Tumbled Travertine Floor

Hi, I have purchased travertine for my kitchen floor.It has lots of holes big and small and the surface is not flat.My plan is to grout it and seal it by using MB-4 Stone and More Impregnator/Sealer or 511 from Homedepot.Will the sealer looks dirty or feel harsh very soon(say couple of months)?will the sealer itself grab the dirt or let us say the Sealer is just like a thin layer on the travertine and it will get harsh very soon when it is alway heavy traffic in the kitchen area?Please advice.Thanks

 

Dear Michael :

It sounds like you purchased tumble-finished travertine.

Since it's a kitchen floor it is imperative that you fill the holes of your tiles by using either unsanded grout or color-matching caulking material. The type of soil typical of a kitchen that would inevitably accumulate inside the open holes could create an unsanitary situation.

After a couple of weeks after installation (to allow for the proper curing of the grout, filler and setting material) you will apply a good-quality impregnator like MB-4.

Actually, if you like the way your tiles look when they are wet (darker in color), if you use MB-6 instead of MB-4 it will give you that wet look (without any shine) permanently.

Both products are below-the-surface (of the stone) impregnating sealers. In fact, the most important phase of the application of an impregnator (a.k.a. sealer) is the thorough removal of every residue of the product from the surface of the stone before it has a chance to dry. At this point it goes without saying that your concerns about the sealer grabbing dirt and all that are totally unsubstantiated if the sealing job is done right, for not a single iota of the product is supposed to be left on the floor. If it is (left on the floor), you will have maintenance problems with no easy solution!

Now remember, it's never too early to think about the proper maintenance of your stone. The issue of what you'll be doing day in and day out to your stone is vastly more important than the sealing and it's all too often neglected. As you can tell by reading many of this site's postings, you're not likely to get good information about it from your dealer or installer. Don't become another statistic! By logging into the Helpful Hints section of our website at: http://www.marblecleaning.org/helpful-hints.htm , you will be able to get the short version of our maintenance guidelines at no charge. The full version of it – a 7-page document considered by many as an industry benchmark – is available in pay-per-download format in our Educational Literature section at: http://www.marblecleaning.org/literature.htm .  

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Ciao and good luck,

Mauri z io Bertoli

 

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