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I love the look and feel of marble. We’re building a new home and I originally planned to use marble in my 10 x 20 foot master “spa” hee, hee, hee. Then I read an article where the guy said putting in marble was the biggest mistake of his life. What has everyone else’s experience been? I think his problem was staining. Several other people have mentioned cleaning as a problem. Other than using marble cleaner, are there any other caveats?
An aquaintance of ours puts in marble in hotels and our cost for tile is $4 a sq. ft. Does this sound like a good deal? Thanks for your help. I learn so much from these boards.
Kerry
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The way I see it, the material should be matched to rthe specifications of the job. There needs to be established certain criteria to aid in helping to select the proper material. There is nothing wrong with marble, per se. When it is not matched to the expected performance is when the problems occur. The expectations of performance apply to what location it will be used in as well as how it will be used by the folks in the house.
It kinda' goes along the route of trying to decide whether you should choose that plush white carpet. Well, if you have a bunch of rugrats, I'd say don't do it. Nothing wrong with white carpet, right? But some people have installed it and then complained about the cleaning hassle.
What is best for your intended purpose should be on your mind. Marble for your stated intended use will hold up fine. Since marble is a stone, be prepared to seal the tile and grout. Avoid ferrous metals--they can leave rust spots on the marble--and avoid very hot items in contact with the marble.
$4/SF is pretty darn reasonable. Depending on the species, it may as well be a great deal.
*I would agree with Rich, keep in mind that although it is a stone, its VERY pourous and does stain rather easy, it also DOES soak up water, not as a sponge would, but is permiable (did I spell it right?) and needs to be kept religiously sealed around constant water contact. Lastly, I've layed marble at almost 25 bucks a foot and seen it as low as 3 bucks, so it all depends on the stone, as Rich also said.
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Agree with Rich. Some installation thoughts, though. If it's a white marble, be sure to use white, latex-modified thin set mortar that says it's for granite and marble (Dal Tile carries it, etc.FullFlex,..). Buy all the marble you'll need at one time- so guess for about 15 to 20% over. I kid you not-esp.if your'e thinking of setting it on the diagonal. Real reason: you'll most likely NEVER match the shades in the original batch! Also, I'd use sanded grout, even if your lines are less than 1/8".Try to like a light gray or something rather than white-hard to keep clean.
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I love the look and feel of marble. We're building a new home and I originally planned to use marble in my 10 x 20 foot master "spa" hee, hee, hee. Then I read an article where the guy said putting in marble was the biggest mistake of his life. What has everyone else's experience been? I think his problem was staining. Several other people have mentioned cleaning as a problem. Other than using marble cleaner, are there any other caveats?
An aquaintance of ours puts in marble in hotels and our cost for tile is $4 a sq. ft. Does this sound like a good deal? Thanks for your help. I learn so much from these boards.
Kerry