Christine Caswell on tue 23 sep 03
I am making porcelain backsplash tiles for a friend. I am using =
Standard Clay Co #257 fired to cone10 without difficulty. Now he is =
asking for countertop tiles as well. He wants durable thermal shock =
resistant tiles so that he can set hot pots and pans on the counter. I =
wrote to Standard and they said that while durability shouldn't be a =
problem thermal shock may be. Can anyone recommend a white/whitish clay =
body that fires to cone10 (so I won't have to reformulate and try to =
fill my kiln with enough ware to warrant a firing to another cone) and =
meets the requirements for durability and thermal shock? I don't mind =
if the shrinkage is different than the porcelain because it doesn't =
really matter if the backslash and the counter tile are slightly =
different sizes. Any ideas and/or stories from experience would be =
appreciated.
Thanks,
-Christine
Arnolds Home Improvements on tue 23 sep 03
Christine
My mother uses standards 181 white stoneware for making her angels. She uses
the181 for all her hand building projects.
It fires white with only a clear glaze on it.
Gene Arnold
mudduck@advi.net
Wanda Holmes on wed 24 sep 03
I have wonderful blue (sorry, Mel) tile with black grout on my kitchen
counter and I love it!!!!! It's important to choose a tile that is
designed to stand up to the rigors of kitchen counter use and it's a
good idea to seal the grout from time to time, but with these simple
precautions, tile can bring years and years of joy.
And those of you discouraging the use of tile - in favor of what?
Formica? It too can be stained. It can also be burned, chipped,
gouged, etc. And it just can't compete with tile on aesthetics.
Marble? Stains like crazy and it's expensive. Stainless steel? Zinc?
Copper? Slab granite is probably the most durable and problem-free
kitchen surface, but it is very expensive. None of these are practical
for the average home owner.
Wanda
-----Original Message-----
From: Clayart [mailto:CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG] On Behalf Of
wayneinkeywest
Sent: Wednesday, September 24, 2003 2:09 PM
To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
Subject: Re: Counter top tiles
> My own memories of counter Top Tiles in Kitchens, are that
> while celebrated initially for their new and happy look,
> soon the home owner has tended to break some of them in the
> field, or on the edges, or the bull-nose knocked out in area
> with mis-haps involveing grandma's iron skillet or
> something. And that after a while the whole effect get's
> spoiled by their carelessness and pot-bottom-scrapeing and
> general rubbed glazed high spots that they then scrub too
> much with 'Comet' cleanser or the like, and...grout as has
> absorbed annoying stains...and...
> Phil
> Las Vegas
Phil: Allow me to finish that statement!
"...grout as has absorbed annnoying stains...and...
the cleaners make themselves crazy and utter
litanies of invectives at careless owners who expect THEM to get
it clean again."
I would _never_ever_recommend people use tile for countertops,
but no one listens, especially to the cleaner.
Wayne in Key West
who has refused jobs on walking into a brand new
kitchen to find white tile with a 1/2 inch white grout line on the
counters, walking out muttering "They MUST be trippin'!
________________________________________________________________________
______
Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
melpots@pclink.com.
Lois Ruben Aronow on wed 24 sep 03
Don't have any recommendations for clay body, but you'll want to test
your glaze as well. =20
************
www.loisaronow.com
=46ine Craft Porcelain and Pottery
New Work for Summer 2003
New Show and Retail information
pdp1@EARTHLINK.NET on wed 24 sep 03
My own memories of counter Top Tiles in Kitchens, are that
while celebrated initially for their new and happy look,
soon the home owner has tended to break some of them in the
field, or on the edges, or the bull-nose knocked out in area
with mis-haps involveing grandma's iron skillet or
something. And that after a while the whole effect get's
spoiled by their carelessness and pot-bottom-scrapeing and
general rubbed glazed high spots that they then scrub too
much with 'Comet' cleanser or the like, and...grout as has
absorbed annoying stains...and...
They are relieved when finally they tear it all out and do
someting else.
Some of my memories are those of having seen as much with
homes owned by Potters or Ceramic Artists. Maybe they did
theit Tile Counter Tops in the 'seventies when everyone was
wanting such...
I remember thinging on the issue at times over the years...
Of what I'd do if I had a comission to do the Tiles for
someone's Kitchen Counters.
My thought was to incorporate either a Wooden area for them
to be cutting their Veggies and or setting Pots from the
Stove, alloowing them some kind of large Cutting Board as is
free standing, or, setting a natural Granite or heavy Copper
section amid the Tiles near the Stove, or both or all three.
Certainly if a prospective family's Kitchen is somewhere in
which Pie Crusts, Cookies or the like are to be rolled out,
some sort of 'flat' area migtht just be appreciated.
Just museing...
Phil
Las Vegas
----- Original Message -----
From: "Lois Ruben Aronow"
Don't have any recommendations for clay body, but you'll
want to test
your glaze as well.
Gary and Carla Goldberg on wed 24 sep 03
Christine - I don't think you will find what you are looking for. Clay is
not designed to take that kind of immediate extreme temperature changes.
Even stoneware designed for cooking is to be heated up slowly as the oven is
in the preheat stage. As a tile artist myself, I would not have any
confidence that it would work and give the homeowner any kind of guarantee.
As a side note - When (and if) you install the tiles on a pre-existing
countertop - you might have to add a layer of wood to decrease the amount of
flexing on the current countertop. This will decrease the chance of the
grout cracking over time. Counters tops with tile usually have a thicker
subsurface than a basic countertop. Good Luck!
-Carla
Creative Clay Concepts Inc.
http://creativeclay.tripod.com/home.html
----- Original Message -----
snip- Can anyone recommend a white/whitish clay body that fires to cone10
(so I won't have to reformulate and try to fill my kiln with enough ware to
warrant a firing to another cone) and meets the requirements for durability
and thermal shock?
Thanks,
-Christine
ccpottery@BELLSOUTH.NET on wed 24 sep 03
Please encourage your friend to think twice about countertop tile.
I had them in a house once and they were awful. The grout needed constant work as it
picked up every stain within ten yards ... and yes, they were 'protected' ... the tile guy
swore it would never stain, etc.
Once you watch chicken blood soak into the grout, you never really want to do anything
else over that spot until you do some serious cleaning.
Yes, they did chip. With scrubbing they also lost their gloss over the years.
If that's not enough ... you have no truly flat surface to work on ... if you love to cook you
appreciate a lot of flat surfaces.
I know a dozen people will say I am full of hogwash .... but nowdays I save the tile for the
backsplash, floors and walls.
Chris Campbell - in North Carolina - getting a card ready to send to Arti ....
Cindi Anderson on wed 24 sep 03
I don't want to say you are full of hogwash :-) but maybe some information
will be useful to others. I thought I would hate tile counters, but have
had them for 10 years and don't at all. I think the materials has a lot to
do with it. I have porcelain tiles, have never had a chip despite dropping
things on them all the time. The grout is epoxy grout, and although it is
dark (I can't vouch for light grout) it doesn't have any problem with
getting dirty, absorbing food and liquids, etc. After 10 years (that I have
been here, and it was here when I moved in) it still has a slight sheen to
it, it is not porous at all, (blood sits on it and is not absorbed.) It is
very very different than the sanded grout I use on the floors. The grout is
also almost level with the tiles. I have never had a problem with the
surfaces seeming uneven. What is great about tile (and stone too, but
nothing else) is that you can put hot pans down anywhere you want, no
issues.
In contrast I have a butcherblock island which got some kind of mysterious
red stain on it, and I believe my only recourse is to replace it the whole
thing.
So I believe tile counters can be awful or great, but the quality of the
tile and the type (and color?) of grout used have a big impact.
Cindi
----- Original Message -----
From:
To:
Sent: Wednesday, September 24, 2003 11:08 AM
Subject: Re: Counter Top Tiles
> Please encourage your friend to think twice about countertop tile.
>
> I had them in a house once and they were awful. The grout needed constant
work as it
> picked up every stain within ten yards ... and yes, they were 'protected'
... the tile guy
> swore it would never stain, etc.
>
> Once you watch chicken blood soak into the grout, you never really want to
do anything
> else over that spot until you do some serious cleaning.
>
> Yes, they did chip. With scrubbing they also lost their gloss over the
years.
>
> If that's not enough ... you have no truly flat surface to work on ... if
you love to cook you
> appreciate a lot of flat surfaces.
>
> I know a dozen people will say I am full of hogwash .... but nowdays I
save the tile for the
> backsplash, floors and walls.
>
> Chris Campbell - in North Carolina - getting a card ready to send to Arti
....
wayneinkeywest on wed 24 sep 03
> My own memories of counter Top Tiles in Kitchens, are that
> while celebrated initially for their new and happy look,
> soon the home owner has tended to break some of them in the
> field, or on the edges, or the bull-nose knocked out in area
> with mis-haps involveing grandma's iron skillet or
> something. And that after a while the whole effect get's
> spoiled by their carelessness and pot-bottom-scrapeing and
> general rubbed glazed high spots that they then scrub too
> much with 'Comet' cleanser or the like, and...grout as has
> absorbed annoying stains...and...
> Phil
> Las Vegas
Phil: Allow me to finish that statement!
"...grout as has absorbed annnoying stains...and...
the cleaners make themselves crazy and utter
litanies of invectives at careless owners who expect THEM to get
it clean again."
I would _never_ever_recommend people use tile for countertops,
but no one listens, especially to the cleaner.
Wayne in Key West
who has refused jobs on walking into a brand new
kitchen to find white tile with a 1/2 inch white grout line on the
counters, walking out muttering "They MUST be trippin'!
Chris Schafale on wed 24 sep 03
How about Highwater Phoenix?
http://www.highwaterclays.com It's supposed to be
good for thermal shock-prone situations, fires to cone
10, and is "whitish" at least in oxidation.
Chris Schafale
On 23 Sep 2003 at 17:23, Christine Caswell wrote:
I am making porcelain backsplash tiles for a friend. I
am using Standard Clay Co #257 fired to cone10
without difficulty. Now he is asking for countertop tiles
as well. He wants durable thermal shock resistant tiles
so that he can set hot pots and pans on the counter. I
wrote to Standard and they said that while durability
shouldn't be a problem thermal shock may be. Can
anyone recommend a white/whitish clay body that fires
to cone10 (so I won't have to reformulate and try to fill
my kiln with enough ware to warrant a firing to another
cone) and meets the requirements for durability and
thermal shock? I don't mind if the shrinkage is different
than the porcelain because it doesn't really matter if the
backslash and the counter tile are slightly different
sizes. Any ideas and/or stories from experience would
be appreciated.
Thanks,
-Christine
____________________________________________
__________________________________
Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
You may look at the archives for the list or change your
subscription
settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be
reached at melpots@pclink.com.
Light One Candle Pottery
Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina, USA
(south of Raleigh)
candle@intrex.net
http://www.lightonecandle.com
| |
|
