Tile. Granite. Marble. / | Tiles marble |
The very name of marble speaks for itself (marmaros, Gr. - Brilliant stone). For no one millennium, he retains the right to be decoration material, shiny in every way. The ancient masters noticed that this is a unique material for sculpture. Marble warm white color created the Venus de Milo, built the Parthenon, the Temple of Olympian Zeus and columns of the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus - one of the seven wonders of the world.
With its low hardness of this stone is polished and gives soft, coming from the depths, shine. In the rays of light penetrating deep into the stone, marble comes to life - there is light around a luminous halo. He shines and plays with pink, yellow, gray, blue, greenish, reddish brown tones, striking deep black, as well as various combinations thereof. In the colored marble are usually many veins (the so-called " stone veins "), which are cracks filled with natural impurities. In sections of marble Jura, Rosso Verona or Fossile Marrone attentive eye discern the silhouettes of ancient mollusks, fossilized algae, corals, shells. Some varieties with the inclusion of quartz and pyrite crystal sparkle and gold " notes ".
The richness of texture and huge color palette ranging from pure black to milky white (the latter, incidentally, idolized Michelangelo) allow us to implement the most brilliant ideas. Depending on the selected color, " rock " The interior can be warm or cold, massive or air, magnificent or modest, dark or light.
Processing
Most of the stone processing companies adhere to common standards and let the tile size 300 x 300, 305 x 305, 400 x 400, 600 x 300 mm. Thickness depending on the destination ranges from 10 to 20 mm (floor tile) above.
As for the texture of tiles, the treatment options marble surface is not so much: polishing, grinding, buchardirovanie, artificial aging (" Antique ").
Polishing and grinding emphasizes the natural beauty of the stone. Buchardirovanie gives the material very useful anti-skid band. The increasing popularity acquires " Antique ", which prefer lovers of antiques and interior styling by antiquity. It is believed that simulation of natural aging (weathering) creates a special feeling of softness and warmth. Especially the aged marble widely used for lining sex in the fashionable restaurants and lounges, with the help of designers try to bring in the interiors of the spirit of antiquity, authenticity. Deliberately recreating a natural phenomenon, one can obtain different degrees of aging. Aging effect is achieved by treating the surface with special technology, which may include both mechanical (including manual), and chemical attack. For example, for the manufacture of tabletops, decorating walls and floors often use a mosaic of stone. It is placed in a special drum, where the stones like pebbles, rub against each other, getting rounded shape.
Applications
This finishing material used for interior and exterior work. Floors, walls, stairs, fireplaces, columns, countertops, fixtures, when they marble, look always great.
Properties
Marble is durable, durable, resistant to temperature and humidity. But for all its strength it is soft, absorbent material. As you know, slates and marbles - it's sedimentary carbonate rocks, so different to the instability of acid, food dyes, thermal shock. Marble surfaces should be protected from thermal effects - a cup of hot tea or coffee table top can be fatal. Make marble steps or flooring can be, but try to exclude the possibility of contact with the surface of abrasive particles, such as sand - they scratched the stone.
Choosing marble for wet rooms should be appreciated that prolonged contact with water, it can change the color. The reason - the oxidation of ferrous inclusions of minerals. And yet, for bathrooms and showers this material is preferable to say, Granite, because it has a porous structure and, therefore, provides more traction.
It is important to choose the right cementing material for laying marble. When using mortar or adhesive for the tiles after a while on the surface of the stone appear unavoidable spot - they soaked salt and coloring agents. Therefore it is recommended to use special adhesives and plaster.
Taking into account these nuances and to pay due attention during the operation, enjoy the beauty of the selected stone will not only you, but your grandchildren and great grandchildren.
Care
As already noted, in terms of performance marble practically forever, but like any " live " material, requires care and in need of protection from hostile environments - dirt, water, salt, sand and acid. For these purposes, use special tools: reinforcers (hardeners) and polishes the stone soaking, cleaning compounds, mastics, even an ordinary bee wax.
This primarily refers to the polished floors. The main enemy Polishing is dirt, so we must first take care of multi-stage protection system and regular cleaning of the surface. Wax protective coatings improve the appearance of stone to protect it during operation and allow wash the treated stone cover with plain water. Also for unprotected stone floors have a special substance, which not only wash away dirt, but also create a protective film. In addition, the developed formulations that reduce the slip even on wet rock surfaces.
If the stone is so defective severe that the wax products are no longer able to help apply more radical means - sanding followed by polishing. Smoothing and perepolirovka stone surfaces is performed using special equipment. As a result, the stone takes on the original appearance.
Price
Long gone times when the marble to decorate your home could afford only " the powerful ". Industrial production and processing methods significantly reduce the cost, resulting from a luxury marble moved in the category of readily available products.
Major suppliers of " brilliant stone " - Italy, Greece, Turkey. In recent years, actively promoting the market their goods to China. Little explored deposits, mainly in the Urals, Western and Eastern Siberia and the Kola Peninsula. Frankly, the quality of the stone does not depend on where he went, more important than its natural conditions and compliance technologies for the extraction and processing. But the " registration " affect the price, because it lays, and the cost of labor and customs duties and transport costs.
When buying facing slabs of natural marble is necessary to pay attention to the size and quality of facial surfaces. For tiles with a polished and grinding texture of the first class are visible defects in general are not allowed. The second class may have some flaws: no more than two or three tiny corners and chipping damage along the edges of the perimeter. Colored marble of the first and second class, designed for internal finish, may have one non-through crack of tectonic origin.
Keep in mind that there are stones, sufficiently complex to tsvetootbora, and there is almost uniform. The discrepancy in the color of the tiles of the same breed is a distinctive feature of the natural material, so the buyer must specify in advance to the supplier and the extent of possible deviations otsmotret the maximum possible number of samples.
Standard Polished Facing plate thickness of 10 mm is from 15 to 80 dollars./Sq. The main determining factors - originality, form, color, durability, appearance processing. The price for individual unique breeds may greatly exceed the main line. For example, marble Verde Nicolaus - one of the most expensive marbles, which has blue-green color, is worth up to $ 120/sq. M. m. When the thickness of the plate (15, 20, and sometimes up to 30 mm), its cost may increase by several times.
Marble - precious material: the right choice, competent installation, implementation of the recommendations of professionals for the care and operation will return a hundredfold. And then everyone has to deal with him subscribe to the words the great Michelangelo: " Marble - is the soul of the universe, pure essence, created by God: it is not just a symbol of God, a reflection of his face, a means by which God reveals himself. Only the Lord's hand is capable of creating this noble beauty of the ".