Travertine Flooring

Travertine flooring is essentially made with travertine tile which is an attractive and hardwearing natural stone which has been used from the ancient times up until today. You can find it in famous structures such as the Roman Coliseum which is existing and strong proof that this stone is very durable and sturdy as a building material.

There are a lot of installers as well as do-it-yourselfers today who have been using travertine for wall tiling and of course, more commonly, in flooring. Travertine flooring could easily be a practical, not to mention a unique and decorative addition to your exteriors and interiors. Here are some information that would be useful to know as you consider this type of floor for your home.

It is actually related to marble. Actually, it falls somewhere between limestone and marble if you would be considering its development over the thousands of years. It is a natural stone that is formed through the underground rivers, subterranean springs, as well as other natural water sources. These water sources are able to carry the mineral elements like calcium carbonate which build up after long periods of time just like the way stalagmites and stalactites which can be found in caves are formed. The resulting stone would be a very hard yet smooth substance that could be further characterized by the porous surface it possesses. These pores are actually the result of the gases that escape as travertine stone is formed. Once it is quarried, it appears as a very beautiful natural stone that is smooth and dense and exhibits a very notable and distinct creamy color which can remind you of some kind of an old-world refinement. It is usually found in Turkey and Italy and remains to be a very popular import for the construction products internationally.

Before it can be used for flooring, travertine has to be processed. It is basically removed from the earth in the form of considerably large blocks before being cut into what could be recognized as travertine tiles. Here are a coupe of ways in which it could be cut into.

1. Cross cut: This cut of the travertine tile is done with the stone bedding’s grain and on the very same layer wherein it formed in the earth, resulting in a more uniform color and texture.

2. Vein cut: This cut is done across the several stone bedding layers that results into a more mottled and tiger-stripe effect as they are cut into tiles.