Ceramic Tile Hardness Ratings

The pei rating indicates the tile hardness and these ratings are valuable to help in tile choices for different projects.

Ceramic tile hardness ratings.

To give the consumer a relative measurement of scratch resistance of tile and stone manufacturers and suppliers use the moh s hardness scale. The following ratings have been developed to indicate the level of wear resistance you can expect from your chosen porcelain tiles. Tiles with a wear rating of 0 are not recommended for use on floors and are therefore rated w0. A car tire has a shore type d hardness rating of 15 while a hardhat has a hardness rating of 80.

It does not measure the fracture strength of the entire tile nor does it offer any rating of the slip resistance of the tile. Please note that. Hardness and durability pei rating. 2 2 5 fingernail 2 5 3 gold or silver jewelry 3 3 5 copper coin 4 5 iron 5 6 b2b ceramic tile 5 5 steel knife blade 6 7 glass 6 5 steel nail 7 b1a porcelain tile 7 hardened steel file 8 5 masonry drill bit 9 quartz crystal 10 diamond.

Ceramic and porcelain tiles are rated though most people seem to be more concerned about the pei rating of ceramic tile. The rule was if the hardness of the glaze was more than 2 calibrations different than the hardness of the body that it would tend to be prone to chipping. There are different ratings for tiles that determine if the tile is suitable for installation in the chosen area. These ratings are the pei rating shade variation v rating and slip rating.

Hardness of some common items on the mohs scale. It should be noted that the pei rating involves testing of only the surface wear layer of a tile s enamel glazing. The pei rating is and indication of tile hardness and pei floor ratings are valuable to guide tile choices for different projects. In hard surface products i e ceramic tile porcelain tile stone tile etc movement joints may require a hard caulk.

Wear ratings help you determine what tiles are a good match with different levels of foot traffic. Use the right tile for the right surface and you ll be a happy consumer. Each tile rating or class includes recommendations for use and installation. You can use a mohs hardness kit that uses different minerals to determine the hardness of a tile body or glaze by scratching it with the mineral.

In other words shore hardness is a measurement of a product s ability to resist a concentrated pressing load. The tiles are rated from a soft 1 or talc to 10. The moh s scale uses ten fairly common minerals of known hardness and gives each of them a relative value of 1 10. Pei rating is an abrasion test performed on glazed porcelain and ceramic tiles.

The pei rating applies only to glazed tiles. How do pei ratings differ.