A GUIDE TO USING NATURAL STONE: MARBLE
Used as building materials since ancient times, marble is a metamorphic stone used for building palaces, timeless monuments, and government buildings. You can typically find marble where you find mountains. It’s commonly quarried in Italy, India, China, Greece, Spain, and Turkey. Due to its high calcium content and vulnerability to acids, it’s not a popular choice for outdoor applications in colder climates and even indoor applications where the stone is exposed to acids (e.g. countertops). Owners should ensure careful maintenance to extend its appearance. Recommended applications for marble include interior floors, walls, hearths, vanities and much more. Just ensure that there is proper cleaning and maintenance of the stone. Marble’s durability is proven by the ancient structures that still stand.
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Being a softer stone, marble is susceptible to cracks in the substrate transferring through, so the use of a crack Isolation system such as Flextile Flexilastic 1000 or FlexMat Uncoupling Membrane should be considered if in-plane movement cracks are present in the substrate. Most of Flextile’s Latex/Polymer Modified Mortars are suitable for installing marble, with Flextile 66 FlexLite, 56SR and 61 Full Coverage mortars being preferable for larger sizes, and the White versions recommended for all light and medium colours. Some Green coloured marbles and the like are susceptible to curling and spalling when exposed to moisture during the installation/curing stages. They require a 100% solids Epoxy bond coat such as FlexEpoxy 100. Marble is also prone to staining and scratching when grouting and should be sealed with an appropriate sealer prior to grouting. In most instances, marble should be grouted with Flextile 500 Unsanded Grout.
Explore some of our favourite marble tile and slab products below:
Statuario Polished Tile and Slab
Blue Savoie Honed Tile and Slab
Black Serpentino Polished Tile and Slab
Cinderella Grey Tumbled Mosaic
Port Black Polished Composite Tile and Slab
Corinthian Beige Polished Slab
Explore more natural stone tiles and slabs on our Pinterest board.
