Stone floor or porcelain in kitchen. Pros and Cons

[PicnicBunny]

DH and I had our heart set on tumbled limestone flooring but DH keeps getting advised by people we are making a mistake and should go for porcelain floors that look like stone.

I’ve got a sample of this https://www.mystonefloor.com/products/abbey-time-worn-sandstone-tiles

and have tried to find an alternative but we really love this floor. DH has been talked out of it, so here I am ‘doing my research’ lol

Can anyone give me some real advice about limestone vs porcelain tiles for kitchen floor?

Any advice would be really helpful. We’re getting an extension and kitchen and utility room done, and I’d love this all over.

I've got porcelain. Last house had LVT. Stuff bounced on that. I have lost count of the number of things that have been broken on the porcelain floor. Never again.

We have porcelain tiles but clearly don't drop things very often - 8 years and we've lost 2 glasses.

We've recently finished renovating a derelict property and have porcelain tiles through the ground floor incl kitchen/diner/lounge. Are you having underfloor heating also? I don't know about limestone, so cannot compare. My worry with such an uneven finish would be dirt/grime/spills being struck in the grain and looking dirty.

We have a steam mop and looking at getting a robo type vacuum and mop. Even with the smooth, porcelain tiles, we do notice marks if something drips, splashes etc, so I'd imagine uneven ones are even worse. Hopefully someone who has owned both will comment though.

Anything that drops chips or smashes. There's no 'give'.

Porcelain here too and wouldn't get them again.

They look lovely but as soon as you walk on them even in slippers they look marked or scuffed even when clean, I.e very hard to keep the shine/glossy look imo.

I’ve just had some tumbled stone effect tiles for my kitchen delivered today and now this thread has made me panic 😵‍💫

Are the limestone tiles sealed? We have polished granite (sealed) so we have the beauty of natural stone but if any liquid gets on it it's easy to wipe off. I use a steam mop which doesn't affect the finish in any way. Yes, if we drop anything fragile it will break but after 17 years the floor still looks amazing and we will be keeping it when the kitchen is replaced in the next year or so. So I vote for natural stone!

We haven’t got the tiles yet. About to order, just measuring up

Oops sorry. What kind have you gone for, where from, if you don’t mind me asking? I love the feel of the stone sample I have. Something so calming about it.

I understand we will have to get them sealed. But do we have to keep resealing? You give me hope @SleepingisanArt 😃 Thank you

The porcelain tiles look almost exactly like stone. The maintenance is the key I think?

We have tumbled limestone. It’s gorgeous IMHO. Ours is sealed. Absolutely recommend it, especially as it hides the dirt well 😂

Porcelain would look shit in our thatched cottage though.

Cold too!
Have you considered LVT eg Amtico stone effect?

My parents have had porcelain tiles in the kitchen for decades. Stuff does break when you drop it, and they break when something heavy like a heavy metal pan drops on them. They have several broken tiles now and it looks a bit dodgy.

I have porcelain tiles inside and out and they're perfect. They have a matt finish, easy to keep clean. I don't know if gloss tiles would be so easy.

Perfect with our underfloor hearing too.

Stone is porous so my patio (now porcelain) which used to be granite showed marks and needed far more upkeep than my porcelain ones now do.

Porcelain is no more likely to smash stuff than limestone. Both are very hard! Same applies to cold/need for underfloor heating.

I love natural stone and to me the porcelain replicas never look or feel quite the same. However natural stone is definitely higher maintenance. Even if sealed it will always be more porous and prone to staining or spalling (flaking) than porcelain. My parents had limestone and water got in from the side, leading to a big stain whole load of the surface flaking away.

Bottom line, if you’ve found porcelain tiles which look near identical to stone, I’d get those just for ease and peace of mind. Unless you’re ok with a very lived in look (eg for an old farmhouse I might choose stone).

Have you had a look at Mandarin Stone? They’ve got limestone look porcelain on there!

Had stone for twenty years. Bought a floor scrubber the seal goes quickly in high use areas so needs redoing but I loved it. Downsizing to kitchen with black porcelain tiles matt. The maintenance is so easy. Quick mop and it's done. BUT it shows every breadcrumb, in fact anything that is dropped which drives me bonkers.

I got ours from Stone Superstore, haven’t laid them yet but they do feel lovely.

I've got travertine. I wouldn't do it again. Get high quality porcelain instead

Not the best photo but this was when it first went down.

I have porcelain tiles in my kitchen (put in 2021) and plan to have patio made of porcelain installed. Mine are a cream stone effect with a multi-size design to look more natural and are very easy to look after.

Never dropped anything on them, so no breakages here and they look as they did when installed.

I have a fireplace where we put cream limestone on the hearth to brighten living room up, they are more of a nightmare, have to reseal them now and again, and they definately have some embedded ask marks and other marks, plus when i had new woodburner put in they accidently got some big deep scratches!

Thank you to everyone who’s replied, and with pictures too 😃 That kitchen with beams is gorgeous @AlltheFs cottage

@GingerFoxInAT0phat Thank you having a look there too. But I think I am set on the Abbey sandstone one from Quorn

@Rantypanties Lovely tiles at Mandarin Stone. I’ve got the Boticcino honed marble tiles from there for bathroom. Looks so lush. Not in yet but I just love the feel.

If anyone has anymore time to answer … the stone is 2cm thick, and builders have said they’re going to have to Screed (?!) the rest of the floors or that floor to make them all even. I mean, constant costs going up but at this point wth 🤦🏻‍♀️

This was another plus in the porcelain argument. No screeding required.

The only reason I don’t want porcelain is because I have been taking my stone sample pieces along and it just doesn’t feel the same. (Maybe I haven’t found the right one yet) The other small sample is from Ca’Pietra (Neranjo) and they are against a porcelain tile that is a real possibility.

There's no perfect solution to be honest

The large one is Edimax Astor. A Porcelain that looks like stone.