Marble tiling - What should i know?

9 years ago

I'm doing a 3" honed marble hex tile on my bathroom floor. Or at least, i'm thinking of it. I am hearing very mixed reviews on whether marble is a good choice for a bathroom. Does anyone have some experience with marble in the bathroom, good or bad? Also, I'm planning to buy the tile online from thebuilderdepot.com, as their prices are amazing and the sample i got is beautiful. But is it really as good a deal as it seems, or am i ending up with low grade marble without even knowing it?

Thanks all, for any words of wisdom you may have!

Featured Answer

annac54

9 years ago

You will need to buy a good amount of extra tile. Marble varies considerably in color and can have natural deviations in it that you may not want to use. No guarantee the color will be consistent within any box or from box to box. As stated above, be prepared to sort and arrange it. You may end up using some tiles that you don't like. Also, when cutting, sometimes there are natural inclusions that you can't see, so if you cut across the inclusion, you end up with pieces you didn't plan on.

You need to be careful with the type of mastic/thin set you use. The tile surface, but not sides needs to be sealed before you grout, otherwise the grout will stick to the surface of the stone tile, something that doesn't happen with glazed ceramic. Then you have to seal it again after it's grouted.

With buying over the internet, be prepared for breakage and having to deal with damage claims, and extra time waiting for replacement tile. You may not have problems, but you need to plan for the possibility in case you are on a tight schedule. I ordered our backsplash tile online, and the first shipment was not delivered because it was totally broken up before it even got to us. About 30% of the replacement was broken also. When we finally got the balance of the tile, it was not quite as good quality as what we received before. We had ordered plenty of extra, and sorted the tile several times, using the less appealing tile where it would show the least.

We had done two floors and a fireplace with marble before we did our backsplash, as well as several ceramic tile projects before that, so we had an idea of what we were dealing with when using the stone.

If you are installing it yourself, get as much information as you can. If you are hiring an installer, make sure they know how to work with stone.

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Comments (9)

aiallega
9 years ago
Lilyka, Please take a look at my thread "So upset about marble floor" before making a decision. However, I think my floor is an extreme example of what can go wrong with marble. Good luck. Amy
sloyder
9 years ago
I would buy the tile locally, in case you have a problem it can be returned easily, otherwise you will have to freight it back to them. even buying a few boxes of marble tiles at Lowes one box was completely broken, so I had to swap it. You can also cherry pick the tiles you want.
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enduring
9 years ago
Agree, buy local. There are a number of threads where people bought marble or travertine online because of a beautiful sample and the purchased tile looked nothing like the sample piece. There is a real quality difference between marbles too. Some can practically crumble in your hands. The floor is where you want strong tile. If it were me I'd probably spring for the price of a quality tile company that does marble. Otherwise I'd put in porcelain.
User
9 years ago
For hex, just do the traditional ceramic from Daltile that's been used for a million years. You can special order some from the colors and do a traditional ''flower'' pattern.

Here is a link that might be useful: Daltile hex patterns
Lilyka
Original Author
9 years ago
Thanks everyone for the advice! I can't buy locally, unfortunately, without paying twice the price. But I will definitely be asking some more questions about quality and sourcing from my online sales rep before i take the plunge. If not, porcelain it is, despite the sale on marble!

Holly: As far as i can tell, Daltile doesn't do any white 2" matte hex, which is what i want (i don't like the look of 1"), but thank you for the link.

Amy: I'm so sorry about how your tile turned out! What a disappointment!! Crossing my fingers for you that as they settle in and dry out, the color will even out.
numbersjunkie
9 years ago
I'm not into marble. And very glad that's the case. I assume you've done a search, but surprised to hear you say reviews were "mixed". Seems like all the threads I've read have been related to problems with marble installs. Sounds like "buy local" and make sure you have an installer experienced with marble (porous), are good advice if you insist on that route.

Good luck with your project!
User
9 years ago
If you're not spending $20-$30 a square, then you're not getting good quality. Internet sales are rife with low quality, questionably spaced, and thin stone products. It will inevitably disappoint those that are picky. Even if the buyer isn't picky, they'll still have the traditional problems of staining and etching. Not to mention finding a tile technician who understands that stone is different than ceramic.
nicole__
9 years ago
I love marble.....and have seen very nice poor quality/cheap marble floors in countries like China or indonesia....and LOVED THEM!

My bathroom floor is marble, crema marfil. It had tons of gray variations/splotches....which I seperated out and put them in the water closet area. I can sit on the pot and look at the pretty dragon looking blotches on the tile floor. :0) I've had it in for 10 years....it's no longer shiny....but I can wax it any time if I want that look.

I also recently added a marble fireplace hearth done with 12x12 tiles purchased @ HD. I told them I could buy all their tile, take it home and sort it there then return what I didn't need or I could open all the boxes THERE at the store and get the 23 tiles I needed.

They assigned an employee to me....we opened every box.....and I LOVE my new hearth!!!!!!!!! I paid $2.99 a square foot.

My advice.....prepare to sort it and arrange it...

Here is a link that might be useful: This is how varied it is, no kidding,I picked out all the grey ones...