TILE BUILD MATERIALS
When seeking professional results, tile spacers should be used.
They provide even grout lines, uniformity of tiles, enhance style and design, faster turnaround (spacers eliminate the guesswork in tile placement), and durability of tiled surfaces (without spacers tiles are likelier to be being too close together)
The tile type often dictates what size joint space to use. It is desirable to have small joints in most cases. If a tile is rectified a 2 mm or 3 mm space is possible. For many floor tiles a 3 mm, 4 mm or 5 mm joint is good. It often depends on the calibration of the tiles. Unless a tile has been rectified, most tiles are not 100% perfectly sized from one to the next, therefore a bigger joint than 2 mm is required to enable a proper installation. They can sometimes vary in size from tile to tile by a half millimetre or 1/64″ or so due to baking and drying factors during production, which is normal.
Even grout lines
uniformity of tiles
enhances style and design
faster turnaround (spacers eliminate the guesswork in tile placement -> save time)
durability of tiled surfaces (without spacers, there’s a likelihood of tiles being too close together)
A Glossary of Grout and Tile Terms Caulk
A variety of flexible products (latex, acrylic, water-based) applied to seams of dissimilar materials and expansion joints where grout has the potential to crack.
A mortar used to fill the joints between tiles. Grout reinforces the tile installation and helps prevent moisture from penetrating the joints. It also plays a part in the overall design aesthetic. The width and color of the grout joints can radically alter the look of a tile installation.
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