About Our Tumbled Stone Tiles and Tumbled Stone Flooring:
The terms tumbled stone tiles and tumbled stone flooring generally describe all natural stone products that are processed so that the stone has an old-fashioned look. When tumbled stone flooring is installed, it evokes a sense that the stone has been there for a very long time and that the stone has a natural patina to it. Tumbled stone is manufactured by many small producers who use wasted tiles and broken corners etc. Due to the massive quantity of production and the long production cycles of these quarries, there is no uniform grading system that is practiced by the majority of tumbled stone producers. Tumbled stone tiles from stonetiledepot.com are supplied by the world’s best tumbled stone quarries.
What Should One Look for When Buying Tumbled Stone Tiles?
When buying tumbled stone tiles, one should look for an even surface that is free of many voids and cracks, fossilized matter, and unusual spots. All of the tumbled stone tiles carried by stonetiledepot.com meet these quality standards, and all of our tumbled stone tiles are properly graded and quality controlled. One should also look for uniformity in color and background color as well as evenly tumbled corners. Some importers box different qualities of tumbled stone into one export shipment, and this causes tiles to break in transit making them unfit for installation. Tumbled stone tiles primarily come from Israel, China, Turkey, Portugal, Spain, and Italy. The most popular colors include Jerusalem tumbled stone tiles and Turkish travertine tumbled stone tiles. We ship our tumbled stone tiles to all major U.S. cities including New York, Miami, Las Vegas, Orlando, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Chicago.
Where Can One Use Tumbled Stone Tiles?
Tumbled stone tiles can be used in a variety of residential and commercial applications, such as on kitchen walls and flooring, bathroom walls and flooring, as well as for backsplashes, countertops, vanity tops, and entrance flooring. One can use tumbled stone tiles with a trim piece such as a bull nose or edge piece to create an inexpensive and practical countertop (although such an application must be checked with your installer). Tumbled stone countertops provide a very functional look, and for commercial applications such as hotel flooring, hotel bathroom tiling, and hotel bathroom stone countertops, tumbled stone is the preferred choice in areas where one wants to accomplish a functional and rustic feel. Most hard tumbled stone flooring can be used even in the most demanding applications as long as proper stone flooring material is selected and applied.
What Should One Look for in Quality Tumbled Stone Tiles?
Tumbled stone tile and tumbled stone flooring should have the following characteristics:
- A good uniform color selection of tumbled stone flooring material should be used. It is important to dry lay the whole shipment to achieve a uniform consistency and blend of colors throughout the entire floor prior to installation. This will prevent unattractive or unwanted pieces although less desirable pieces can be used for cuts and in less visible areas of the application.
- Pieces should be free of visual defects such as pits (except in some stones where pitting is considered natural and must be properly filled), major cracks, and major open veins (i.e. a natural vein that is not filled).
- One should only use sound and strong tumbled stone tiles.
- Tumbled stone tiles must have a uniform, even surface as a result of professional finishing. The most typical finish for tumbled stone tiles is honing although some can be polished as well. All tiles must have the same thickness (generally 10mm or 3/8” thick) and size. All of the tumbled stone tiles we carry are manufactured at first grade factories with proper processing machinery.
- Professional packing should be used so that pieces are stacked with polished face to polished face to prevent scratching. The pieces should not be laid flat. In general, all stone flooring shipments must be prepared so that the natural stone tiles and tumbled stone flooring stand up on a pallet. The shipping pallet must be of good quality, and the tumbled stone flooring must be securely strapped to the pallet in a perpendicular fashion. All of the natural stone tile and countertop pieces sold by stonetiledepot.com meet these requirements.
Care and Maintenance for Tumbled stone Tiles and Tumbled Stone Flooring:
It is extremely easy to care and maintain tumbled stone flooring. Tumbled stone flooring is one of the most durable materials and requires very little maintenance. We recommend taking the following simple precautions:
1. Be sure to select the right type of natural stone for your home.
2. Be sure to follow instructions by your stone care provider. We recommend Miracle Sealants, which provides excellent help and support through its web site: www.miraclesealants.com.
3. We recommend all natural stone to be sealed immediately after installation and initial cleaning.
4. For everyday residential use, basic cleaning with warm water and cloth should be more than enough to maintain tumbled stone tiles and tumbled stone flooring. Spills should be wiped off quickly, and heavy staining can be treated by using professional cleaning products available from Miracle Sealants.
5. We recommend that a minimal grout joint is left when a marble floor is installed. Although some prefer a very tight joint, a minimum grout joint of 1/8” is recommended so that the floor has room for expansion and contraction due to conditions related to your subfloor. This is especially valid for new constructions. In more rustic finishes, such as for chiseled stones, a bigger grout joint can be used.
6. Enjoy the investment in tumbled stone flooring for many years to come!
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