Glass Tile Blog

At Wholesalers USA, our largest customers are always the people tiling their pools.  They opt for glass tile because of its shimmering beauty – especially when submerged. The vibrant colors that glisten from beneath the crystal clear water never fails to captivate homeowners or their guests. It is this superior appearance of glass tile that entices people to undertake these large projects. As you can probably tell, these customers are making a huge investment in their properties; they expect their tile installation to be flawless and long-lasting. In order to satisfy these demanding clients, our sales staff has had to become well-versed in the intricacies of glass tile installation. The knowledge required to assist customers with their questions has taken years to acquire, but I plan to dispense it in just a few paragraphs.

While glass tile has its own, inherent quirks when it comes to installation, an exterior application, such as a swimming pool, requires even more specialized attention and materials. The main challenge for installing glass tile outdoors is glass’ relatively high expansion coefficient. What that means is, glass expands and contracts at a greater rate than other materials someone might use in their pool, e.g. ceramic or stone. Since the tile is adhered to the bottom of the pool while it’s expanding and contracting, it can easily crack and break if the cement it’s laid into doesn’t stretch with it. Therefore, the question we hear again and again from customers is, “How do I install glass tile in my pool without having to repair the broken tiles year after year?” The answer has not always been an easy one. However, with advances in technology and contractors’ growing experience installing glass tile, we are now able to provide customers with the right recommendations so that their pool installation experiences minimal problems.

The most important step in putting glass tile in a swimming pool is choosing the right installation materials. To reiterate, the high rate of expansion and contraction of glass caused by temperature changes is the leading cause of cracks and damage to installed tiles. In order to compensate for this, special thin-set adhesives and additives have been developed that expand and contract with the glass. The leading manufacturer of glass-specific tile adhesive systems is MAPEI, and their Adesilex P10 thin-set and Keraply additive can be combined into an installation system that is specifically designed for applications where the glass tiles are completely submerged. The elasticity of the Adesilex P10/Keraply combination allows the glass tiles to stretch without breaking, and MAPEI is so confident in this installation solution’s ability to provide lasting results that they offer a 5-year warranty on materials and labor. With a guarantee like that, it’s no wonder that so many tile contractors and retailers stand behind MAPEI’s products as the best in the industry.

Whether you are installing glass tile on the exterior of your home, as an accent in the garden, or on the bottom of your swimming pool, you need to take into account the unique challenges that comes with using glass tile outdoors. These challenges are not insurmountable as long as you take care to use the proper installation materials. If you do this, then there is no reason why your project can’t look as gorgeous as the South Florida pool pictured above.

This is a snapshot of the state of the bathroom at the warehouse bathroom before we renovated it using Giorbello Glass Tiles. As you can see, the floor was bare concrete, the wall needed repairs, and there is a nasty, rusted pipe exposed in the corner of the room. A true mess that doesn’t impress our customers or our staff. All that’s about to change though…

After a few days of installing, grouting, and caulking the glass tiles, we have a brand new bathroom! Now, customers can see firsthand how beautiful glass tiles are after installation.

Two tiles were used for this project. The glass/stone blend installed on the floor, vertical strip behind the sink, and the horizontal border is “Rome” of the Giorbello Glacier Mountain product line. The solid white tile is “Shell White” of the Giorbello Cristezzá Select product line. Both glass tiles are 8 mm thick; therefore, they are suitable for use on floors as well as walls.