Is all porcelain paving the same quality?

No. Two porcelain tiles can look almost identical but behave very differently outdoors. True high-quality porcelain is made from refined minerals, pressed evenly and fired hot enough and long enough to achieve a fully vitrified, dense body. Poorly-made products may only just meet minimum standards and can contain internal weaknesses that lead to cracking and premature failure.

Why does some porcelain paving crack after installation?

Cracking is usually a combination of manufacturing shortcuts and real-world stress. Reduced firing times, uneven pressing and lower-grade material blends can leave internal weak zones and microscopic pores. Outdoors, with moisture, freeze–thaw cycles, clay movement and point loads from furniture, these weaknesses can turn into visible cracks even when the installation build-up is correct.

Is Italian porcelain really better?

Many premium porcelain producers are based around Sassuolo in Italy, where there is a long history of ceramic engineering. High-end Italian porcelain typically uses advanced pressing technology, longer and more controlled firing cycles, very tight tolerances and rigorous batch testing. This manufacturing discipline often results in tiles that are stronger, more consistent and more predictable outdoors, although not every Italian-branded product is automatically superior.

Is there a quality mark or badge that guarantees good porcelain?

There is no single crest or label that guarantees top-tier porcelain quality. CE marking and EN classifications confirm that a product meets minimum requirements, but they do not prove that it excels. Real quality is better assessed through technical data such as breaking strength and water absorption, consistent thickness and weight, how the tile behaves when cut and handled, and long-term performance in real gardens.

How does The Landscape Company choose which porcelain to install?

We never choose porcelain purely on appearance or brochure photography. Before we agree to install a product we look at where and how it is manufactured, the declared performance values, consistency between batches and how the tiles behave when cut, handled and laid in real UK gardens. We avoid materials that rely on perfect conditions to survive and prefer products with a proven track record outdoors.

Good Porcelain vs Poorly-Made Porcelain

A practical, honest guide to quality, performance and long-term durability

Porcelain paving has transformed modern gardens. It offers crisp lines, colour stability, minimal maintenance and exceptional strength — when it is properly made.

However, one uncomfortable truth is rarely explained: two porcelains can look identical on the surface, yet perform completely differently once installed outdoors.

In this guide we explore:

What porcelain actually is
How high-quality porcelain is made
Where things go wrong in poorly made products
Why some porcelain lasts decades while other slabs crack prematurely
How we assess porcelain before we ever agree to install it

This is not a brand endorsement or a sales pitch. It is an engineering and materials guide, written from hands-on experience in real UK gardens.

Porcelain paving tiles showing dense, vitrified internal structure — Porcelain is manufactured stone: its performance comes from what happens inside the tile, not just on the surface.

What porcelain really is (and why that matters)

Porcelain is not stone, concrete, or ceramic in the casual sense. It is a high-density, vitrified ceramic made from carefully selected minerals and fired at extreme temperatures.

True porcelain is defined by:

Very low water absorption (typically below 0.5%)
A fully vitrified internal structure
High bending and breaking strength
Stability in freezing and wet environments

When made correctly, porcelain is one of the most durable paving materials available for UK gardens. When made poorly, it simply looks like porcelain — and behaves very differently.

How high-quality porcelain is made

Good porcelain begins long before a tile is pressed or fired. Quality is built in at every stage.

1. Raw material selection

Premium porcelain uses refined:

Kaolin (china clay) for purity and stability
Feldspar to promote controlled vitrification
Quartz to increase mechanical strength

Impurities such as excess iron, organic matter or uncontrolled recycled fillers are tightly managed. This consistency matters because porcelain’s strength comes from what happens inside the body, not on the surface print.

Refined minerals used to manufacture porcelain paving — Refined clays, feldspars and quartz are blended and milled before pressing.

2. Ultra-fine milling and spray drying

Materials are milled into a very fine slurry and then spray-dried into uniform granules. This stage determines:

How evenly the tile compacts
Whether weak zones form internally
How predictable the tile behaves under load

Poor control here leads to density variations that cannot be fixed later.

3. High-pressure pressing

The granulated material is pressed into moulds under enormous pressure. In high-quality production:

Pressure is evenly distributed across the tile
Edges and corners are compacted as strongly as the centre
Thickness and density remain consistent across the slab

This uniformity is essential for outdoor paving, where point loads and minor movement are unavoidable.

4. Controlled, high-temperature firing

This is the most critical stage. High-quality porcelain is fired:

Hot enough (typically over 1,200 °C)
Long enough
Under tightly controlled kiln conditions

During firing:

Feldspar partially melts
Particles fuse together
Pores close
The tile becomes vitrified — internally glass-like and extremely dense

This is what gives premium porcelain its frost resistance, strength and long service life.

Porcelain paving tiles moving through a high-temperature kiln — Proper firing cycles are energy-intensive but critical for outdoor performance.

5. Cooling, finishing, and testing

After firing, good manufacturers:

Cool tiles gradually to avoid internal stress
Rectify edges with precision where required
Test batches for breaking strength, water absorption and frost resistance
Reject tiles that fall outside tight tolerances

Many tiles never leave the factory. This rejection rate is one reason high-quality porcelain costs more.

How porcelain is poorly made (without using the word “cheap”)

Some porcelain products reach the market having technically passed minimum standards — yet fall short where it matters outdoors. The most common issues arise from shortcuts, not accidents.

Reduced firing time or temperature

Energy is expensive. Shorter, cooler kiln cycles save money — but leave:

Incomplete vitrification
Microscopic open pores
Weak internal bonding

Such tiles absorb stress instead of distributing it.

Uneven pressing and inconsistent density

Lower-grade presses or rushed cycles lead to:

Dense zones beside weaker zones
Internal stress points
Tiles that crack unpredictably under load

These failures often appear months after installation, once gardens experience real weather and use.

Lower-grade material blends

Some factories introduce:

Cheaper feldspar
Higher recycled ceramic content
Less refined clays

This increases variability and reduces mechanical integrity — particularly at edges and corners.

Weak edge geometry

Poor rectification can leave sharp, brittle edges that become stress concentrators, especially when:

Slabs are cut
Patio furniture loads edges
Ground movement is minor but unavoidable

Cracked porcelain paving slab illustrating manufacturing and stress issues — Cracking is usually the end of a longer story that began at the factory, not on the day it was laid.

Why poorly made porcelain fails outdoors

UK gardens are demanding environments:

Moisture is constant
Freeze–thaw cycles are routine
Clay subsoils move seasonally
Loads from furniture and people are uneven

Outdoor paving does not fail in perfect conditions — it fails at the margins. Well-made porcelain tolerates these margins. Poorly made porcelain does not. Cracking is rarely dramatic or immediate. It often begins invisibly, inside the slab.

Why Italian porcelain is often regarded as superior

This is not about fashion or nationalism. It is about manufacturing discipline. Many premium porcelain producers are based around Sassuolo in Italy, a region with decades of ceramic engineering expertise.

Characteristics consistently seen in high-end Italian porcelain include:

Long, carefully controlled firing cycles
Advanced pressing technology
Extremely tight tolerances
Transparent technical data
High internal rejection rates

The result is porcelain that behaves as a single, solid body rather than a fragile surface over a compromised core.

Italian porcelain factory with premium paving tiles — Established Italian manufacturers treat porcelain as an engineered product, not a commodity.

Examples of well-regarded porcelain manufacturers

Clients who are exploring the very top end of porcelain paving often like to research the origins of the materials they choose. For reference, some long-established manufacturers with strong reputations in the design and architectural world include:

Sitting between commodity imports and these specialist Italian factories is a group of familiar paving brands that many UK homeowners will recognise. Well-established names such as Marshalls, Global Stone and Ca’ Pietra offer porcelain ranges that are widely used in British gardens and are often backed by multi-year guarantees. Those guarantees do not make a tile indestructible, but they usually indicate a reasonable level of testing, technical support and batch control behind the product.

Links are provided for information only. We specify products on a project-by-project basis, taking into account suitability, availability and budget.

Is there a single quality mark or badge?

No. There is no universal crest or label that guarantees excellence. Standards such as CE marking and EN classifications confirm that a tile meets minimum requirements — not that it excels.

True quality becomes evident through:

Technical data (not just marketing language)
Consistent thickness and weight
Structural behaviour during cutting
Proven performance over time in real gardens

This is where experience matters.

How we approach porcelain selection

At The Landscape Company, porcelain is never chosen solely on appearance. Before we agree to install a product, we consider:

Where and how it is manufactured
Its declared performance values
Consistency between batches
How it behaves when cut and handled
How it performs in real gardens, not just in brochures

We do not use porcelain that relies on perfect conditions to survive.

A note on suppliers and references

Where relevant, we may link to manufacturer or supplier websites for reference purposes only, allowing clients to explore production methods or technical details directly from the source. These links are informational, not endorsements.

Final thoughts

Porcelain paving can be one of the most durable, low-maintenance and visually refined materials for a garden — when it is properly made and correctly installed.

The difference between a porcelain patio that lasts decades and one that develops problems is rarely visible at first glance. It lies in engineering, process, discipline and respect for the material. That difference matters.

Discuss your porcelain patio