Tile carries its load

Sometimes it would be nice if our business was a little lighter –pillows or feathers or something easier to carry around. But, then we’re reminded of some of the reasons that there’s nothing as durable or long-lasting as properly installed tile.

Tile:

• Resists scratches, scuffs, dents, and cuts
• Is unaffected by moisture and part of a water resistant system when it’s properly installed
• Naturally resists bacteria growth, is inorganic, and hypoallergenic
• Contains no formaldehyde, PVC, or other Volatile Organic Compounds
• Lasts 3 to 5 times longer than Luxury Vinyl Flooring, sheet and vinyl composition tile, engineered wood, carpet, laminate, and painted epoxy
• Recycles readily because it’s made from naturally occurring materials (no landfill plastics issues)
• Won’t fade
• Cleans easily often with just sweeping or wiping with water
• Can help limit thermal swings by maintaining temperature during peak heating and cooling, improving your energy efficiency
• Has a low carbon footprint when you choose tiles made in America
• Resists allergens because it doesn’t harbor dirt, dust mites, pollen, bacteria, fungi, or mold
• Can be frost resistant, slip resistant, and antimicrobial
• Won’t smoke, burn or emit toxic fumes

When you’re ready to discuss the best investment for your project, give us a call. We’d be glad to contribute a weighty investment in the value of your home or office. Maybe there’s a new tile project on your wish list for the holidays??

#NeuseTile #RaleighTileInstaller #ValueOfTile #WhyTile #LocalBusiness

A shift back to all things tile

Some of the masks, cleaning, and fear associated with the COVID pandemic have subsided, but the impact of the crisis caused an “historic paradigm shift” in the US. Attitudes, lifestyles, and purchase decisions are different, according to a major nationwide America At Home study.

All the time that we spent staying separate has led to new motivations for our physical spaces and underlying wellness concerns. Americans are looking for:

• Germ resistance
• Energy efficiency
• Elimination of chemicals and Volatile Organic Compound (VOCs)
• Minimizing the impact on the environment and sustainability
• Ease of cleaning
• More storage

Better equipped kitchens and bathrooms along with private, outdoor spaces have also become high priorities. People are looking for their “ideal” home, and they define that as: a safe, secure, relaxing and comfortable sanctuary that provides an overall sense of physical and personal wellness.

Consequently, more Americans have a growing interest in Accessibility, especially these Aging-in-Place elements:

• Large showers
• Wider doorways
• Freestanding soaking tubs
• Multiple shower heads
• Grab bars
• Zero-clearance entries to showers

With all the changes, it’s nice to know the positive benefits of tile and the innovations in accessibility that have been part of our repertoire for a long time are now in the forefront. Let us help you create your ideal post-covid space as we all look toward positive and healthy futures.

#NeuseTile #HealtySpaces #TileHealthyChoice

The risk/ reward of cost as the driving factor

Budget is a first-priority consideration in any home improvement project. Those with unlimited funds are few and fortunate. For the rest, there’s a real temptation to think that ‘how-to’ videos and the simplicity of home improvement shows are ways to get our dream spaces for the lowest cost possible.

We might even ask on social media for someone who will work “for the lowest cost possible.” Here are a few reasons you don’t want to let low-cost be your top priority:

• Low cost can mean using materials that won’t stand up to long-term use or using unskilled workers.
• Low cost may mean all kinds of things are excluded. These ‘extras’ will likely show up as ‘change orders’ once you’ve already paid your deposit or the project has started. Don’t assume things are included, because likely they aren’t in the lowest cost bid.
• Low cost can indicate a business running on a cash basis or trying to skirt licensing, insurance, taxes, and regulation. This can be a problem for you if you have a future problem, or if you try to sell your home and find that unpermitted work can’t be included in your square footage.
• Low cost can simply mean a business doesn’t know their true cost of doing business. That may be great for you today, but tomorrow your warranty will be impossible to enforce against a business that no longer exists.
• Low cost may be a tactic for a new business to get themselves established. You may get a deal as they gain experience. In other words, they’ll be learning on your dime.
• Low cost can indicate poor service. Someone who has underbid your work may be quick to leave you mid-stream in order to complete a more profitable project. Your ‘base bid’ project isn’t likely going to come in on-time.

Your home is your largest investment. Using the lowest cost workers or doing some projects yourself can end up costing you big money: in defective work, in your time and money to learn a task or to chase completion, and in peace of mind. The old adage that you can have 1)low cost, 2)quality, OR 3)service is absolutely true in the construction world. Choose 2 of the 3 but don’t expect you’ll ever get all three at once. #constructionprofessionals #localcraftsmanship

The dollars and sense of tile

At less than $0.99 per foot per year, tile comes in at the top of the affordability list when compared to other flooring in terms of cost for initial installation, on-going maintenance, and length of estimated useful life. The 2023 Life Cycle Cost Analysis Study ranks Quarry, Ceramic, and Porcelain tile as more affordable than wood, carpet, luxury vinyl, engineered wood, laminate, and poured epoxy.

Today’s tile installations are actually best maintained with environmentally friendly cleaners rather than harsh chemicals. Often just sweeping tile will remove the dirt and debris that are tracked in each day. After sweeping, you can wipe down tile with a cloth and clean water. If you need a little extra cleaning, use a pH Neutral cleaner that’s formulated especially for grout and tile. DO NOT use cleaners containing bleaches or acids as these will open the pores of your grout and actually make them retain more dirt.

When you have a stubborn area or build-up of residue, a nylon or plastic stiff bristle brush with a little elbow grease will do a great job. Make sure to rinse well with clean water to keep any residue from drying on the surface of your tile and grout.

So, when you’re weighing product options, tile should be near the top of your list –and not just because its heavy! Properly installed tile is one of the longest lasting, environmentally friendly, durable, and healthy choices you can make. With its beauty and ease of maintenance, the investment in tile makes dollars and sense!

#NeuseTile #TileHealthyChoice #ValueofTile #RaleighTileInstaller  #ValueOfTile

Do your lungs a favor, choose TILE

It’s healthy lung month, so it makes sense to talk about TILE! The Healthy Building Network (HBN) and the Center for Environmental Health (CEH) have both released studies detailing the negative environmental impact of the flooring industries’ latest trend, Luxury Vinyl Tile (LVT).

CEH has a fact sheet with their top 3 reasons to NOT choose LVT:

1. LVT production releases “enormous amounts of carbon dioxide” because 90% of it is produced in China using coal as a raw material and power source.
2. LVT production uses highly-toxic chemicals including mercury, asbestos, and poly-fluoroalkyl (PFA) compounds that are hazardous to workers and contaminate the air, water and soil.
3. There’s no safe way to dispose of LVT since you can’t safely bury, burn, or recycle LVT in landfills. Burying LVT releases toxic chemicals that pollute groundwater; burning LVT releases carcinogens, and “recycling” PVC just puts the contaminants into new products.

And according to HBN, carpet’s not a great choice either, since it usually contains 60% plastic and 2 million tons of it are discarded each year. (That equates to about 1.2 million tons of plastic which is way more than the amount of single-use bottles, straws, and plastic bags discarded in the US each year.)  If just half of the commercial office building carpet that’s replaced every 3 years was changed to tile, then we’d avoid 100 tons of plastic for each building that made the change.

The reality is that most Americans spend 90% of their time indoors, and the EPA reports that indoor air is 2-5 times more polluted than outdoor air. Even the average US baby is now born with more than 200 industrial chemicals, pollutants, and pesticides in their blood.

So, when selecting the building products for your next project, think about your lungs and the environmental impact of your selections. Ceramic and porcelain tile are inorganic, have no Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), are inert and totally recyclable. Tile and stone also have the longest life cycles of any flooring choice. Many tile manufacturing facilities are located within 500 miles of us, so it’s a perfect choice for Green building credits as well.

And to get the most of your healthy tile choice, be sure it will last because it’s been installed by a qualified professional. Your lungs will thank you for choosing properly installed tile for many years to come.

#NeuseTile #TileHealthyChoice #WhyTile

Can social media find a good contractor?

The internet has become the ‘yellow pages’ of our world. We use the search bar to find local restaurants, dry cleaners, and home improvement professionals. We turn to Social Media channels for recommendations and resources, and sometimes you get good information and other times the names you get are the ones with the most friends, the most savvy search engine algorithms, or the time to make their presence known on all channels.

Other good starting points are people you know your friends and neighbors have used and been happy with as well as local professional groups.

But wherever you get the names, be sure to check them out in other ways:

• the NC Secretary of State’s website will show if they are a registered business
• trade association listings will give you an indicator of how serious they take their industry. Home Builders Associations, Chambers of Commerce, and even the Better Business Bureau can all give you a glimpse of a company that’s invested in on-going improvement and our community;
• license boards for the particular contractors will tell you if there are current complaints or actions against them. If there’s no local license requirement, then check to see what industry certifications the contractor might have;
• ask about their process – how long typical projects take, what other similar projects they’ve completed, what’s their warranty process, are their materials sourced locally, what kind of experience do their employees have;
• what standards or methods do they rely on for their work? (Hint: doing it the same way for the past 10-15 years doesn’t cut it in today’s ever-evolving construction industry)
• On their last 3 jobs, how much did the final billing amount differ from their quoted price?

Hiring a home-improvement professional is an investment in your home’s future. Make sure your research is as extensive as possible. #Professionalcraftsmanship #HireAProfessional #LocalCraftsmanship #ProfessionalTileInstallation #NeuseTile

New outdoor spaces with pedestal-supported tiles

A renewed appreciation for outdoor spaces is one of the positive things that came from the pandemic. And being a city dweller doesn’t have to limit your possibilities. The innovations of architectural tiles have created fantastic new spaces where empty roofs or unusable sloped decks existed before. Add an umbrella and some durable furniture, and you’ve got your building’s own outdoor oasis.

Office buildings and multi-family structures are using pedestal-supported porcelain tile pavers to create beautiful spaces for entertaining and outdoor living. These tiles come in many variations and are usually 24”x24”, elevated from the roof deck, and supported by a system of professionally installed pedestals. These exceptionally durable pavers offer drainage, a level surface, easy access, insulation, and future flexibility. With their growing popularity, you’ve probably already been walking on them in courtyards, plazas, and patios.

The pedestals bear on the roof and are adjustable to create a flat and level surface. Joints between the tiles are left open to allow storm water to reach the regular roof drains below. Slope is achieved below the tile assembly. A tile or stone installer is best to install these tiles due to their weight and the precision layout required. In retrofit applications, an engineer may need to be consulted to ensure the best application.

Several high-end condominium and office projects in our area have taken advantage of this innovation, and other South Atlantic cities are also seeing high interest in this new way to enjoy our beautiful seasons.

Neuse Tile is well-versed in outdoor pedestal systems and would be happy to talk with your roofer or architect about this way to capitalize on your outdoor enjoyment.

#NeuseTile #RoofDeckTiles #PedestalTileCary #PedestalTileRaleigh #OutdoorTiles #PedestalSupportedTiles

Why do the trades matter?

There’s been a lot of conversation about students who might be interested in hands-on work being made to feel that choosing academia is a better route for their future. And we’ve all got to take some responsibility for that way of thinking. Our culture seems to value air-conditioned office workers over those paving roads because we somehow think one job is more important than the other.

Hopefully, the pendulum on this mindset is swinging back toward the middle, but that’s going to take all of us consciously shifting our thoughts, actions, and words. The construction industry itself is doing a lot of work to instill pride and professionalism in its members. We have to acknowledge that some of the current reputation of a construction worker isn’t just because of ignorant stereotypes.

As consumers, we need to think about the humanity of the people we hire to work in our homes, of those who keep our infrastructure maintained, of those who work the jobs we might not be able or willing to do. How do we treat them? Are we dismissive, condescending, or are they invisible to us? Do our words and attitudes portray to those around us that we value all honest work and those who do it?

As educators, mentors, community members, we need to recognize the value that hands-on workers bring to our world. Without carpenters, plumbers, technicians, road crews, line workers, and other trades people, we’re all going to be living in mass-produced, unstable, pop-up boxes.

Let’s commit to valuing the satisfaction and reward of work that’s well-done – whether our student or friend chooses a desk or a jobsite for their career path. Our homes, business, and infrastructure depend on it. #QualifiedLabor #LocalCraftsmanship #Hands-onWork #WomenInConstruction

We want you to be informed about tile

We’re like most good tradespeople –passionate about our craft and doing it correctly. We take pride in serving our community with installations that are beautiful and long-lasting. And we want to be your tile installation company for this project and the next.

That’s why in 1985, we joined The National Tile Contractors Association. This like-minded group of professionals has grown over the years and represents the best collection of brains and talent in the tile world. And all of them want you to be better informed about your tile installation.

They’ve formed a Consumer Education Committee that’s busy producing documents to help you Find the Right Tile Installer, determine why you might have a Leaking Tile Shower from a failed installation, see if your tile might be Spot-Bonded, figure out what’s up with your Grout, and other documents to come.

These are being compiled on the association’s website under TileTrouble. The last thing any of the members of NTCA want you to have is Tile Trouble, so we want to be sure you’re informed and able to find the information you need as a consumer, home owner, or contractor.

There’s also a search feature on the website under Find A Contractor, so, if you’re outside the Triangle area, go there to start the search for your next project. And, if you’re in the Triangle area of NC, please let us know if Neuse Tile can help you avoid any tile troubles.

#NeuseTile #ConsumerEducation #TileTrouble #LocalCraftsmanship #NTCA

Which tile to choose for your project?

It’s easy to be overwhelmed by all the options and beautiful tiles when you first go to a tile showroom, so here are a few tips to consider as you’re making selections.

— Large tile is very popular, and it’s getting larger. Make sure your experienced installer will use the required upgraded mortars, take extra time to flatten the substrate, and ensure patterns flow with the maximum full tiles possible. Because most large tiles have some degree of warpage (curvature), grout joints and patterns may need to be adjusted to reduce lippage.

— Glass tile and sheeted materials also require different setting materials (and tools in some cases), so there’s usually a higher level of skill needed to install these materials. Many sheeted tiles may not line up the same way non-sheeted materials will (grout joint widths can vary from one sheet to the next). Keep in mind that when grouted, sheeted pebbles/ river rocks may look very different from unfinished sheets.

— Natural stones will need to be sealed prior to installation. If a stone is heavily pitted, grout will fill any holes, making some stones a poor choice for floors since high-heel traffic may impact these weaker parts of the end-product.

— Accents and liners should be similar in thickness to any adjacent tile. A good tile designer will steer you to products that line up well, so it’s important to take advantage of the talented showroom designers in our area.

— Grout joints are routinely 3/16″, so if you want a different width, be sure to discuss with the designer and your installer. Some tiles require specific types of grout and joint sizes, so it’s important to be specific in what finish look you want.

— Patterns, accents, and borders can add pizazz to a tile installation, so they’re worth including, but they do take more time to install, so your labor cost will increase when you add an accent or extra feature.

Tile won’t bend to cover up mistakes, so working with designers who specialize in tile and installers who are properly trained will ensure you get a long-lasting and beautiful result. #WhyTile