Properly sealed they should be ok. I lived in a building that had these in the vestibule where they weren't even well cared for and after 140 years they looked pretty good.

They may not provide the best slip resistance.

Thank you, Mongoct, for all the detailed information! I plan to order samples of tile from Granada and see what I think. Perhaps we will seal them and then experiment with spills.

Thank you, Ineffablespace, for the encouragement. The tiles are lovely, and I am tempted.

Any others who have done it, would love to hear your stories!

Hello
We are Brothers tile Cement Corp.
A small company that we the owners of the company with an experience of over 15 years in the producion of cement tiles, we decided to create in New york, our small manufactures above, come from Cuba with a rich history in the tile cement country that enjoys own collection "Cuban Cement Tile"
I want to tell you that even here in America there is a great culture of this type of flooring many people every day but want to have the floor at home, is the first exclusive very beautiful, relaxing and durable

Although it has its cons and you have to make sure the person doing your installation must be clear process to avoid problems arising after installation caused by an inexperienced contractor, sealing must be put before the grout and after the grout and always wait 48 hours or more to dry the tiles for sealing.
It is recommendable installation bace durable enough
the weight so you do not break the tile in the future
This seal is a bit new to us, because in Cuba that is our country of origin is not a sealant for tile and grout cement we use only done a mix of white cement and water is used and applied with a broom, then the remaining grout is removed and you're in no time and a lot of cleaning looks great and for many years, www.cementtilecorp.com can visit our website for more details

cathy, did you end up going for the encaustic tile? I'm considering it, but it's a big expense and I'm worried about care. Although I just came from Europe where I saw it everywhere and no one seemed to be pampering it.

Following ... I'm also planning to use them in my guest bath

These tiles are perfect for anywhere in your home or business office, restaurant or retail store

www.cementtilecorp.com

These tiles are forever and that makes them more economical than others who have to renew 5-10 years, I am of Cuban origin and in Cuba there are 165 years old and today are perfect, at the beginning you have to work a bit on cleaning, but then forget about them, the only polishes.
these are amazing tile for every room!

I regret putting cement tile in our kid's bathroom. They stain really easily. After one year they look terrible.

I would be concerned about staining of the tiles. The reality is that sealing may be necessary periodically and I, personally know how easy it is to say: I'll do it again in a year, but not now. We just had a tile demo in our master bath, and replaced the beautiful, but slightly porous tiles with high end, large format porcelain tiles. The old tiles were in perfect shape, but we got tired of staining and discoloration from things that got dripped on the floor, and mineral deposition in the shower which became impossible to remove. My tiles were not encaustic, but I would be concerned about these same issues if I installed encaustic tiles anywhere but on the walls. Call me lazy, but I want a tile installation that involves minimal maintenance and worry over the long term, and no need for resealing..

Whatever you do I would not use the company listed above. They have terrible customer service if anything goes wrong and do not stand by their work. For more information check out my review of the company.

We also regret using cement tiles. They look great on day 1, but even properly sealed they stain. We are very careful with our tiles, but inevitably something will happen. Once we accidentally dripped toilet bowl cleaner on the floor and they literally bleached the tile, even though it was cleaned immediately. Also, we have a floating toilet and there is a definite urine stain below the bowl for all the times guests "miss". This does not come out even with some good scrubbing. The recommended solution for stains is to sand and reseal the floor. I don't mind a "lived in" look, but I certainly don't like pee stains and drip marks from each time I accidentally spill something. And I am certainly not planning to sand and seal my bathroom floor every one or two years, per the manufacturers suggestions.

I love, love the look, but they are high maintenance. I got white and light gray tiles in the bathrooms, definitely do not recommend white or light colored cement tiles. They stain very easily. The installation is also a challange. Like others said, sealing before grouting (once) and more than three times after is a must. First picture shows tiles after less than a year in use. Second pictures shows freshly installed tiles. My husband never wants this tiles again, and we are already thinking of replacing them in the guest bathroom.

Yanet Gomez, would you mind adding your photos again? We are supposed to have cement tiles installed in our bathroom floor and shower in the next few weeks but are now reconsidering. We've read so many negative experiences that we are afraid we're making a mistake. Thanks

You only need a very professional installer who knows how to install the cement tile.

The handmade cement tile has been in existence for several generations, you can see them today in many countries in Europe Cuba and others, with more than 100 years of installed and still look beautiful and clean, some of those photos from Cuba is in our profile, have more than 100 years I assure you.

Main problem, the installed ones are not good in this type of tile.

Second problem, the seal is wrong. ( Here it is obligatory, however, in those wonderful floors over 100 years old, the sealer was not even invented.) * I'm right or not.

Third, we manufacture cement tiles for more than 15 years of them 6 in New York.

It is known that a couple of clients complained, when this happened 4 or 5 years ago, we ask some of our clients to do the installation, the ending was incredibly beautiful without problems and happy customers.

But we had the need to look for the perfect sealer since we did this to show that the problem is not in the tile, if not that of the installers.

After a long study and testing 3 years ago our customers buy our pre-sealed cement tile.

If you buy our tiles we will ask you if you want to pay for our sealing. so we ask.

If you prefer that we seal your tile let me know. $?? extra plus tax (We suggest to add our sealed, saves money and time, take into consideration. to avoid installation problems, stains, splashes of oil and moisture ) highly recommended, you are obliged to seal your tiles.

Keep in mind that this is only for our customers who buy our handmade cement tile, since the sealant product is not for sale.

This is not an obligation to buy our cement tile, it is only as a communication since it is not the only indecisive person.

Thanks

www.cementtilecorp.com

thank you for all the wonderful comments. I still don't see any photos that were talked about. Any chance you would take the time to repost them?

Would love to see some before and after photos from anyone who has used cement encaustic in bath. We are looking at them as well - love this one - and plan to purchase tomorrow...

Hi everybody, I’m a tile installer. Even though this thread is a little old I thought I’d chime in. I have 12 years installing tile. I was just contracted to install an encaustic cement tile. I had not worked with this tile previously and was Not informed of the 2 page pdf of handling instructions. I was already halfway done with my floor when I found out that I had done everything wrong. Luckily my installation was very clean but I still had to sand off effervescence which is lime leaching from the tile surface. after sanding dusting then scrubbing with special cleanser then rinsing with water again I still am not happy with the result. But they are much better. While doing all this extra work that I can’t charge for I noticed hairline fractures in all the tiles. what could I have done so wrong that the tiles have fractured? I won’t name the company here out of professional courtesy but I am beyond upset that a product such as this could be sold for $50 sqft. It should be pre-sealed and the warnings should be on the box at least. I’m asking the company to refund my clients but I am still out 4000 in labor. it may be the last job I take under my company before joining the tile union again. I will never recommend cement tiles for installation in any application.

Efflorescence = lime/salt leaching

Efforvescence = bubbles in your Coke

:-)

Cement tile is going to be porous and heavy, so I would not use it in a very wet area like a shower, but if you have the right structure it might be ok on a bathroom floor. Have you walked on it in bare feet? Also these tiles seem to be popular now and it might be a bit of an "avocado bath moment" so consider that. My granny had Victorian fired clay encaustic tile in her hallway and it looked beautiful, but that's different from the cement tile. She would wash them once a week and sometimes wax them.

@59bungie Did you end up buying those tiles. I'm considering the exact same ones from Marrakesh. I'll looking at using them on the wall or floor in Laundry room and powder room. I'd love to add them in bathrooms but I am reading about a lot of problems. Maybe it's best to stick to areas without a lot of water. Laundry wall should be OK I think as will be the powder room. Thanks everyone. Any input is helpful.

These 2 non-encaustic options came up in a prior thread (I don't think anyone has tried the clayimports ones though):

1. https://www.stonesource.com/collections/electra-grande/

https://www.stonesource.com/product/electra-neptune/

https://www.stonesource.com/product/electra-galaxy/?attribute_pa_color=green

(also comes in some neutrals)

2. https://clayimports.com/?s=dandy&submit=

https://clayimports.com/product/dandy-midnight-hex-clay/

https://clayimports.com/product/dandy-ocean-hex-clay/

(also comes in some neutrals)

Prior threads:

https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/5651927/where-can-i-find-this-beautiful-blue-tile

https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/5611895/help-with-cement-tile-alternative

My husband and I used cement encaustic style tiles in our bathroom, installed 4 months ago. We had a highly skilled builder/tiler, but we already have concerns. The tiles with cut angles for the shower area seem to have a 'tatty' edge, and other tiles seem to be chipping, showing the paler concrete colour - this is particularly annoying as our tiles are dark grey. They were not cut with a wet saw, and we were never advised to seal them prior to instal, or after instal. We're worried, to say the least. Any advice would be appreciated, as this was a costly exercise.

Can I also pls clarify that cement encaustic-style tiles are COMPLETELY DIFFERENT to ACTUAL encaustic tiles, which have their colour all through the tile, not just printed on the surface. This is why the real ones still show their lovely pattern even with 100+ years of wear and tear!

@59bungie and @pamala_temple I too just purchased these tiles. I'm terrified and thinking I should return them. I do love them though. How did it go? Any advice?

Our tiles have turned out okay, thankfully! I had many concerns at the beginning, and we had to get the shower area regrouted, but 18 months in and everything is okay. It's still a lovely bathroom. Interestingly though - when I gave the tile company feedback, they changed the information on their website, advising basically as they were made to order, it was a case of 'buyer beware' and any faults would not be their problem. Doesn't instill confidence!.