How Much Does Travertine Tile Cost

Whether you are deciding for an indoor or outdoor flooring—a great choice is travertine tiles. Now, you might be wondering how much travertine flooring costs. The price of travertine tiles range from $2 to $4 per square foot. However, higher quality of travertine tile costs around $5 to $30 per square foot. Typically, $600 to $1,300 is spent for a 10’x10’ bathroom hallway and this already includes labor costs which is about $6 to $13 per square foot.

What’s a Travertine Tile?

A travertine, also called as onyx marble or Egyptian/Oriental alabaster, is a form of limestone. It is a natural stone that is found in mineral springs, often at the mouth of a hot spring or a limestone cave. Usually, travertine is observed to exist in earthy shades of white, beige, tan, cream, rust, walnut or sometimes, gold. This amazing stone is used both for interior and exterior flooring projects. When it comes to polished travertine, it has a look that is quite similar to marble; honed travertine, on the other hand, has a matte finish and lastly, tumbled travertine offers an antique natural appearance. Furthermore, it was found that deposits of Travertine from Italy showed that this natural stone has a potential use in geochronology.

How Has Travertine Been Used?

As we ask the price of travertine tiles or travertine flooring costs, we should also be informed as to how this flooring has been used across time. This type of flooring is frequently used in Italy and all other places in the world as a flooring and building material. In Italy, beautiful and well-known quarries that possess travertine exists such as that of Tivoli. Even the famous artist Michelangelo was not able to defy travertine; he chose it as the material for the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica. The Colosseum is one of the largest buildings in the world which was constructed using a great amount of travertine. Other well-known buildings such as Paris’ Sacré-Cœur Basilica and Shell-Haus in Berlin also makes use of travertine. Travertine is also famously used in the United States, notably in the Getty Center of Los Angeles. Berlin and Los Angeles imported travertine from Italy’s Tivoli and Guidonia.

Today, travertine is one of the many natural stones used to pave garden paths as well as patios and other modern architecture. It is commonly used for wall cladding and flooring. Chicago’s Willis Tower or Sears Tower even made use of travertine for the walls of its lobby. Other places that used travertine in the modern day include UCLA’s Medical Center, Toronto-Dominion Centre, Farnsworth House and S.R. Crown Hall.

How Can I Install Travertine Flooring?

Some homeowners and building owners may hire professionals to do the job of flooring installation if they do not mind the travertine flooring costs; however, if you are saving or you are looking at doing it yourself, it is not a problem. It is important to note that travertine flooring needs to be installed carefully. Usually concrete board is used as an underlayment. It is important for the subfloor to be leveled and secured before installing the tiles otherwise the tiles may crack. A site called DoItYourself.com may be a great help for this.

Where Can I Purchase Travertine Flooring?

There are many stores across the United States that provide travertine flooring. Physical and online stores that provide the material and labor are all around. Some of these stores are listed below:

• Home Depot
• Lowe’s
• South Cypress Floors
• BuildDirect.com
• Fastfloors.com
• StoneLocator.com

Advantages and Disadvantages of Travertine Flooring

As expected, this flooring also has its ups and downs. Let us look further into the benefits and the worries we should expect if we opt to go for a travertine flooring.

The advantages include the following:

• Travertine flooring has a timeless look. It is always beautiful regardless of the era.
• It is very resilient even when facing extreme temperatures.
• It skids minimally.
• It can handle longer time without a sealer and still keep its fine appearance.
• It has a unique look.
• It has been proven to stand the test of time—that is, the previously mentioned structures which made use of travertine many years ago are still looking fine today.
• It remains cool despite being exposed to the sun directly.
• It has great properties for insulation.
• When replacing travertine tiles, it is easy to find a tile similar to the old ones whereas other tiles may have difficulty in this.
• It is very easy to cut and shape compared to other tiles such as porcelain. This makes it easier to fill oddly shaped spaces.
• It comes from a natural material which means it is more environmentally friendly.

The disadvantages include the following:

• Travertine flooring reacts highly to acids—even to orange juice, vinegar or water based substances.
• It also has its natural flaws which keep the floor pattern and color from appearing uniformed. It also appears weathered and old, naturally.
• Sealant may not always be the perfect solution when encountering problems with travertine tiles.
• The cost of travertine tiles is a bit more expensive than other tiles such as porcelain.

Finally, we have arrived at the conclusion. The choice is yours whether or not the price of travertine tiles is worth it. The travertine flooring costs sure brings a lot with it—advantages and disadvantages; it seems, however, that the travertine tile costs have more positive sides than negative.