DIY Network

New Products at the Coverings Show in Chicago Dean and Derek visit a specialized trade show featuring innovative new materials and tools. Check out some of Dean and Derek's Rock Solid remodeling projects. From "Rock Solid" episode DROC-404

Now that's custom tile!

In this special installment of DIY' Rock Solid Dean Marsico and Derek Stearns take the trip of a lifetime when they visit the Coverings Show in Chicago — the biggest stone and tile trade show in the country.

With more 1,200 exhibitors at the show, Dean and Derek are like two kids in a candy store, learning about new products and testing out new machinery.

It's a cornucopia of tile and stone from around the world in this special edition of Rock Solid. Below are some of the highlights.

advertisement

Tools

If you guessed that Dean and Derek would head straight for the stone exhibitors at the Coverings Show, your guess is correct. What you may not have guessed is that they were looking for tools to make working with stone easier and more efficient, and tools taht further customize the appearance of stone.

	Figure A
	Figure B
	Figure C

• Tile Saw
  Dean finds a new MK Diamond tile saw perfect for the do-it-yourselfer (figure A) . The saw is lightweight so it is easy to take it with you wherever you are working. It offers great flexibility you can cut various angles and depending on the blade, you can cut granite, marble, tile, even stone.
  MK Diamond Products, Inc.
  Website: www.mkdiamond.com

• Power Grouter and Sponge
  Dean and Derek find powerful tools for commercial-sized project at the Raimondi Tools booth. A power grouter saves knees and your back by packing grout as well, if not better, than grouting by hand. A different head makes it possible to put sand between pavers. And a separate power sponge machine makes cleaning large grouted areas quick and easy (figure B) .
  Raimondi Tools USA
  Website: www.raimondiusa.com

• Spiral Saw
  This spiral saw from RotoZip is great for cutting unique shapes and cut outs for showers or sinks. With this spiral saw you can easily cut through the hardest of surfaces without chipping or cracking (figure C) .
  RotoZip
  Website: http://www.rotozip.com

Materials

Dean and Derek were awed the level of innovation and product diversity they saw at the Coverings Show. There was colorful glass tile, porcelain that looked like wood and original art incorporated with stone.

• Glass Tile
  Dean and Derek find glass floor tile that mimics stone and whose unique texture, depending on where you're standing in the booth, makes the color appear to change. According to Interstyle Ceramic and Glass, glass tile is finding its way into more and more kitchens and bathrooms.
  Interstyle Ceramic and Glass
  Website: www.interstyle.ca
  

  	Figure D
  	Figure E

• Porcelain
  Dean and Derek also found some inventive products made out of porcelain. Inalco, has a product that looks and feels like and hard wood, but offers all the durability of porcelain. Another company, Crespania, is making porcelain look like natural stone (figure D) . They are using an ink jet and glazing process to create the appearance of natural stone in a variety of colors.
  Inalco Ceramica
  Website: www.inalco.es/noticias.php

• Art Tile
  The future of covering is not about porcelain or stone; it is about the ability to enhance their appearance. It is possible to have amazing works of art on your floors and walls. I-CA Enterprises specializes in embedding images on natural tumbled stone (figure E) . They have an array of classic paintings or you can use your own design. The technology is tough enough to weather direct water in a shower without distorting the design.
  I-CA Enterprises
  Website: http://i-caenterprises.com

Page  1 | 2