Porcelain is the finish most people want and the one most often laid wrong. Every slab we lay is primed on the back and bedded on a full wet mortar bed, because that is the only way porcelain stays put.
Porcelain paving is a kiln fired ceramic slab, pressed and vitrified at high temperature until it absorbs almost no water at all. That single property makes it the hardest wearing patio material on the market, and it is also what makes it the fussiest to lay.
Because a porcelain slab does not absorb, mortar cannot key into the back of it the way it does with sandstone. It has to be primed with a slurry and bedded on a full wet mortar bed, every slab, with no gaps underneath. Skip either step and the slabs let go.
That is why we treat porcelain as its own discipline rather than another slab on the pallet. Get the priming and the bedding right and a porcelain patio asks very little of you afterwards, a wash down now and then and the joints kept clear. Nothing outdoors in Cornwall stays free of weed or algae on its own, whatever it is made of.
Large format and standard size slabs, set out from the house so the cuts fall where nobody looks, with the fall running away from the building.
Porcelain carries a slip rating, so the finish is chosen for where the paving actually is. A shaded north facing terrace, a slope or anything near water wants a different texture from a sun trap by the back door.
Matching bullnose treads, drop edges and coping tie a porcelain patio into steps, raised beds and pool edges without a change of material. It is the detail that separates a laid patio from a finished one.
Twenty millimetre outdoor slabs, primed on the back, bedded on a full wet mortar bed over a compacted sub-base, with the slip rating matched to the location. Thinner tiles are indoor products and do not go outside on our jobs.
Porcelain is cut, not snapped, so setting out is done before anything is bedded. Joints are filled with a proper external compound and finished flush so nothing traps water.
Every porcelain patio sits on ground we have dug out and compacted ourselves. The wider paving job is on our patios and paving page.
Porcelain terraces are the jobs we are proudest of, and the transformation is the part that keeps us doing it: a tired lawn or a broken concrete slab one week, and a clean, level terrace running out of the back of the house the next. Every photograph on this site is our own work. There is more of it in the van.
We would rather you read what people say on Google than take our word for the finish.
Based on 4 Google reviews
Commenting as the owner of this property I can honestly say that Aaron was a pleasure to work with. Efficient, reliable, extremely hardworking, on schedule, amazing quality and just an all round lovely guy! Thank you Aaron! You can see the almost (steps leading up to the tub yet to be added as a finishing touch) finished project on the Boutique Retreats website: Kilter House, Coverack
Read more on GoogleWould definitely recommend. Our driveway was a mismatch of 3 different sections of gravel, some old concrete and a step. In two days he has completely overhauled it and it looks amazing. Very fast worker, polite and professional and reasonably priced as well. You won’t be disappointed by Michael’s team at all!
Read more on FacebookAaron laid us a wonderful patio for our back garden. From the start he was highly professional and courteous. He sat with us to discuss the best, most cost efficient options to get us exactly what we imagined. Aaron was very reliable and his after care has been exceptional ensuring he delivers the highest quality for his clients. Highly recommended!
Read more on GoogleMike and his son did a fantastic job on our sandstone patio. They provided a competitive quote and had expert knowledge. The job itself was completed to a very high standard. We are very happy with it. I highly recommend. Thank you again for the fantastic work.
Read more on FacebookReally happy with the work from Aaron Hunt Groundworks. Aaron and his team were super easy to deal with—friendly, reliable, and clearly know what they’re doing. They turned up on time, got stuck in, and made sure everything was done properly with a great finish. They kept the place tidy and checked in with us throughout the job to make sure we were happy. No fuss, no stress—just solid, professional work. Would definitely recommend them to anyone needing groundwork done. Top team!
Read more on GoogleWe had been waiting for along time for this small bit of garden to be finished…the original person we had booked just didn’t work out in the end. We booked Sunset Surfacing We are so pleased with the work and can’t wait for the summer to arrive. They were clean, tidy and professional…thank you
Read more on FacebookExtremely happy with my new patio. It wasn’t the most straight forward to lay but Aaron managed to get the finish I wanted and was completely flexible and accommodating to make it happen for our time lines. Would highly recommend.
Read more on GoogleIt never needs sealingSandstone wants sealing periodically to keep the staining out. Porcelain does not absorb, so there is nothing to seal and nothing to reapply.
Spills sit on top of itWine, oil, barbecue fat and leaf tannin stay on the surface instead of soaking in, so a porcelain terrace still looks the same after a summer of being used properly.
It grips when it is wetOutdoor porcelain is made with a textured face and a rated slip finish, which matters on a coast where a patio is wet more often than dry.
The colour holdsIt is fired, not dyed, so it does not fade out or go patchy.
One firm digs it and lays itThe base and the paving are the same job, with our own machines and our own team.
Your postcode, a rough size, and a photo of the space and the house.
One of the owners takes the levels, checks the access and the fall, and puts real slabs down in your own light so you can see the colour against your house.
Excavation, sub-base, bedding and priming, the slab, the cuts, the jointing and any steps or edge detail, itemised, with no obligation.
Ground out to formation, spoil away, sub-base compacted in layers, and the falls set before a slab is opened.
Every slab primed on the back, bedded on a full wet bed, cut in, jointed and cleaned off.
The number that explains porcelain also explains why it fails. Under BS EN 14411, the British and European standard classifying ceramic tiles, fully vitrified porcelain is defined by a water absorption of 0.5 per cent or less. A material that absorbs almost nothing gives mortar almost nothing to grip, which is why the priming slurry and the full wet bed are not optional on a porcelain patio.
We lay it week in, week out. Porcelain is the finish we are asked for most and the one we are proudest of. It is a specialism here rather than an occasional job.
The base is ours too. Porcelain is unforgiving of a base that moves, and the excavation, sub-base and drainage under it are our own daily trade.
Fully insured. Public liability and full business insurance sit behind the work.
Aaron Hunt came up through groundworks and landscaping, has 10 years in the trade, and porcelain is the finish the firm is proudest of. Mike Wherry brings 30 years of drives and patios, most of the last five in and around Helston. Forty years of combined experience, and one of them on your patio every day it is being built.
Porcelain is the one where you get the transformation. People walk out of the back door onto a finished terrace and you get that wow, and that is worth priming every slab by hand for.Aaron Hunt, co-owner of HW Contractors
CPCS 360 excavator tickets above and below 10 tonnes between them, plus dumper tickets and CSCS cards
Fully insured: public liability and full business insurance
Porthleven is our base and the porcelain work runs right across the west of the county. Helston and Mullion sit on the doorstep, and Truro, Falmouth and St Ives are inside the routine week. Penzance, Camborne, Redruth and Newquay are covered as well, with Newquay marking the far edge of the patch.
Not sure whether you are inside it? Call and ask.
Porcelain is priced on the laying as much as the slab. It takes a full mortar bed, priming on every piece and precise cutting, so the labour is a different job from bedding sandstone, and the ground underneath still has to be dug out and built up properly.
The site visit and the written quote are both free, with nothing to sign. The quote sets out the area, the excavation and disposal, the sub-base, the bedding and priming, the slab you have chosen, the cuts, the jointing, and any steps or edge detail.
If you want to compare porcelain against a natural stone, we will price both.
The wider paving job in stone, concrete and block, and the groundwork under all of it.
Patios & Paving
Whole garden transformations where the porcelain terrace is one part of a bigger plan.
Landscaping & Garden Design
The other finish we are proudest of, laid on a base built by the same team.
Resin DrivewaysSend your postcode, a rough size and a photo of the space, and one of us will come out with real slabs so you can see them in your own light. The visit and the written quote are free.
Call us on 07886 070245·Get a free quote online
Porthleven, Cornwall
Phone: 07886 070245
Email: info@hwcontractors.co.uk
Hours: Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm
Last updated: 22 September 2026