Hi, just had a wetroom done and I need some tiles. The ones that took our fancy are actually honed and filled travertine tiles.
Not really had these before, and they will be going on the wall and floor (and also on the floor in a ajoining porchway), is there anything I should know about with regards to fitting them, and the longer term maintenance of them?
Thanks!
Travertine tiles.(the 30cm sq ones at Topps?) Dont walk on them in high heels. They are pretty soft. They are bastards to cut, 90%+ of cuts will require a wet cut, rather than a score and snap. They will need sealing before grouting otherwise the grout will be absorbed into the surface, and you'll be cleaning them for days. Reseal once they have been grouted. Reseal every year or so. I dont think they are the best option for floors, and as it happens, I'm doing them on a bathroom floor this week, and I questioned the customer if they were sure they wanted these for the floor. But they do. Great on walls, I have them on my bathroom, and look great. Bastards to cut though. Oh, they are hard to cut, if I hadnt already said. (well, the tiles are not actually hard, they are just too soft, and break easily)
Alan.
Travertine is a form of marble, i.e. calcium carbonate, so is readily etched by acids. Whether that's relevant or important, I'll leave you to decide.
Walls - yes. Floors - no.
The filler they use isn't as hard as the tiles and it breaks up if anyone walks on them in stilletoes or football studs, also, it discolours easily
Not a good choice for a floor, especially in wetroom. If they are highly polished they will slip, if not polished they will trap dirt.
Three things to keep in mind about travertine...
They a re soft, porous, and a PITA to cut... other than that they are fine!
The implications are, you need to make sure they are very well bedded onto a good layer of adhesive on floors, else the corners will crack under foot load.
If used for a shower etc, they must be sealed otherwise they will allow water to penetrate. (For the same reason it is also impossible to get a good seal with silicone against an untreated tile since the water is absorbed through the tile and will soon displace the silicone seal.
You can't score and snap them. You need a wheel tile cutter - either a wet one (large if these are 12" square), or you can get good results with a decent Norton continuous rim diamond disk in a small angle grinder, used against a straight edge (outside!)
They are marble, so soft and porous. They will need to be sealed after fitting.
A decent wet tile cutter is a must.
The floor will obviously have to have no movement, or they'll crack.
Unless a purist, I'd go for travertine lookalikes in porcelain.
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.