Tile water absorbtion experiment

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Q

Qwerty

Following on from the discussion in another thread about not fitting ceramic tiles in a shower/ bathroom I have decided to conduct a little experiment.

I plan on testinghow much water tiles absorb.

I have 3 tiles to test-
-Glazed ceramic (10mm)
-Soft glazed Grade 3 Porcelain (11mm)
-Full bodied Grade 5 Porcelain (10mm)

Each tile weighs 304 grams so the water absorbtion will be easier to see and calculate as a %.

I will submerge the pieces for 24hrs then remove, wipe down excess and weigh. I will record each weight and then boil all 3 pieces for 15 mins. Somebody suggested water absorbtion for Porcelain is under boiling water so in the interests of fairness I will blast them for 15 mins to see if that makes any difference.

This could be a total failure and prove nothing but I have a feeling not.

Let the experiment commence!!! :D:)

Tile 1
20170429_193913.jpg


Tile 2
20170429_193829.jpg


Tile 3
20170429_193817.jpg



Tiles submerged at 8pm last night....

20170429_202028.jpg



And no, a Rubi wasn't used to cut Tile 2...... I had to chip of a gram to make the weight even !!!!!
 
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Dan

Dan

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C

Canyondust

Thanks for such an interesting test and results, plus the work and effort to make it happen. (And boiling tiles!).

Given it would seem reasonable that only one face of the tile is likely to be exposed to water, And a lesser extent the edges is this a totally fair test.

Would it be a reasonable hypothesis that the glazed face of the ceramic tile does not absorb water at the same rate as the none glazed face. If so totally submerging would not be real.

A system test with all components involved would make more sense. So one could imagine a more porous grout vs less making a difference. My feelings are the glazed tile would show significant improvements over it's peers in the case and they are unlikely to show such results in a real bathroom.

Anyway again thankyou for the work and giving us all something to think about.
 
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Q

Qwerty

The test is to demonstrate what would occur should a failure of the tile or grout was to occur and was purely showing how much water different tiles absorb.

Another member once conducted a test with cement grout between tiles which were continually exposed to water. It took less time than he thought for it to reach the substrate.

Porous grout will always absorb water.
A ceramic tile face whether glazed or not will never absorb as much water as the back or sides.

Feel free to conduct a test of your own.
 
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C

Canyondust

Hi.

Even if the grout was removed I still do not feel it is representative of a system test. The glazed part of the tile must be providing significant benefits to protecting against spray ingress.

My real point is that if we conducted a system test (of a wall section) in an environment chamber to simulate spray, water vapour and prolonged high humidity such as one would find in a wet room the glazed tile is likely (this is my hypothesis) perform significantly better than purported.

ASTM 373 really talks about material tests.
 
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D

Dumbo

Canyondust said:
Hi.

Even if the grout was removed I still do not feel it is representative of a system test. The glazed part of the tile must be providing significant benefits to protecting against spray ingress.

My real point is that if we conducted a system test (of a wall section) in an environment chamber to simulate spray, water vapour and prolonged high humidity such as one would find in a wet room the glazed tile is likely (this is my hypothesis) perform significantly better than purported.

ASTM 373 really talks about material tests.
Click to expand...
Crack on then and let us know how you get then . But before you bother i will tell you i have removed ceramic tiles from failed instalations and they have been wet .
 
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C

Canyondust

The test is purely a material test. It shows, at room temperature how much water the tile is capable of absorbing, not will.
This does not show how much will be absorbed within the installed system which is also important, the effects of the glaze, etc.

What one can surmise is that this is the worst possible case at room temperature. Whether these situations can occur in reality is another question.
 
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D

Dumbo

Canyondust said:
The test is purely a material test. It shows, at room temperature how much water the tile is capable of absorbing, not will.
This does not show how much will be absorbed within the installed system which is also important, the effects of the glaze, etc.

What one can surmise is that this is the worst possible case at room temperature. Whether these situations can occur in reality is another question.
Click to expand...
As I said and I have experience in this I have removed tiles from failed installations and they have been wet and if they were to be reused they needed time to dry . @Plan Tec Tiling test was to show relative to one another difference in absorbtion of different tile materials .
Trust me cracked grout in an installation and a ceramic tile will take on water .
Just a question do you have a job lot of ceramic bathroom tiles .
 
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C

Canyondust

I do not have any tiles to sell or use and find your comment most disrespectful. It's sad on forums when people think comments like that help anyone.

Grouts (cement) cracked or not will absorb water. Different types at different rates, and different rates at different temperatures.

Your observations are, I am sure helpful.

The test does not show the effect of the glaze, and how the tile will perform in an installed system. It also does not show the difference between a directed jet (of varying temperatures) or that of a humidity test (with a temperature cycle). My original comment was to suggest this will affect the results shown and should be thought about.

Understanding the total amount of water, at room temperature a tile substrate can absorb has it's merits, which I acknowledged originally.
If you have a substrate that cannot absorb water then that's the situation. If you have a substrate which can, Maybe it is a problem. Then place a chemically bonded waterproof cover over it and life changes.

How the tiles actually perform installed is still unknown.
 
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C

Canyondust

The point is that the test is not representative of the installed system, which is what the thread is about and what we are discussing.

This test does not explain why they became 'wet'. The test says they can become 'wet'. How quick, when, why, other factors are not gleaned from the test.

So within an installed system, with some optimised conditions (grouts, gaps, adhesives, air extraction ...) the results may differ from the test; which is where we started.
 
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C

Canyondust

Again you are very insulting and it's not helpful but somewhat embarrassing.
No I do not sell tiles, work for a company that sells tiles or have any IP or financial gain from tiles.

I did not say it was irrelevant, quite the contrary multiple times.

I have not mentioned failed or otherwise (installed) only that one must look at the installed system not just the component. Are readers not interested in what actually happens in the final system?

The first post says :
'Following on from the discussion in another thread about not fitting ceramic tiles in a shower/ bathroom I have decided to conduct a little experiment.'

It mentions fitting ceramic tiles. Hence my comments about the limitations of the test, and how one may interpret the results.
 
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