Tips For Painting Beautiful Ceramic Tiles

ceramic tilesIf you have painted flooring or walls before, you can easily paint ceramic tiles.

You can completely change the look of a room by painting ceramic tile floor.

It doesn’t matter if the tile is old or new – the most important thing is that the tile is completely clean.

Many people will simply ignore the directions on the paint and will not remove all of the dirt, dust, and grease before painting.

Cleaning Suggestions

Ceramic tile can be cleaned with just about any soap, but a scrub brush and soap will usually work best. Choose an oxygen based bleach.

You’ll find this is a powder and you mix it with water. Let it soak for ten minutes and scrub. Let the area dry for at least for forty eight hours before you paint.

Choosing the Right Paint

You must use the right paint or it may peel off. Oil based paints seemed to work best in the past, but it’s becoming harder to find them due to pollution laws. Paint thinner and mineral spirits are also often required to clean the painting tools.

The paint you use must be sticky. If it isn’t, it will be difficult to make it adhere to the tile. Water based paints containing a urethane resin will work well. The urethane will act like glue.

Which Tile to Paint

There are some areas that are better suited to paint tiles than others. If the tile will get wet frequently, such as in a shower or tub area, the paint will not last very long.

Ceramic tiles used in a bathroom floor can be painted as long as there is not a lot of water allowed on the floor.

Keeping the Painted Tile Looking Like New

One of the best ways to keep the painted ceramic tile looking like the day you painted it is to cover it with a clear coat of floor finish.

Water based urethanes, once again, will work well, without the yellowing that can sometimes occur with other finishes.

To Paint or Not to Paint the Grout

This is a personal preference, depending on how much contrast you want in the area.  It’s a lot easier to paint the grout along with the ceramic tile.

However, a contrasting grout can really compliment and highlight the entire area. This is a great idea if you are painting the tile in a smaller area. It does take a lot of time to tape and paint the grout without painting part of the certamic tile.

Make sure you regrout any area before you paint and allow it to dry completely. Otherwise the grout will absorb the paint and could look a different color when dry compared to the rest of the tile or grout.

In Closing

You can paint almost any ceramic tile as long as you prepare the tile beforehand. It must be completley clean and dry.

You can use stencils to highlight a few tiles for a great design look and even paint the grout a different color for contrast. Take a look at different floor designs to see which is best for you.

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