My tiles were different brands so it would be more convenient getting everything from a tile shop and getting it delivered. The tiles I opted a few months ago is
My contractor had recommended his regular tile shop. He had made a trip to the tile shop himself, discussed the tiles I had shortlisted, forwarded tile pictures to me, passed on advice from the tile shop owner (Nicky), advised me to go to the tile shop myself to have a look and to consider it. He felt that it would be better for me to speak directly to Nicky. The contractor and I did the measurements in the kitchen so that we can estimate the quantity for the tiles.
We made a trip to Nicky’s tile shop on Saturday and referenced my contractor’s name.
The tiles we purchased:
1. Dry Kitchen Backsplash-
- Brand- Nicky had advised that the local brand Subway tiles were a China OEM and it is about the same quality as the one he offered.
- Availability- The tiles were stored in a factory & would just need 1-2 days for delivery.
- Quantity- Per piece
- Extra tiles- 10%
2. Wet Kitchen Wall-
- Brand- Nicky showed me a locally made wall tiles and we opted for it.
- Availability- In tile shop store room. Easily available.
- Quantity- Per piece
- Extra tiles- 10% considering we did not measure some parts of the wall.
3. Wet Kitchen Floor-
- Brand- Piglet and I really wanted a specific local brand wood tile so Nicky called up the company to enquire the following working day.
- Availability- It had to be ordered and waiting time was 3 weeks. The factory is based in Penang. We felt that it would be worth the wait since we like the tile design so much and the skylight was delayed by 2 weeks.
- Quantity- Per Carton (Each Carton had 6 tiles).
- Extra tiles- 10%
4. Countertop-
Nicky did not stock the brand (tile A) I wanted. The reasoning he gave was that the tile company encouraged customers to buy from them directly by not offering it at a reduced price to the distributor/ Nicky. My contractor felt that the tile was expensive and there were cheaper options available at acceptable quality. I also felt that buying it per carton would be inconvenient due to the size and storage of extra tiles.
Nicky showed me the tiles available.
| TILES | A | B | C | D | E |
| Grade | A | A | A | A | A |
| Size | 2 ft by 2 ft | 2 ft by 2 ft | 2ft by 2 ft | 2 ft by 2 ft | 2 ft by 2 ft |
| Surface | Polished | Polished | Polished | Polished | Matt |
| Base colour | Dark blue grey | Black | Dark grey | Light grey | Dark grey |
| Pattern | Light speckle | Golden speckle | Black and white dots | Dark grey speckles | Light grey patches |
| Type | Homog | Homog | Homog | Homog | Porcelain |
| Price | RM40 | ★RM17 | ★RM24 | ★ RM20 | ★ RM14 |
| Watermark | ★ | ★ | |||
| Edge | ★ | ★ | ★ | ★ | |
| Heat | ★ | ||||
| 1 stop shop | ★ | ★ | ★ | ★ | |
| Mosquito | ★ | ||||
| Black & White | ★ | ★ | ★ | ★ | |
| Gray & White | ★ | ||||
| Tone? | ★ | ★ |
*Homog= Homogeneous
We went home and thought about it for 2 days. It was then I did the table above to decide. I chose tile D and texted Nicky regarding my decision.
- Availability- In tile shop store room.
- Quantity- Per Piece
- Extra tiles- 1 extra
Piglet made the payment and we asked Nicky to check with my contractor to schedule the delivery dates.
Reference to read up on types of tile in Malaysia
If only I had come across this website (powerpoint presentation) earlier… All those terms e.g. glazed, polished, homogeneous, vitrified really confused me.