Laid from £68 a square metre on a prepared base; groundwork quoted
Outdoor porcelain patios
20 mm outdoor porcelain laid on a full mortar bed with a slurry primer, the joints filled with a resin or cement grout, and the falls set so rain runs away from the house. The same tile inside and out, if you want it.
Outdoor porcelain is hard-wearing, stain-proof and does not fade, and it is unforgiving to lay: it does not stick to mortar without a slurry primer, it must be fully bedded or it rocks and cracks, and it needs a fall so water runs off. We lay it as tilers, not landscapers, which is why our joints are tight and our slabs do not rock.
Every slab is back-primed with a slurry primer and laid on a full bed of mortar, never on dabs, on a sub-base that is compacted and set to a fall of about one in eighty away from the house. We cut with a wet saw on site, set the joints with spacers, and grout with a resin or a cement slurry grout according to the tile and the joint width. Steps get a bullnose or a mitred edge.
We do the laying; the groundwork (digging out, the sub-base, drainage, edging) is either done by a landscaper you choose or quoted by us after the survey with a groundworker we have used for years. Matching the kitchen floor tile to the patio tile in a 20 mm version is a lovely thing to do, and we will tell you which ranges come in both.
What is included
- Slurry primer on the back of every slab
- A full mortar bed, never dabs
- A fall away from the house
- Wet-cut on site
- Resin or cement slurry grout
- Bullnose or mitred step edges
What it costs
Outdoor porcelain laid from £68 a square metre including VAT, bedding mortar, primer and grout, on a prepared base; groundwork and sub-base quoted after the survey. Including VAT, adhesive, grout and trims; tiles are yours or ordered at trade price and passed on at cost. The calculator counts the tiles, boxes and bags and prices the labour.
Questions about porcelain patios
Can porcelain go on my old patio?
Sometimes, if the old slabs are sound and level and the extra height is below the damp course. We check the levels at the survey.
Is it slippery when wet?
Outdoor porcelain is made with a textured surface rated for wet slip resistance. We only lay outdoor-rated tiles outside, never indoor tiles.
When can we use it?
Walk on it after 24 hours, furniture after 48, and leave the grout to cure for a week before a pressure washer goes near it.
Measure the wall, count the boxes, then a survey.
The calculator turns your width and height into tiles, whole boxes, adhesive and grout bags, the labour and the days for your tile and pattern. The quote form takes two minutes; Lowri measures every wall and floor at a free survey and the written quote follows within three working days.