Questions re: Marble

[Sean Kelly]

I gave a quote to a lady the other day for laying 2.5sqm of ceramic floor tile. She just rung me to say that she got a good deal on white marble tiles (£100). I told her that marble was hard and that I would have to get (or hire) a cutter. I have since found out that marble is in fact soft. So I guess my Briccolina wet cutter (with diamond blade) should do the job of cutting the marble? Also, the customers current tiles are ceramic, and she thinks they are laid on ply. Is it ok to lay marble on ply or hardibacker? I've read the thread on sealing both sides of the marble, and the bit about using white addy. Is there anything else I should know? Cheers Sean

 

[wayne]

if you dont want to seal both sides just backskim the tiles with addy. keep a nice tight grout line and take your time. watch out for the veins in the tiles as well

 

[Fred]

You can go on both of those substrates. Use flexi-white addy. Don't use dark addy as it can stain though the marble. Lay, then, with a brush, put on sealer and wipe off with a clean white clothe. Grout and then seal again as before. You are correct, it is easy to cut.

 

[Grace'sDad]

Good quality marble cuts lovely on a decent wet cutter. Watch the veins for splitting (as mentioned already). Don't bother sealing the backs, just use a white adhesive and back-skim to minimise risk of comb marks showing through. Also DO NOT fix onto ply - EVER! Hardibacker / Nomoreply is fine.

Careful too with grouts which are darker than the marble. Mix the grout really thick, almost to a paste and work it into the joints. If it's too wet there is a risk of colour bleeding into the marble. (although I've also seen this happen with ceramics!)

Don't be scared of marble - it's lovely, satisfying stuff to work with.

 

[grumpygrouter]

It also breaks very easy if you need to lift a tile during fixing, to adjust the height for instance.

 

[MICK the Tiler]

You will also need to tell the client that the marble will need alot more maintenance to keep it looking good as it will scratch and scuff very easily.

 

[Sean Kelly]

Thanks Lads for your tips & advice. The lady has now changed her mind! Shame, as I was looking forward to working with marble. She is now thinking about porcelain! Now I will definately have to buy a new blade for my cutter. Cheers Sean