Advantages and disadvantages of natural stone flooring?

Natural stone has been an all-time favourite for flooring and other applications. There have been several innovations in tile design but new technology has not been able to take away the charm and glory of natural stone flooring.

Advantages of Natural stone flooring

• Natural stone has a very pleasing and natural aesthetic impact bringing one close to nature.
• Natural Stone is an eco-friendly material.
• Natural stones like granite and slate are a very strong and impervious material.

Disadvantages of Natural stone flooring

• Natural stone is quarried from natural quarries and other natural resources. Each quarry has its own unique chemical composition of stone and design of natural grains. Hence the stone flooring that is used for a certain space should be from the same quarry.
• Most of the natural stones are highly porous and absorb the stain marks very easily. Such natural materials have to be sealed properly and resins must be used to close all the pores of the stone.
• Some stones are soft, brittle, and very susceptible to chipping, developing cracks, and breaking. Stones like Italian marble, onyx, and travertine develop cracks very easily. After they are cut into slabs they are filled with resins to make the material strong and to seal all the cracks.
• Laying stones like marble and Italian is a time-consuming process. After laying they have to polish several times by different grades of stone. Such natural stone flooring requires regular maintenance over the years and have to be polished periodically.