Recognizing Authentic Marble Cement Tiles
Fake cement tiles: a bad, costly decision
Guest post by Wilhem Stevens, Original Mission Tile
What do we understand when talking about authenticity? For us at Original Mission Tile, authenticity means to keep intact the “essence” of a floor tile that offers a history of more than 100 years — and continues to thrive!
The “Key” Test for Cement Tile | Original Mission Tile
Original Mission Tile manufactures cement tiles following the traditional process and using the original materials, that’s why cement tiles are famous for lasting for keeping their beauty for generations.
Nowadays, we can find many imitations with a poor quality consisting of almost anything. Unfortunately, cement tiles are not the exception to this horrible practice.
Right now, we can find low-cost, poor quality cement tiles. However, although they look nice on the face of things, these fake cement tiles are manufactured by factories that do not use the original materials, such as marble dust and white Portland cement — the main elements to achieve high-quality cement tile. These materials are what give authentic marble cement tiles their inherit high resistance and longevity characteristics.
This situation is alarming because consumers are being cheated when looking to purchase a high quality cement tile. Original Mission Tile, as a responsible company looking to protect current and future clients alike, decided to test these fake cement tiles and were shocked with their poor quality.
The “Key” Test for Cement Tile
If you’re thinking about purchasing high-quality cement tile, then we invite you to take our “Key Test.” This test simply consists of trying to scratch the cement tile’s color Surface using a key. If the result is showing a furrow and color dust residue, then you know that you are getting cheated with a “talc” cement tile.
Authentic marble cement tile will only show a light scratch (as seen in the image above) that can be cleaned easily. With fake cement tiles, you will need to make a costly replacement.
Another way to identify a fake cement tile is by watching videos of the manufacturing process, and check the color consistency when it is poured into the mold. If the color is liquid and you can see a water layer moving on the top, be careful. These tiles are fake and will be fragile.
The color of an authentic marble cement tile must be thick, like a paste, which is the reason for its colloquial name of Paste Cement Tiles. This guarantees that the manufacturer is using a rich mix of marble dust and white Portland cement to produce a high quality cement tile that is durable and hard-wearing.
About Original Mission Tile
We invite you to learn more about us and our authentic marble cement tiles. We have been manufacturing these beautiful tiles for more than 100 years and will continue with this tradition by adhering to the original process and materials to offer the best cement tiles to both current and future clients. Visit our website for more information.