new traveritne floor help

[lukehaug]

i need help. i just purchased my home 1 year ago(new construction). i have travertine flooring throughout the foyer and kitchen area in my home. it has slowly started developing holes some the size of a pinhead others the size of half dollars. i have been consulting tile companies trying to find out if this is a common problem with tile that is so young and what are possible fixes to the problems. i have heard answers from every end of the spectrum from yes this does happen to they have never heard of it before. my builder has given me some filler but the holes that were filled are now actually crumbling as well. i am just curious to know what my options are here. is the tile defective or is this common with this type of tile. now the scarier part of it is that i have also gotten estimates to have it professionally refinished. estimates range from 3500 to over 5000. so any help with this would be greatly appreciated.

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[ceramictec]

hi Luke,

welcome to the forum.

I am starting a fairly large similar repair to what's happening to you. in this multi million dollar home travertine was set on a mud bed. the holes have collapsed in over the years with a bunch of tile crumbling apart.
from my inspection it looks as if in some area's a womans high heels over time had pushed in some of the "filled" spots and other areas were soft and fell apart. I am replacing a fair share of full tile and filling the smaller holes with some different colored unsanded grouts to match the travertine's colors.

you could have had installed a cheap travertine with a lot of fill and or soft area's.

*can you post some pictures?
I will post mine a little later when I get home.

[John Bridge]

Hi Luke, :)

I think Brian has defined it. There are many different varieties and qualities of travertine. All travertine has voids through it, and different types of fillers are used. I think the cheaper grades of stone probably get cheaper fillers, and certainly the size of the holes has something to do with it.

I'm going to move you to our restoration forum. There are people there who know more about stone than some of the rest of us. :)

[ceramictec]

here you go Luke

this was done over mud and I suspect the backs where the fill was
hit over and area not supported by thinset or mud. therefore fell it
when walked on with heels.

[ceramictec]

to help you understand more about travertine here is a shot of the back of the tile.
if not filled or supported correctly the holes in the travertine can collapse in.

[doitright]

Hi Luke, Welcome! :)

I have yet run into this problem with any of my travertine installs, but I have seen it in the field on my restoration projects, and clients have paid me for consultation reports. One case the filler was even popping out under the sofa.

Some travertine's are formed with "clay balls" within their structure that can also come loose without the need of stepping on them. Most have voids through the entire body of the stone (as shown in Brian's photo).

If you proceed with the restoration of this floor, do yourself a favor and research to company whom you are considering hiring. Ask them what material they will be filling the floor with. If they grind your floor, more holes will be exposed. Sometimes travertine tiles aren't properly back buttered when they are installed, not giving proper support under the open voids.

There is a risk that even after restoration, the problem may reoccur.

[ceramictec]

Sometimes travertine tiles aren't properly back buttered when they are installedgood one John,
and I concur on that.
when I do poorly filled travertine I flat trowel the backs.

[lukehaug]

thank you for all of your responses. i have just one final question. is it too young for the tile to be doing this? and also do i have any sort of action i can take as far as warranty with the tile? or is it just something that i have to deal with? it is just very frustrating having a brand new home with the main foor of the home haing holes all over it.

[duneslider]

Unfortunately, this is one of the characteristics of travertine. The stone certainly isn't young, many experts feel it is millions of years old. The voids are collapsing, or the filler is crumbling. I don't think mother nature warranties her creations.

I would guess that the travertine wasn't back filled. There is a product called Traverfill that I have used to repair these sorts of holes. It can be mixed to match the travertine and works just like grout. The final product looks very similar to the filler that was used when the quarry filled the travertine.