Home Improvement Contractor - Licensed Contractors

Should we buy porcelain tile from home depot? Our contractor is telling us not to because the quality is bad?

We are renovating our kitchen. We are replacing the old flooring with porcelain tile. We really like the look of the tile that we see at home depot (we also like the price), however our contractor advised us not to get any tiles from home depot or Lowe's. Does anybody have any feedback?

Public Comments

1. The tiles at Lowe's and Home Depot are fine. Get a new contractor. The ceramic and porcelien tiles are all marked on the side of the box with a quality and durability rating given by the Porcelain Enamel Institute. The ratings are explained in the article below. Even the cheapest tiles at Lowes and Home Depot are durable enough for a residential kitchen.
2. I don't see that it has anything to do with these two stores unless they're with the growing number of companies who are buying cheap crap from Mexico. There are supposed to be laws in place of that but Home Depot especially cuts corners hiring cheap labor and cheap products...they're a bad as Walmart. But porcelain tiles on a high traffic floor isn't a good idea under any circumstances. They tend to crack under stress after awhile. They won't last long.
3. You will find that both Home Depot and Lowes carry many of the same name quality products that others do so there is no problem purchasing from them at all. Your contractor may have his own agenda and personal businesses he wants to promote which may or may not be in your best interest. No matter what in the end it is your choice and not his as to where you want to buy and what you wish to buy.
4. We did and have had no problem with any of it. We later found our exact floor tile (same manuf. and style # and all) at a tile store for over half again as much as we paid at the home improvement store. (Your contractor might have a deal with a tile store that would provide him with some kind of bump for referring customers or even a percentage of the sale.) Ours had been in for 5 years and is the main traffic zone to the rest of the house.
5. If you are doing the job yourself, and want to save money, yes you can buy the tile there and it will last just as long as tile from a showroom or a retailer. THIS is what Home Depot and Lowes won't tell you, but you can confirm at any showroom or manufacturer. Tiles that are manufactured, or natural stone tiles, have to meet a certain standard. they are rated on characteristics like water absorption, abrasion resistance, impact resistance, breaking strength, stain resistance and visual quality. In addition, ANSI requirements rate tiles in 3 categories. standard (will pass examination at up to 3' distance), seconds (will pass visual inspection at 10 feet) and culls (won't pass and are discarded, and nowadays, usually recycled) Most manufacturers have their own standards, even higher than ANSI, for quality. When Home Depot, and Lowes, acquire their tile in bulk, at prices far below that of retailers and showrooms, they are getting a discount for buying in bulk, and also because they buy seconds. That's why they don't care if you buy 1000sq ft and return half of it. If you want to take the time to sort through it all and pick out the better ones, it's your time and money and they can resell the remainder. I have seen slate tile purchased by a homeowner he expected me to install that varied in dimension (slate is normally 11 3/4x11 3/4ish for their 12x12's) by over 1/4" plus some of the tiles were not square. Some of the same slate varied in THICKNESS by 1/2". yes, 1/2" different in thickness. Very hard to set a flat floor when dealing with that kind of product. Even their ceramic and porcelain tiles vary in dimension by 1/16-3/16ths. Now if you don't mind your groutlines looking all whacked when you look up close, it's no going to bother you. The PEI standards linked earlier are standards for the characteristics of the tile, not the dimensions. Dimensions of tile is ANSI standards, and ANSI is what professional tile installers go by. ANSI and TCA. Very detailed standards and instructions for installation of wonderboard, tile, waterproofing membranes, mudset showers, you name it. As for Jae Doe's input... porcelain tiles will not crack in a traffic area unless they are installed improperly. A good subfloor that meets standards for movement, proper installation of wonderboard with thinset under it and under the tile, and your floor will last the left of your home. To sum it up... The higher your standards are for the finished product, the higher your standards should be for the materials that go into that product.