11 Feb
News, News for investors

The History of Marble Stone And Why It’s so Popular For Countertops

Marble is one of the oldest and most beautiful stones available on the market for countertops. It’s a metamorphic stone that is a result of limestone being subjected to immense amount of pressure for long periods of time. Marble’s popularity began in ancient Rome and Greece, where white and off-white marble was used to construct a variety of structures, from hand-held sculptures to massive pillars.

How Marble Got its Start in Ancient Times

The Greeks and Romans chose marble for their structures due its beauty. However, the process of mining marble was quite lengthy. Hammers and wedges were used to release marble from the earth. It was then pulled from its source with the help of pulleys, winches, levers, and wooden beams.

Aside from statues and buildings, colored marble was used to create beautiful tile flooring. The color of marble varies due to different minerals that are present in the stone. For example, pure calcite marble is white. Red marble gets its tone from hematite, and limonite gives marble a green or yellow tone.

How We Use Marble in 2016

Even though Ancient Grecian and Roman times were over 2,000 years ago, most cultures still appreciate marble in present day. Today, marble is used for a variety of structural and aesthetic purposes. Marble is included in the making of modern buildings, places of worship, floors, walls, and of course—countertops.

Marble Countertops: Classic Beauty in The Home

It’s hard to deny that marble countertops add a touch of elegance to nearly every kitchen. Its stark white appearance makes kitchens look clean and strikingly classic. This stone has been a popular aesthetic option for centuries, and it perfectly ties in its classic beauty throughout kitchens across St. Louis and the rest of America.

Another intriguing aspect about marble is that since it’s a natural stone, every countertop is sure to be unique. If you’re a homeowner looking for a countertop that is uniquely designed and custom made for your home, consider marble stone.

Benefits of Marble Countertops (Beyond Beauty)

Even though marble is a beautiful countertop option, there are other reasons why homeowners may choose marble for their kitchen countertops instead of various other stones.

First, marble is one of the longest-lasting countertop stones available on the market. Although it can be expensive, marble countertops essentially pay for themselves as long as they are maintained and properly cared for throughout the years.

Furthermore, marble countertops come in a variety of colors that are well suited for a variety of personal tastes. However, think carefully about installing dark marble countertops in your kitchen—etching is more noticeable on dark marble than light colored marble.

What Are The Downsides to Using Marble For Kitchen Countertops?

Just like any other type of countertop material, there are downsides to using marble as your selected stone. One of the disadvantages of using marble as your kitchen countertop is that it’s a porous and soft stone. This makes marble prone to staining and chipping, which can quickly downgrade its beauty and elegance.

Homeowners who notice small imperfections might be better off choosing an alterative countertop material for their kitchen, such as quartz.

How to Protect And Maintain Your Marble Countertops

The truth is that marble is high maintenance. Although this fact can be off-putting to some, this doesn’t mean that you should discard marble as a countertop choice altogether. There are methods you can use to protect your marble countertops and keep them looking beautiful for years to come.

The first step in protecting and maintaining marble countertops is to properly seal them—and seal often. Unfortunately, spilling a glass of wine can be all that it takes to stain your new marble countertops.

You’ll also need to choose your cleaning products carefully. It’s best to clean your marble countertops with gentle dish detergent, warm water, and a soft cloth. Avoid using harsh chemicals such as bleach, which can easily cause damage.

11 Feb
News, News for investors

How to Clean and Maintain your Marble and Stone Flooring

Marble and stone flooring, which would be a bit beyond having a natural-stone and marble floors. His excellence & style includes esteem & rectitude in every home they contact. It is difficult to maintain and clean your natural-stone floor, whether your floor is built of marble, slate or natural-limestone, since a fundamental cleaning routine is essential. The stone floor-adds class and magnificence to your home and will continue to do so for a long time with the right consideration.

Preventive measures

Some marble-floors should be cleaned regularly and others do not also depend on the type of stone floor and the amount of traffic on the floor. Therefore, you may need a waste-mop, clean the floor all the time, if possible. This will maintain a strategic distance from the waste or either any undesirable particles that will be stored on your floor. The second is to clean your floor by washing it with a wet-rope mop and a stone soap solution. However, you can also clean the floor with water. The next activity is to dry the floor with a soft & clean cloth. The reach & soaking clean the floor constantly to avoid scratching the earth & sand. This will also maintain the brightness of your natural-stone floor.

If the shine of your stone-fades, the best activity is to clean them again. However, if you have a financial plan, you can re-clean your stone-floors once every few years, or have them cleaned by experts.

Clean & maintain your marble & stone-floors

The stone is a standout among the best flooring-materials. It is solid but beautiful, resistant & durable too, and can be used anywhere. With legitimate consideration and support, the stone can actually last forever. Here are nine suggestions on the most competent method to keep your stone floor as beautiful as the main day on which you presented it.

1. Know your floor

Collect everything you can on your stone. Have in mind that there is a wide variety of stones. What can be beneficial to one can be detrimental to the next. Get information about its attributes, cleanup proposals, advantages & disadvantages, etc.

2. Keep dirt out

Dirt, waste & sand are the natural adversaries of the stone. Expand them with a soft-floor brush and a mop with running-water. Even better, have entangled traps in their front & back passages to avoid dirt & debris.

3. Moderate down on targets

Stay away from the use of dyes and other solid-synthetic compounds when cleaning surfaces with stone floors. They can strip the stone of its natural-materials and dye them with the progression of time. For nutrition spots, simply use soap & water. There are also locally purchased cleaners that are convincing to evacuate stubborn-stains.

4. Cushions the legs of the seats

Regardless of your care, the seats can make unwanted seals on your marble-floors. Keep it by placing felt or elastic cushions on the tips of the seat legs. You can also put cushions on small tables, armchairs and other versatile-furniture.

5. Train your children

Tell your children that you invested a lot of energy, money and effort to have such a beautiful-apartment. Show them how to deal with it by quickly cleaning-up spilled oil cakes or finger-paints. Also ask them not to go on roller-skates.

6. Trim your pet’s-nails

Your feline pet or either dog is adorable and I would hate you to stay outside, is not it? However, you would not need it to leave unattractive-scratches on your valuable-floor. Trim your nails to make sure your pet doesn’t damage your stone-floor, regardless of whether it energizes excessively.

7. Reapply the sealant every year

Some people see reapplication of the sealant as an exercise in futility & effectiveness. Despite what might be expected, the new sealant application can really give you more investment-funds, as it secures the stone below. It would be increasingly expensive to change the marble floors like a clock, do not you think?

8. Early avoidance is the best solution

In case a marble tile breaks or either cracks, replace it when you can. The cracks allow water and different fluids to penetrate the ground below, which in the long run can cause the stones to break.

9. Carry-Big objects

Tired of your front room plan which is why you need to move things? Obviously, you can, however, request that someone allow you to transport those cabinets. Pushing or either pulling substantial items can scratch your marble floor deeply.

As a mortgage holder, one could safeguard the appearance & cleanliness of your natural-stone floor. The most important thing you can do is to know your marble floors. Clean up-spills quickly to maintain a strategic distance from stains & dyes and, in addition, fix deep scratches on your stone floor, or ask specialists when you see them. Remind yourself continually not to use any harsh-cleaning elements.

Source: https://www.lucemg.com/

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11 Feb
News, News for investors

Fun Facts About Marble and Its Qualities

Marble is a natural stone that has amazed people with its mesmerizing beauty and unique qualities since the dawn of the world. When cut and polished this unique stone can be used for a great variety of stuff: floor and wall tiles, mosaics, facing stone, architectural panels, window sills, columns, stair treads, as decorative stone, for indoor and outdoor furniture, decoration accents and many more.  

In addition to its numerous qualities and properties, marble also has a funny side. Let’s have a look at it. 

Interesting facts about the origin and name of marble

Most probably everybody knows that marble is a metamorphic rock but here are a few less known and interesting facts about its origin.  

  • It takes hundreds of years for marble to form and therefore it is found among the oldest parts of the Earth’s crust.  
  • Marble starts its life as limestone or dolomite and due to pressure and heat it transforms into a harder, denser and more colourful stone. 
  • Some of the key marble components are calcite, dolomite crystals and aragonite. 
  • Marble is usually found among other metamorphic rock such as gneiss and mica. 
  • In Patagonia, Chile you can see the most beautiful blue marble formed in partly submerged caves.  

It is curious that in ancient times people were able to tell where does the marble come from just looking at its colour. Now, there are still kids of marble that bear their historical name derived from the place of its origin. Here are a few examples: 

  • Carrara Marble and Luni from Italy  
  • Durango Marble from Coyote Quarry, Mexico  
  • Thassos, Paros and Penteli from Greece 
  • Rouge de Rance from Rance, Belgium 
  • Proconnesus from Turkey 
  • Macael from Spain 
  • Black Marble from Kilkenny, Ireland 
  • Royal White and Beijing White from China 
  • Yule from Colorado 
  • Danby from Vermont 
  • Boticena and Onyx (Green) from Pakistan 

Unusual marble uses 

We know that marble can be used for a great variety of purpose both as interior and exterior material. We often see it in the bathroom, the kitchen, admire the eternal buildings and sculptures made of it but there are also other amazing marble creations that perhaps will never cross your mind. Here are a few: 

  • Carrara Marble is used for iPhone 7 and notebook cases. 
  • There are companies who make frames for eyeglasses out of marble. 
  • The fine powder of ground marble is used as a component in paints, plastics, paper and toothpaste 
  • Pulverized marble is also used in pharmaceuticals. As it neutralizes acids, marble is a component of medicine such as Tums and Alka-Seltzer that are used to treat acid indigestion. 
  • Powder marble is also given to dairy cows and chicken as a source of calcium. 
  • As acid neutralizer crashed marble is also used in the chemical industry or to reduce acid content of rivers, lakes or soils. 
  • Marble powder is used as a mild abrasive to scrub bathroom and kitchen fixtures.  

Famous buildings made of marble 

There are many famous buildings and constructions that are made of marble both ancient and modern ones. Here is a list of just three examples that will make you smile: 

  • The famous Taj Mahal is made entirely of white marble 
  • Michelangelo chose pure white marble for his sculptures as it is translucent and light actually penetrates about 1 inch into the surface before being reflected. This makes his statutes of people look almost alive. 
  • 530.000 cubic feet of marble were used for the construction of the New York Public Library, which was finished in 1911. The stone was used for flooring and to cover the exterior walls. The employees were required to wear rubber-soled shoes in order not to scratch the stone

Places named after marble  

Not only marble is named after the place it comes from. In the world there are also several locations and settlements named after marble. Some of the most popular examples include: 

  • The Marble Arch in London 
  • The Sea of Marmara 
  • The Marble Rocks in India 
  • The town of Marble, Minnesota 
  • The town of Marble, Colorado 
  • Marble Hill in Manhattan, New York 

Interesting marble qualities 

Marble is well-known for its qualities like durability, easy maintenance, resistance to bad weather and the incredibly amazing collection of colours, however there are also a few more properties that will make you choose it for your next renovation project.  

  • Because of its density and durability marble is also hypoallergenic. Therefore, it is a popular choice for people with allergies or for families with small kids. 
  • Marble is heat resistant, it doesn’t absorb heat or energy quickly and is quite suitable for countries with hot climate. That is one of the reasons why this amazing stone is so often found in the Mediterranean countries and in India.  
  • There are no two slabs of marble that have exactly the same pattern. This makes the stone so unique but also means that you have to pay extra attention when choosing floor or wall tiles and always order from the same batch. 
  • Marble can be a host rock for corundum, spinel and other gem minerals, even rubies. There is an interesting specimen of white marble with a large red ruby in it found in Afghanistan. 
  • When marble is cut into blocks and slabs of specific size it is referred to as “dimension stone”. 

As you can see marble has amazing visible and hidden features and usages and can be part of our everyday life in many forms. We can truly describe it as one of the miracles of mother nature.  

Source: https://www.naturalstone.co.uk/