Your guide to buying floor tiles in Pakistan
When you’re building or renovating your home, you’d like it to be as beautiful as possible, but at the same time, it should be highly functional, and most importantly — all within your budget. An integral aspect of achieving these aims is to get the flooring plan spot on. A major chunk of your budget will go towards finishing the flooring process, so figure out your requirements and conduct your research thoroughly, before making an informed decision.
Buying floor tiles in Pakistan can be a daunting process, owing to all the options you may have to surf through. However, you need to narrow down your choices into something budget-friendly that works best for you. The appropriate way to go about this is to take a look at the various types of floor tiles in Pakistan, and evaluate if and where they’d fit in your home.
What is tile flooring?
Tile flooring consists of usually square or rectangle pieces of material, fitted together with some bonding material, to create a hard-wearing surface. In simpler words, flooring may consist of any sort of tiles. Flooring tiles are usually fitted together in Pakistan with grouts in between — grouts are the lines we see between tiles. This grouting holds them firmly together, and is also filled to give them enough space to expand or contract in different weather conditions.
Why is it used?
This type of flooring has now become the primary choice for almost all the types of houses — all over the world, probably because it is much easy to install, has a wide range of colours and designs, and is quite easy to maintain. As per the newer trends, the days of wall-to-wall carpeting are now over, apart from very few exceptions, due to the convenience and aesthetic value tile flooring in Pakistan offers.
In addition, the tiles for flooring are available in a number of monetary options, which means that anyone in the process of building/renovating their home will be able to find the perfect option for their abode.
What are the types of floor tiles available in Pakistan?
There are numerous types of tiles with varying finishing options. It is best to begin by going through the basic ones and scale up from there — to get a better idea of what fits the bill. You can find the flooring tiles in Pakistan in more-or-less two finishes — matte and glossy, each having its own characteristic appeal, so you may need to make your pick quite thoroughly.
Preferably, go for the floor tiles with a matte finish in areas such as the bathrooms and the kitchens, where slipping possibility is more and can lead to any hazardous fall, more particularly if you have elderly people or young children at home. However, on the contrary, the floor tiles with glossy finish makes the room feel more open and somewhat allows a sense of grandeur. Go for this type of finish in places like your hallways, the living room, and lobby. However, this is just a general rule of thumb, so take your requirements and preferences into consideration, before making your choice.
As for the types of floor tiles in Pakistan, these can be simply be categorised into the following options, which are:
• Ceramic
Ceramic tiles are mostly the common choice by people when buying floor tiles in Pakistan. Primarily, they are made of natural clay, mixed with water, and then baked in a kiln. Once dried out, ceramic tiles are glazed with a thin layer to enhance its design, pattern, and colours.
These tiles are typically imported from countries such as China, Malaysia, Indonesia, Spain, and Iran, with quality and prices varying accordingly. Moreover, the cheapest tile for your flooring purpose will cost you from around PKR 800 to PKR 1,000 per metre. The highest quality flooring tiles are imported from Spain, and can cost upwards of PKR 3,000 per metre.
Installing and maintaining these tiles is a comparatively easier process, as they do not require extra care and can be wiped clean with almost any kind of fluid. However, it is pertinent to mention here that only get your flooring done by an expert mason, as the changing weather conditions of the country may lead your floors to expand and contract, causing breakages.
• Porcelain
Porcelain tiles are more baked and processed versions of ceramic tiles, leading to a higher-quality product. The extra baking and processing ensure more durability and less water absorption. Additionally, these tiles come in two variants as per their processing: half-body, and full-body. Half-body tiles have a thin layer of glaze on top to create a vibrant colour and detailed design, however, if scratched or damaged, the underlying clay will become visible.
On the other hand, full-body porcelain tiles have designs baked right into them, so even if they are damaged, the clay will not show — just an endless design underneath. Porcelain tiles typically cost over PKR 1,200 per metre, and the price increases as per the brand, design, and its processing.
• Natural Stone (Marble and Granite etc)
Natural stone flooring is the most coveted option among tile flooring in Pakistan, but has its own set of challenges: the budget. The designs are proportionate to the costs, as the best available options often cost much higher. In addition, natural stone flooring requires regular maintenance and needs to be resealed and polished every few years. Regardless of the high price and maintenance, these tiles add to the overall beauty and aesthetic appeal in and around areas including lobbies and drawing rooms.
These types of flooring tiles in Pakistan cost more than PKR 1,500 per metre, in general, but these prices can get astronomically higher if you end up choosing a variety that is not that common and readily available.
Which type of flooring tiles in Pakistan should you get?
Taking into account all the aforementioned information, and your own requirements, you can now easily figure out the best options available to you. Remember that quality matters, as well as how the tiles are installed, so be extra careful about those aspects. For more useful household advice, keep following the Lamudi Blog!