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Flooring Design Dilemma Bathrooms

I'm renovating a master bath and we used 24"x12" porcelain tiles.

Kathleen Cetlinski

6 years ago

We wanted to use these cut into 4" for baseboards but we had a problem when cutting them they had rough edges. Any ideas what we need to do to correct that from happening?

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Emily Jowers

6 years ago

Would you be able to get 3 4" pieces? I figured you'd get 2 4" pieces from the edges and then the middle piece would be slightly smaller since the cutting takes a bit away? I've never cut tile, though. You definitely know better.

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Comments (10)

chiflipper
6 years ago
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgtuGpG8wbY

Safety glasses are required and tight gloves (deerskin) are optional. A grinder can be had for $35 at any Big Box store.
User
6 years ago
If you are unsure about cutting tiles yourself, one of our neighbors took his tiles to a tile shop and they cut them for him. You could check shops in your local area to see if they offer this service. I think he paid about $5 per cut (they were big tiles).
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I missed this question so hopefully I'm not too late. They're all 1/8" thick grout line. The tile on the floor is just a tiny bit off of the color of the tile on the walls (because the granite place went out of business and I had to find different tile) so the floor shows the grout lines a little bit more than the wall tile does (it's a perfect blend there). The spacers were the same though on both :) My counters in that bath are crema marfil...I just love the stuff :) In person you can't tell that the two tiles are from differnt quaries, but when I take pictures I can see one is just a tiny bit lighter than the other (the flash accentuates it) which is what makes the grout stand out that tiny bit.
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Jan, maybe I am using the term border inaccurately? The way my walls and vanities flow, the "border" I speak of will serve as a backsplash, continue (same wall) to the tub area, freestanding, and hence the wainscot height (with wall tile under it). That area flows to the shower with 45 degree angles (3 windows), where I want to continue the "border" and tiles. The tile does NOT look like it goes with the slab in my above pics, but it does very well, as dos the hex tile. Think your underlying idea is shower and floors should match? Or maybe I AM using the term border correctly, in which case you don't like. :-) If so, trim ideas? TY!
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You can certainly do a brick or stacked pattern in the shower and a larger format tile for the floor. This is not overthinking AT ALL. This is simple design 101, in fact, the same stone in different sizes and even shapes (like hex) is very inviting to the eye and it breaks up the monotony. Also, there is nothing wrong with different colors for grout on floor and walls. It sounds like a 12x24 might be a bit big for a herringbone pattern unless you have a LARGE floor to lay it out on. Even so, the diagonal look is very interesting in a 30cm tile for example. Your original idea sounds fine!!!
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Comments (6)
Do you have a box of the tiles? You could lay some on the floor and just see what is visually appealing to you. We did this, and decided to lay them left to right (not door to wall) because it is was just more comfortable to look at. If you lay out a couple of rows of tile one way, and then the other way, you will have your answer. When you do it, cup your hands around you eyes (like race horse blinders), so that you are not distracted by the rest of the blank room. Look at it one way, then switch it and look at it the other way. Whichever way looks better to you is the way to go. And just for the record, I like having a toilet room too. People have strong opinions on that subject.
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Emily Jowers
6 years ago
Put the rough side against the floor.
Enrilyhn Gudelano
6 years ago
You could go to the nearest tile shop in your local area and have them cut for you. Also, It will save you time.
PRO
Beth H. :
6 years ago
Emily,,that only works for the cuts on the ends. what about the cuts in the middle of the tiles???

get a rasp or the grinder that chiflipper mentioned, and smooth the edges. any tile shop should have something to smooth porcelain tiles.
Emily Jowers
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
I was assuming there was only one cut per tile. But I suppose that might not work here. Just trying to think of lazier solutions.
PRO
Beth H. :
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
that would be quite wasteful if the tiles are 12x24. at 4", you could get 3 cuts,
melinda1977
6 years ago
You are correct, Emily. The kerf of the saw blade takes close to an 1/8" of tile. Therefore, cutting from both ends leaves the center section too narrow to be used if they are to be a full 4" wide (assuming the cuts are parallel to the long edge). The OP will get 48" of usable baseboard from each tile, and the rest is waste. As you suggested, all of the pieces can have the factory edge exposed at the top.
PRO
Beth H. :
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
Emily,,yes,,you are right. didn't think about that. they could do a little smaller than 4" for the baseboards if they didn't want to have any waste. Otherwise, yes,,then the two ends would have the finished edging. Just depends on how much each tile is, what they want to spend, and if they have waste.

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