Unfilled travertine, seal before or after grout?

[richardw]

A novice DIY tiler and have just fixed my 29m2 unfilled travertine kichen floor, ready for next stage. I didnt pre-seal prior to fixing (as some here seem to advise) because of advice from my dealer (Manderin). They recommend sealing after grout because apparently the impregnator inhibits the grout bonding into the holes: Fixing & Sealing Natural Stone Tiles & Flooring
I also purchased their recommended sealer at great expense; Filafob at £36.40 + VAT for 1 ltr! Just got the one for now but guess i need loads for 29m2. Is there a cheaper option or is this product particularly good?
Does this all sound OK? I just wondered the pros and cons of sealing before grout or vica versa?
thanks Richardw

[Dave]

hi richard mate...travertine can be grouted before sealing but sealing before hand makes the cleaning up process easier..travertines not like some other naturals ,where as they are highly porous travertine isn't..but i would still advise not to leave it too long before washing off...make sure you have all residue cleaned off before sealing......i use lithofin stain stop and its reatails for about £ 25 a ltr..

MN Stainstop - 1L
A spirit based, silicone impregnator that penetrates into the surface of stone and forms an invisible film within the pores and capillaries.

Prevents staining from water, dirt and oil, allowing the stone to breathe, and aids maintenance. For use on all polished and unpolished natural and artificial stone.

[sc24]

pour some sealer onto a cloth and just lightly wipe over the surface of the trav if your not confident grouting the unsealed stone, Mandarin have been in business for a long time so they know what their talking about, I've used fila from them before and its ok,just follow the instructions on the tin. (lithofin stain stop is better though)

[wayne]

lithofin colour intensifier is ok to use but will change the appearance of the travertine

[Fred]

Most of my tiling is travertine, and I always seal before grouting. Saves tears later.

[geofix]

Dont worry about the wet cutter use a dry cutting blade on grinder outside cuts trav great .

[richardw]

Thanks to all for the advice. Like the sound of the 'light wipe over' prior to grouting. When i tried grouting some vigin trav under the cooker, the grout 'dragged' over the surface when filling the holes, presumably because of the suction. It was also a b**ger to clean off but that could be my technique, leaving too much on the surface.

I am still in a quandary over the sealer though as there is a huge disparity in price. A neighbour has recommended Liberon Stone Floor Sealer sold at my local diy shop for £12 ltr. Stone : Stone Floor Sealer - liberon.fr Cant find it on this site so guess its not a professional product. Has anyone used this? Dont get me wrong, i dont mind spending the money to protect my investment but just hate paying more for something if the cheaper product is just as good!

I get the impression no-one can show bias to a particular product here because of various sponsors etc, but Lithofin comes up more often than not. I also followed a link here for Drycoat Stainproof which looked good. I like the reference sites and the stain testing to ISO 10545-14. Price is £106 for 3ltrs delivered. Tile Sealer - Sealing Bricks & Floor Sealing Products

Richardw

Originally Posted by geofix

Dont worry about the wet cutter use a dry cutting blade on grinder outside cuts trav great .

Not sure if this was meant for me but yes i agree a dry blade works fine on trav. Oh and you forgot to add: "If you cant get your spouse to clean the dust off window frames, garden furniture etc afterwards, just make sure they are out shopping at the time" (speaking from personal experience - mine did neither and im still paying the price!)