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We have friends who want to re-do their kitchen to improve from the builder grade materials. She wants to do a slate floor, but he is leery to spend any money and his mother has butted in and said that slate stains really badly. She even put a drop of water on the sample and it made a white ring. I have not seen it, so I have no idea how visible it is.
I have worked in commercial construcition and have been involved with slate floors on projects, but not that many and they of course had regular maintenance and sealing, but have never noticed a huge problem with stains. She is afraid that something will be spilled by a dog or kid that is not seen until later and create a lasting stain and she'll never hear the end of it.
Has anyone had similar issues?
If you have a slate floor what are you doing for maintenace and how often do you seal it?
Location: Finally made it to Florida and lovin' every minute!
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We have some nice faux slate tiles made of porcelain on our lanai. We have real slate that we put on the bar top. IMO, true slate is rather delicate and easily chipped.
Slate is a gorgeous material but it fractures in a way that makes a truly level surface all but impossible. In a residential kitchen it would a nightmare, with tables always rocking a little bit, slips all too common and of course spills.
Even if it is sealed I would not want the dirt trapping little crevices to deal with.
There are better places to use it -- accent in an entryway, fireplace surround, to name two.
Hardsurfaces are murder on ones's legs /joints / back when cooking/ washing dishes. It would be even worse with the slight surface irregularities common in flooring grades.
We have Wilsonart faux slate in our walkout basement entry and bathroom - it looks absolutely authentic. We've had ours for 3 years now and it looks brand new.
i have slate going through my foyer, dining room, and kitchen. YOu must put a sealent on it. It is perfectly level and it has been fine since 2004. And no stains or cracking.
Slate is a gorgeous material but it fractures in a way that makes a truly level surface all but impossible. In a residential kitchen it would a nightmare, with tables always rocking a little bit, slips all too common and of course spills.
Even if it is sealed I would not want the dirt trapping little crevices to deal with.
There are better places to use it -- accent in an entryway, fireplace surround, to name two.
Hardsurfaces are murder on ones's legs /joints / back when cooking/ washing dishes. It would be even worse with the slight surface irregularities common in flooring grades.
I totally agree. Being the one who washes the kitchen floor, I have a hard enough time with grout lines on my porcelain tile floor, let alone something as irregular as real slate is. I've seen some faux slate which doesn't require the maintenance of the real deal that is quite beautiful. I walked into a friend's remodel recently and gasped, "I can't believe you went with travertine!" (meaning, it's so hard to maintain) and she replied. "I'm not crazy. It's fake." Looked completely real to me. When you can get that high-end look free of maintenance headaches, why would you want real? You have a maid, I guess.
I love slate and I think it's much more durable than people think.
It has a classy look that can mix with any decor. When I grew up it was the entry way product of choice in new homes. Builders are thrifty and want to save money. Really that's why it fell out of favor.
My parents raised four kids in a house with a slate foyer, kitchen and family room, And I promise, if you went there it would still look good and new - just as though it is still 1970. Almost like a time capsule...
In both a good way and ...another way.
I chose a 'soft'er floor in the kitchen - a hi-quality laminate - because stuff would shatter if dropped on stone and stone is awfully hard on the legs and back for standing. Stone/tile/grout is also too hi-maintenance for me in a kitchen. Looks great tho, no doubt!
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