5 Pros and 5 Cons of Marble Flooring

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Marble Flooring bathroom tan bathtub

The words that best describe marble are stylish, smooth, elegant, sleek, and above all, natural. This beautiful material has a luxurious look and feel and has been used for centuries in sculptures and for the floors, ceilings and walls of palaces, churches and other architectural masterpieces.

Marble is a metamorphic rock and each piece is different in colour and in the veining. High-end marble has soft veining and a very even colour palette and the look is soft, rich and elegant. Although it was once a show of power and wealth, today marble is becoming a big part of modern homes all over the world.

The question is, should it? Sure, there are many pros to having marble in your home. But there are also a good number of cons to choosing this beautiful material. So, before you decide to use marble as your floor covering, read on as Dakota Murphey, a content writer that specialises in the interior design sector has provided 5 pros and cons of marble flooring. Some of the information was provided by quality tile specialists, The Stone Tile Emporium.

The pros of marble flooring

Marble flooring designs come in a wide range of choices and are an ideal way to give your home a rich, stylish look.

  1. Shine on … beauty is forever

The beauty in marble is plain to see but did you know it also lasts for centuries? Each piece of marble is cut from a giant slab so it forms a part of the original piece. This means that when marble is cut into smaller floor tile-sized pieces, no two tiles have the same markings, there’s only a superficial similarity between them. This feature is what lends marble flooring its uniqueness and gorgeous, silky appearance.

  1. Unique

Marble floors radiate a richness and elegance, and give your home a luxurious feel and a sense of grandeur. The ‘one-off original’ colour on the surface of each tile means the look is truly unique and can’t be replicated.

  1. Spit and polish

Most stone floor materials do not perform well if polished regularly but marble has an extremely high tolerance to polishing. This means the surface of your marble floors can always look sleek, smooth, rich and shiny. And thanks to polishing, the colours stand out even more.

  1. Sparkling reflections of light

Because marble can be polished to a high sheen, it tends to sparkle and shine brightly when exposed to light. This is one of the reasons why for centuries marble has been used in sculptures. There’s a translucent quality and a lustrous sheen to marble that’s captured and reflected by the light thrown onto its surface.

In particular, the effect of using white marble floor tiles is amazing – it seems like light is flooding into the room and penetrating into the very surface of the marble.

  1. Eco-friendly

Another advantage of marble is that it’s a natural material and not manufactured. This means that it’s biodegradable and contains no harmful chemicals that can leach into the atmosphere. This makes it the perfect eco-friendly flooring product.

The cons of marble flooring

While there’s no doubt that marble is a beautiful and natural material, having marble flooring in your home comes with its own drawbacks.

  1. An endangered species

Unfortunately, there’s only a limited amount of marble in the world, so it’s become increasingly difficult (and expensive) to find top quality marble for new homes … and at some point in the future we may even run out of this wonderful material.

  1. It’s expensive

You want luxury – you gotta pay for luxury. For high grade marble expect to pay from £65per square metre but for top-of-the-range polished Carrara marble you might have to pay upwards of £300 per square metre.

  1. Slipping and sliding

It could be a big mistake to tile your kitchen and bathroom floors with marble. When polished, cleaned, or wet, tiles become incredibly slippery … and the last thing you need is to fall and break a leg! It’s best to restrict marble to areas like the foyer, a study or a living room.

  1. Stains and scratches

Marble floors, especially polished marble floors, scratch easily. If a chair or sofa is pushed across the surface, scratches can occur. These can be removed by professionals but it will cost you plenty.

  1. Cleaning nightmare

Also, beware of spilling fruit juice, wine and sauces onto the floor as these can leave bad stains that in some cases can be permanent. And just when you thought you could use natural cleaning materials such as vinegar or lemon juice to clean up the mess – don’t! The acid will penetrate into the marble and degrade it from the inside.

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