Extruded porcelain tiles offer exceptional durability, unique textures, and are highly resistant to stains, acids, and frost. However, their wet-formed, high-pressure manufacturing process—likened to the Play-Doh Fun Factory—means that size variations are inherent and expected.
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Extruded porcelain tiles offer exceptional durability, unique textures, and are highly resistant to stains, acids, and frost. However, their wet-formed, high-pressure manufacturing process—likened to the Play-Doh Fun Factory—means that size variations are inherent and expected.
Installing **large format tiles** requires **special care and more work** than smaller tiles, as they are heavy and prone to issues like lippage. The most critical step is **substrate preparation**, ensuring the floor is incredibly **flat** (no more than 1/8 inch variation within 10 feet) often achieved using **self-leveling underlayment** to avoid problems. You must use a **medium bed LHT/LFT mortar**, **keying it into the substrate** and **back-buttering the tile** with a **large-notch trowel** to account for natural **tile warpage** and ensure full coverage. Finally, **leveling clips** and **wider grout joints** help manage imperfections, while **cutting** these tiles requires full support and slow, multi-pass techniques, and their **heavy weight** necessitates using **dollies** or working in **teams** for safe handling.
Tile the World
Extruded porcelain tiles offer exceptional durability, unique textures, and are highly resistant to stains, acids, and frost. However, their wet-formed, high-pressure manufacturing process—likened to the Play-Doh Fun Factory—means that size variations are inherent and expected.
