Good question. The answer is, I don’t know what is best for you. But I do hear a lot of questions about which kind of floor would be best for different applications. Here is a short article from onlinetips.org that gives you some ideas about ceraminc tiles, vinyl tiles, and most importantly, stone. In the end, it comes down personal tastes and we all know how diverse those can be.
Check out the article HERE.
It is not always an easy task to tell different materials apart. Walking through a shopping mall at the weekend with some friends, I was asked which type of slate a wall was faced with - It was actually a facsimile of slate made of porcelain!
Since different surfaces have different maintenance requirements, it is extremely important to identify the product to match up to the proper care regimen.
I found this interesting article from the StoneTech® Professional website which has an excellent descriptive analysis of different surface types. Click here to read it.
Can I use travertine when there are testing standard requirements? In the words of Bob The Builder, “Yes, we can!” If you know the little fellow in this picture, and cringe at the sound of a Plasticine cast singing “Yes, we can!” in unison, you probably have kids. If you don’t know Bob, I can tell you, he is one unique cat.
Here are some requirements from the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) as they pertain to travertine. While stone is a natural product with variation from piece to piece, even from the same block, I have also included the average numbers for travertine from the Denizli, Turkey region.
ASTM Requirement
Absorption by Weight: 2.5% (max)
Density, min, lb/ft3 (kg/m3): 144 (2305)
Compressive Strength, min psi (MPa) Interior: 7500
Exterior: 5000
Modulus of Rupture, min MPa Interior: 4.8
Exterior: 6.9
Flexural Strength, min MPa: 4.8
Denizli, Turkey Travertine
Absorption by Weight: 1%
Density, min, lb/ft3 (kg/m3): 150 (2500)
Compressive Strength, min psi (MPa) Interior: 8107
Exterior: 8107
Modulus of Rupture, min MPa Interior: 9
Exterior: 9
Flexural Strength, min MPa: 5.1
If that was all Greek to you, I wouldn’t worry about it but for those of you that require standards testing that is a good start to what you need to know.
To expand on a previous post, here is some more information about stone tile and grout cleaners.
Your stone floors starting to look a little grungier than you remember? It might be time for a good spring (summer, fall or winter too) cleaning. With stone tile surfaces, you want to make sure you are using the right type of cleaner. Many products are not designed for natural stone and can actually pose serious problems for your floor. Check out STONETECHPRO.COM for a selection of cleaners designed for your floors.
On a lighter note, if you live in the Dallas Forth Worth area and think you might just have the ickiest, dirtiest, nastiest grout around, check out the Moore Services website and you just might win a free tile and grout cleaning in their CONTEST.
Back in 1986, HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS tried to convince us it was “Hip To Be Square”. Based on its eventual rise to #3 on the Billboard Charts, apparently many of us agreed. But is this really the case in the world of tile?
There seems to be some trends away from the standard 18″x18″ or 16″x16″ tiles to more rectangular shapes. This is true of wall installations as well as floor installations, but why? The versatility of the rectanges (8″x16″ or 12″x24″) is probably the number one reason, followed by the fact that it is just something different. If you are looking to explore, but all you have are 18″x18″ tiles, try cutting a couple of them in half and try some of the patterns that can be made. Try offsetting the tiles in a BRICK PATTERN, or laying them in a HERRINGBONE PATTERN, or even just laying them randomly like you would a wood floor (note that the above links are to mosaics, but they give you the idea). All make an interesting effect if you have decided it really isn’t that hip to be square.
I was just waiting for the right moment to speak about a novel, greener transportation initiative and my colleague, Marc McPherson beats me to it! Read his blog here on the ‘new’ theory of using sail power for ocean going vessels. By the way, the above photo is me trying to jump over a cargo ship at a local beach in
With any tile installation you are going to have cuts. Whether you are going around cabinets, a toilet, or through a door, you are going to require a means to trim down your tiles. You can read some information about the most useful tool, the wet saw, HERE.
It is theorized that all of the Earth’s land masses were once joined together in a single continent known as ‘Pangaea’ which, around 180 million years ago, split in two - Laurasia in the north and Gondwanaland in the south. As time (a lot of it!) passed, these two land masses split apart several more times into the continents we now know. When one considers that the slate deposits that run up the east coast of North America are virtually identical to those found in Wales, it seems like a plausible explanation.
The former existence of a single ‘supercontinent’ was proposed by German meteorologist Alfred Wegener in 1912.
Click here to see a full size image of the above globe.
So your floors are done, now what to do about that tub surround? Travertine mosaics, well any stone mosaics really, add a unique touch to any tub surround or wall surface. Mosaics range from the standard 1″x1″ pieces to extremely intricate works of art as you can see from some of the pictures above. Obviously, based on the texture, these are designed for walls rather than floors.
Stone moldings often make a great break between standard tiles and mosaics or as a cap piece when doing wall pieces. Notice the use of the Ogee Classic molding in the picture below.
Finally, an interesting touch, and often a focal piece in a room is the stone medallion. Medallions are large, often round mosaics depicting designs or even pictures made from small pieces of stone. They can be used in conjunction with tile, or in my case, we inlaid it into our strand woven bamboo floor. Bet you can’t guess where this next picture is from.
Yes, that is in a double wide trailer. Classes the joint up a bit don’t you think? Anyone that comes down to the trailer in the summer is always amazed. Something like this is sure to make that special lady feel like Sammy Kershaw says, the “Queen of My Double-wide Trailer!”
For those of you that liked that clip, you should check out one of the greatest song writers and storytellers Canada has ever produced: Ian Tyson.
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