Polished travertine tile

[notatiler]

Hi all, i have just bought my tiles for the bathroom wondered if anyone can tell me if you need to seal Polished Travertine, shop said no but i am not convinced.....

thanks

[david campbell]

personally i think you should seal them as they are an expensive tile and i tend to seal anything that is polished it will make sure no dirt or grime gets stuck in the tile!

[robbbin]

most types you do test one put a few drops of water on one leave for a while see if it soaks in

[enduro]

Definitely need to seal this, as it probably only been diamond polished.

[notatiler]

Thanks for the replies, any suggestions what I would seal it with to keep the polished effect?

[david campbell]

i use fila polished tile sealer from topps but a lot of guys on here would suggest lithofin which is a lot dearer but is the best on the market!

[MsCabbage]

I just used Lithofin Colour Intensifier to seal my nearly polished travertine tiles and they improved the depth of colour as well as sealing them. And they really do seal the water just globs on the tile after.

I found the Lithofin to be cheaper that the Fila from Topps - but I did by mine off ebay Lithofin MN Colour Intensifier for Natural Stone 1ltr on eBay, also Tiling Ceramic, Flooring, DIY Materials, Home Garden (end time 16-Apr-09 2037 BST)

[Dave]

Stainstop is great for polished stones.....

[wetdec]

The tension created accross the surface when polishing travertine generally means it will not stain easily, this believe it or not is also true of honed travertine.

Because of its structure... it is honeycombed being sedimentary the surface holes are filled before honing and polishing. This process involves the use of water which can fill some smaller holes causing a pressure which prevents filler entering. It is for this reason if any that honed and polished travertine may be sealed.

The use of a colour enhancer / stain stop may be used on honed travertine which will seal and lift the colour, on polished however a colour enhancer is wasted and a straight stain stop should be used.

If deamed necessary travertines should be sealed after grouting where the grouting process has been given the opotunity to fill any holes missed at the processing stage.


Hope this explains it a little for you


..

[MichTaylor]

I just used Lithofin Colour Intensifier to seal my nearly polished travertine tiles and they improved the depth of colour as well as sealing them. And they really do seal the water just globs on the tile after.

I found the Lithofin to be cheaper that the Fila from Topps - but I did by mine off ebay Lithofin MN Colour Intensifier for Natural Stone 1ltr on eBay, also Tiling Ceramic, Flooring, DIY Materials, Home Garden (end time 16-Apr-09 2037 BST)

Thanks for the tip off Ms Cabbage.

I hope we aren't bidding against each other now?

[beanz]

The tension created accross the surface when polishing travertine generally means it will not stain easily, this believe it or not is also true of honed travertine.

Because of its structure... it is honeycombed being sedimentary the surface holes are filled before honing and polishing. This process involves the use of water which can fill some smaller holes causing a pressure which prevents filler entering. It is for this reason if any that honed and polished travertine may be sealed.

The use of a colour enhancer / stain stop may be used on honed travertine which will seal and lift the colour, on polished however a colour enhancer is wasted and a straight stain stop should be used.

If deamed necessary travertines should be sealed after grouting where the grouting process has been given the opotunity to fill any holes missed at the processing stage.


Hope this explains it a little for you


..

Very informative post Wetdec, when would you deem it necessary to leave the sealing on Honed Travertine til after grouting? Is there something in particular that'd make you follow this course?


Sorry for dragging up an old thread, it just caught my eye while i was searching for info on Travertine.