Tile Clad

Before cabinets were installed we wanted to get the tile in the kitchen and bathroom painted.  We didn't like the color of the red/rusty/orange tile that was already in place, but knew it would be a bigger than normal project to replace that tile.  Inevitably we would have had to replace the floor underneath, and so on and so forth.  After much research we decided to try painting the tile.  Now, I'm sure you're all thinking the same thing we have heard from almost everyone so far "Wait, what? You can paint the tile? Won't it chip?"  NOPE!!  All of the reading we did talked about using a high quality epoxy to prevent chipping.  The process was going to be long and strenuous.  First we had to aggressively scrub, roughen up, and clean the tile.  Next we were going to have to prime it, followed by a couple coats of paint and epoxy.  Not only was this going to be a ton of work, but we were also going to have to wait between coats for drying times.  Some of you might be wondering why we would go through that much work rather than just replace the tile.  We figured that we would save close to $1000 in time and materials by painting it. That's a good enough reason for us to put in some time and elbow grease to paint the floor!
Luckily, before starting this process, Michael was able to talk with the guys as Sherwin Williams and we were introduced to a product called "Tile Clad."

This product is AMAZING.  It can be tinted to the color we want the floor to be ('universal khaki') and it only takes a good cleaning and ONE coat of the tile clad.  Just like that, it's done.  Once it is applied the floor can't be walked on for 72 hours.  If anyone uses this, be sure to have some good ventilation in place.  According to Michael (I was at work when it was applied) it is VERY potent and will make you rather hiiiiiigh.  You will also want a roller pad that is for high solvent products so that it isn't pulled apart during application.  The only bummer is that our Sherwin Williams only had the product available in semi-gloss.  The floor looks so much better than before, but it looks constantly wet.  So, while we were in Minneapolis today we were able to go to a commercial Sherwin Williams and get the product in an eggshell finish.  So, this weekend (while I'm at work again...) Michael will re-coat the floor with the eggshell finish.  Another great thing about this product?  It can be used on wood!  Our floor in the laundry room, which is connected to the kitchen, is pine wood.  We planned all along to paint the wood and are super excited to be able to use such a tough product on wood.  Here are some pics before and after the semi-gloss universal khaki tile clad was applied.