Cookaholics Bulletin Board

Laurie, you might think about slate too. I've read that it is actually harder than granite and there are many colors, honed or gauged (rougher texture), and it is far less expensive than granite, marble, just about any other natural stone. Something I read on a tile forum was that when installing stone tiles, this guy said he never used grout but instead used color matched caulking in 1/16" grout lines. He felt it allowed for expansion/contraction better and that is what you will need to worry about in your freeze zone, also more hygenic. Here's a link to some colors: http://www.carpetfloor-more.com/floorin ... 4-x24.html

Thanks I'll look into that. I think we're on hold, my husband has injured his back and so my kitchen may have to wait a bit....sigh. Hopefully it will happen this summer, at least some version of it. I may not get all I had dreamed of..........

MG,

Hope he's feeling better, soon. Back troubles are so frustrating. It seems like there's always a lot of trial and error until you can figure out how to get on top of the situation.

Laurie,

Let me put a word in for high-fire ceramic tiles as the completely weatherproof option. Hmmmm. Well, they'll survive everything but a sheet of ice; not sure how they'd do with that. Certainly here in the West, pretty much any super-deluxe grill setup is surrounded with ceramic tile. I recommend against low-fire Mexican tile, though, as it's not very durable.

Realistically, though, you'll be faced with the chore of scrubbing the counters just before each time you want to cook. You might consider instead making counters of some inexpensive durable material ... like brick ... and getting an assortment of large cutting boards and plastic mats you can use for prep.

Fuzzy, I wonder how I know if the tiles are high-fire grade??

I amagine I will keep a sanitizing product in a cabinet outside to do the pre and post clean ups. You are right though everytime we use it, which will pretty much daily I will have to clean first. I will also look for a bigass cutting board, thanks for the idea.

Laurie

Sam's Club & Costco usually have the 24 x 36 Rubbermaid cutting boards. Check out local sporting goods stores that cater to hunters - I've seen 2 x 4 and even larger cutting boards for folks to process their game. (Cabela's, Sportsman's Guide, etc.)

Laurie,

Low-fire tile will generally be terracotta (red clay). It's often very pretty. However, it also cracks and chips over time. You can also mark the High-fire tile is generally stoneware, so the bottom of the tile will usually be white or off-white. Occasionally you see high-fire red clay tiles, but that's pretty unusual. You can also try a scratch test; steel will scratch low-fire tile, and it won't scratch high-fire tile (don't do this with a good knife).

Ultimately, the thing to do is to ask the company you're buying the tile from. Also, even though the tiles themselves are very durable (100's of years), the tile grout is not, and will need to be restored after several years of weathering.

The advantage of tile is that you can get pretty tile in a variety of colors. Heck, for an outdoor kitchen where the tile being perfectly flat and level isn't as important, you can even buy handmade tile from an artist. Let me know if you seriously consider this; I can recommend one or two artists (heck, maybe I could make it ...)

Fuzzy, thanks for the info. When we get this project underway I will go on a hunt for tiles. I would love artisan tiles, but I amagine they are not in the budget. Maybe 3 or 4 in the mix would be fun though. I will consider that.

Laurie

Sorry to hear about the back problem Laurie.

Keep the dream going forward, even if it is slowly. I love reading about it.

Lynn

Thanks Lynn, I dream of an outdoor kitchen, I still have hope. Maybe before the end of the summer.

Laurie