Splashback Or Tiles: What Is Best For You?

So, what’s the difference between tiles and a splashback?

 A ‘splashback’ is used in an area of wall commonly found in the space behind a sink or cooker hob that will get splashed with water, grease or food and provides a protective surface that is easy to clean. This area can be covered using tiles or a singular sheet of material known as a splashback panel.

Tiles are stuck onto the wall with adhesive and then grouted to provide a water-resistant base, whereas a splashback panel is a flat singular piece (often made of toughened glass) that is stuck to the wall, no grouting required.

So, are you a tiles or splashback person? It really comes down to the space you have that you need to protect and what aesthetic you like! Although grout is required when using tiles, it’s not everyone’s cup of tea and does require upkeep whereas the single splashback panel avoids this issue making it more streamlined and easier to clean. That being said, it is quite limiting in design when compared to tiles, they often come in set sizes and, if you’ve chosen glass or a specially cut porcelain slab, you can’t alter them.

 Here we discuss the pros and cons of using tiles or a splashback around the home to help you decide.

The more common place to find a splashback panel is in the kitchen, protecting the wall that sits behind the cooker hob. This is where you get the majority of splashes that can cause grime and damage over time. Sinks are usually designed to sit under a window and therefore less likely to be tiled due to the placement of a windowsill. A lot of modern kitchen worktops are designed with an upstand, which is a vertical section of the same material that sits on top of your worktop to provide protection to the lower part of wall. If you’ve already had this installed, or inherited the kitchen, then often a row of tiles in a thinner width above can look a little out of place. In this instance, a splashback panel often looks more intentional. A singular splashback panel, whether it’s made of glass, aluminium or porcelain, has a more modern feel and is typically suited to more streamlined, contemporary kitchen designs. However, a porcelain version, typically found in a stone effect design, can look great in older style kitchens too. A single splashback panel is incredibly easy to install and can immediately transform a kitchen, so it’s ideal if you want a quick DIY makeover. However, if you’re an avid cooker or tend to make a lot of mess in the kitchen, then we’d probably advise going for a full tiled splashback that covers most of the back wall instead. Single splashback panels are designed to be the width of the common cooker hob to take the most direct splashes, however you can still find residue and grease around the outsides of the panel depending on your style of cooking.

It’s quite uncommon to find a single splashback piece in a bathroom, purely because there are more touch points to consider. If you have a larger bathroom where the sink is quite far from a shower and/or bathtub then a splashback panel could be considered however, unless you choose an aluminium version that can be cut down, it could look disproportionate in size in comparison to your sink. You also have the added complication of placing a mirror above it. With larger wet areas to consider, proper tiling should be used inside a shower and around a built-in bath to protect the walls from getting wet. Ideally you should use a 2mm grout joint between the tiles, depending on your tile of choice. Now, if you don’t like the look of grout then there are a few options to consider. Firstly, you could choose a very large porcelain tile (think larger than 60cm), this would mean a greater expanse of tile over your wall and therefore fewer grout lines. You should also consider investing in a tile range that has a rectified edge, this means it is cut perfectly to size after being in the mould during manufacture, ensuring a clean straight edge across every single tile which allows for a thinner grout joint to be used. Lastly, you could opt for a shower wall panel instead, this is similar to a single splashback panel but on a much grander scale, they’re designed to work in bathrooms so they offer a seamless, watertight finish.