficient.
• 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 should preferably be evaluated according to the following criteria:

• Condition of the enamel - it should not have scratches, cracks, chips or other mechanical damage. Uneven surfaces of products (the presence of convexities or concavities), inclusions of paint, and foreign inclusions are not allowed.

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

• If you rub the front side of the tile on a rough surface, there should be no marks left on high-quality products.
• Testing for water absorption. Apply a few drops of water to the back surface of the tile. If moisture remains when wet, such tiles cannot be used in rooms with high humidity conditions.

A large assortment of bathroom tiles from various manufacturers makes it possible to select a facing material for any design solution and financial capabilities. Before buying tiles, 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%.