Arizona · ASHRAE Zone 2B (Hot-Dry Southwest Desert)
Hot-dry slabs show up in the tile joints
Phoenix and the surrounding desert are a hot-dry climate. Large porcelain on a slab is a common schedule, and the estimate lives or dies on the movement joints and the flatness the tile needs, not on a statewide price. Tucson is not a different article from Phoenix unless the drawings are different.
Movement joints
If the tile spec or the TCNA method cited on the drawings requires joints at a spacing, measure those joints in linear feet and include the sealant profile named. Do not bury them in the tile carton count.
Large tile and flatness
Large modules telegraph a wavy slab. Record the flatness requirement if one is specified, and keep leveling as an allowance with a depth, or exclude it. Do not add a mystery percentage of tile to “fix” the slab.
Heat is an installation condition
Adhesives have temperature limits. A summer slab can be outside that range during the day. That is a schedule note for the installer, not extra material.
Worked porcelain order with joints kept separate
- Great room and hall, one porcelain item: 1,540 sq ft. Straight lay.
- Illustrative 10% large-format allowance: 1,540 × 1.10 = 1,694 sq ft.
- If the carton covers 17.6 sq ft: 1,694 ÷ 17.6 = 96.25, so 97 cartons.
- Movement joints drawn at the room perimeter and at 20 ft in the field are measured in linear feet and ordered as the specified profile, not as cartons.
The allowance is an example inside a band already published on this site. It is not a local price and not a required waste factor.
Place names covered by this note
Phoenix, Tucson, Mesa, Chandler, Scottsdale, Glendale, Gilbert, Tempe, Peoria, Surprise.
Material methods that do not depend on the state: waste bands, moisture tests, estimating scope.
Questions from Arizona plan sets
Do you claim tile is the majority of Arizona floors?
No. It is a frequent specification on slab houses and commercial ground floors. A percentage would need a survey this site does not have.
Are Flagstaff and Phoenix the same climate note?
No. Flagstaff is colder. Use the climate and the substrate on that project. This note is about the hot-dry slab case that dominates the Phoenix sets.