Stone Selections
We have a large variety of Natural Stone products to match every style and desired look. Please note that natural stone will vary in color, marking, and texture. Any sample images on this website show the general characteristics of the variety of stone.
Granite
Granite is a long-time favorite for use in home building. Its inherent strength, abrasion resistance and superior weathering durability are sure to keep it as one of the preeminent material selections available to today’s architects. Available in a striking array of colors, granite’s durability, longevity, and economy make it ideal for kitchen countertops and other heavily used surfaces, including table tops and floors. It provides excellent scratch resistance since the hardness of the minerals in most granites is stronger than the utensils used on it. Granite is generally heat resistant up to temperatures of ±250°C (±480°F). It’s also superior to the majority of common countertop surfaces in its resistance to bacteria retention. The available pore volume capable of harboring a staining agent also makes granite relatively stain-resistant, with impregnating repellents sometimes used to reduce the chance of stains.
Marble
Marble with its inherent warmth, adds a sophisticated element to the area in which it is installed. Its naturally random appearance and engineering characteristics make it a premium choice for floors, wall claddings, table tops, wainscot, floors, and vanity tops. Many marbles are well suited for wet area application, which extends the versatility of this material to include tub decks and showers.
Limestone
Limestone deposits exist in all continents of the earth. Many varieties limestone have enjoyed a successful history of exterior application, and some of the most prominent government and financial institutions worldwide proudly display limestone as their exterior cladding. Despite the popularity of exterior vertical limestone applications, the number of limestone varieties with successful history in exterior paving applications, particularly in freeze/thaw environments, is relatively limited. Since these stones are some of the softer varieties of natural stone materials, they have long been a popular choice for intricately carved features and moldings, as well as statuary. Limestone, like marble, is of a calcium carbonate base, and as such, is vulnerable to alteration by exposure to mild acids. A wide variety of stones are included in this group, and absorption varies from slight (<1%) to high (>10%). The combination of acid sensitivity and absorption limit the number of varieties that are suitable for countertop applications, and the user of limestone countertops should be well educated in its properties to accurately anticipate its behavior in service.
Onyx
Onyx is often confused with marbles, yet it is a significantly different rock type. Onyx is a sedimentary rock, formed as stalactites and stalagmites in cave interiors. This formation method results in the cryptocrystalline construction of the rock fabric, and it is the size and uniformity of these crystals that contribute to the classic translucent property of most onyx varieties. While vulnerable to chemical and abrasive attack, the decorative appeal of onyx is perhaps unsurpassed by any other material.
Quartzite
Quartzite is a metamorphic rock that is formed from sandstone. Quartzite can be of exceptional strength, density, and hardness. The strength, abrasion resistance, and weathering durability of this rock type expand its application possibilities to include most any of the common uses for natural, dimension stone.
Soapstone
A traditional use of this material was the laboratory table top in chemistry labs. That application alone should serve as a great testimonial to the chemical resistance of Soapstone. Being of the softer variety of dimension stone types, Soapstone is not known for particularly high abrasion or scratch resistance, yet it is used in flooring and countertop products. Soapstone is highly heat resistant, and has been used in fireplace surrounds frequently to take advantage of this property.
Travertine
Despite the common and traditional reference to “travertine marble”, travertine is really a type of limestone. It is actually the terrestrial (land) formed version of limestone, as opposed to the marine based formations of many other limestone varieties. Since these stones are some of the softer varieties of natural stone materials, they have long been a popular choice for intricately carved features and moldings, as well as statuary. Travertine, like marble, is of a calcium carbonate base, and as such, is vulnerable to alteration by exposure to mild acids. A wide variety of stones are included in this group, and absorption varies from slight (<1%) to high (>10%). The combination of acid sensitivity and absorption limit the number of varieties that are suitable for countertop applications, and the user of Travertine countertops should be well educated in its properties to accurately anticipate its behavior in service.