Natural stone

Natural stone has long been admired for its beauty, its durability and its practicality. The stones that are most commonly used: granite, slate, marble, limestone and travertine, are used because of their ease of quarrying, their abundance, strength and flexibility. In the past natural stone, once it was laid, was left alone, building up a natural seal throughout its life. Nowadays though the trend is to keep the stone looking as it did when it was first quarried, protecting it from staining, soiling and the laying process. Below is some general guidance on how to achieve this:

Selection

Once you have selected a natural stone, such as travertine, you need to ask if it has been sealed and what it has been sealed with: you need to replicate the sealing to get the same look. It is useful to ask to see the current stocks as it is a natural characteristic for natural stone to differ in shading and colour from batch to batch and from tile to tile. There are major variations in the standard of natural stone that is available, including its porosity, its sizing, its pitting and its general appearance. Always ask to see the existing tile stock as you will usually get what you pay for. Not all companies are as strict in their choice of natural stone as we are.

Delivery

Once your natural stone is delivered you should move it to a dry place and if it is damp you should allow it to dry out. You should take care in handling the unsealed natural stone to keep it from getting marked, stained or chipped.

Adhesives and Grouts

Natural stone can become stained from the wrong sort of adhesive and grout.  A white quick set adhesive is used to reduce the possibility of this happening and a quick setting grout of a colour that is similar to the stone is usually used. A full choice of suitable tile grouts and tile adhesives is available from our stock.

Tile laying

The laying of natural stone tiles is similar to ceramic tiles, although more care must be taken in the spacing and bedding of these tiles as even the best will be different sizes. Care must be taken to make sure that the surface of the tiles do not become contaminated with adhesive residues. When the tiles are laid they may need cleaning and be allowed to dry before the initial sealing coat is applied. If the floor needs to be dried it must be protected with a breathable membrane, such as a dust sheet. You should not use polythene sheeting.

Stone tile laying

When it comes to laying natural stone tiles, including travertine tiles, it is similar to the laying of ceramic tiles, although you need to take more care in the spacing and bedding of the tiles as even the best tiles will have some differences in size. You also need to take care to make sure that the surface of the tiles does not become contaminated with adhesive residues. When the tiles are laid they may have to be cleaned and allowed to dry out before the first coat of sealing is applied. If the floor has to be dried you should protect it with a membrane that is breathable, such as a dust sheet. You should not use polythene sheeting.

Sealing

The purpose of the seal is to reduce the natural stone’s porosity to avoid marking. The right seal application will make maintaining the stone in the future far easier. The sealing of the stone takes place before grouting with a last coat after grouting to ensure that the stone is fully saturated.

Maintenance

Natural stone needs a little more care than ceramic tiles. The right cleaners are extremely important as cleaners that are acid-based can be very damaging. The sealers will need replacing from time to time, especially when used in showers. All the tile seals, tile adhesives, tile cleaners and tile grouts are available from stock.