High-Traffic Tile Floor

摘要

There aren't many rooms in a house that get more foot traffic than a foyer. On this particular job, the foyer has two interior doorways, a front door, and a stairway. Add in a family of four and a pair of very active dogs, and this floor will see some abuse. I always try to provide a tile job that will stand the test of time, but when I'm told by a customer that durability is the biggest priority, I pull out all the stops. This is an old house, and even though the plank subfloor was topped with 1/2-in. plywood, I decided to top off the sub-floor with an uncoupling membrane to provide additional crack resistance. The handmade, Arts and Crafts-style 8x8 tiles chosen by the customer have a naturally imperfect look, so I wasn't worried about them showing signs of wear and tear. Modern stain-resistant grouts do a pretty good job of living up to their name, but when it comes to resisting muddy shoes and dirty dog paws, nothing is as stain resistant and rock solid as epoxy grout.