Warranty Guide

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Sealing Granite
As a general rule, it is important to seal any product that has any percentage of water
absorption to protect the surface. This applies to all natural stones including granite, however,
the only stones that typically go unsealed are black granites. When used as countertops or
in wet applications, sealed black granites are known to show water marks and rings when
exposed to moisture or acids for extended periods of time. These watermarks or etchings
can be caused by a number of factors, the most common is a reaction of the sealer being
exposed to water for prolonged periods. The other reason may be a reaction of the mineral
on the surface of the stone to acids. When using dark stones in wet applications, proper
sealing and waterproofing methods must be observed based on the scope of work.
Slate Exteriors
Certain colors of slate are not rated for exteriors, wet applications or applications in
freeze/thaw climates. Slates can swell when they absorb water and as a result may rust,
become muddy, brile or flake excessively. It is important to know where the slate is being
installed prior to purchasing. Quartzite, although it looks like slate, is a completely different
rock and is perfect for wet and exterior applications as well as freeze/thaw climates.
Epoxy Thinsets for Onyx, Marble and Sandstone
It is important to use epoxy based, solid seing adhesives and grouts when installing
mesh, resin, epoxy or fiberglass backed stone to ensure proper adhesion. Stones requiring
epoxy, even if they are not mesh backed include; green marbles, serpentine stone, black
marbles and some sandstones. These stones will typically warp or discolor from exposure
to moisture during the installation process when using a standard mortar/thinset.
Use of Appropriate Thinset Colors
Many light stones and limestones may react to the ingredients contained in gray thinset. It is
highly recommended to use white thinset on light stones and gray thinset for darker stones.
Stone Lippage
The presence of lippage can be exaggerated by a number of factors: uneven subfloors,
laying tiles in a 50% brick joint offset, not back buering large format tiles, grout joint
width being too narrow and natural light sources making standard variances more
noticeable. Industry standards allow for a certain amount of lippage to be present
based on various factors. To eliminate lippage altogether, some stones may be altered
by grinding and refinishing the surface. This procedure is to be conducted by skilled
professionals and is only possible on select stones and finishes.
Sanded Grout on Natural Stone
When installing polished stones or stones with a soer MOHS rating, it is highly recommended to
use un-sanded grout or equivalent to avoid scratching the surface of the stone during installation.
Follow the grout manufacturer’s recommendations based on the specified grout joint width.
Travertine Fillers and New Hole Formation
Travertine is a sedimentary rock usually quarried near hot or cold springs, as well as streams.
Air pockets and voids are present in the stone during its formation and are a desired
characteristic of the stone. Some of these holes and voids may be present under a razor thin
layer of surface rock. It is not uncommon for a travertine floor to reveal new holes in the first
year aer installation from pedestrian loads, movement of furniture and regular wear that
can punch through these thin surface layers. New hole formation does not affect the floor’s
durability or strength in any way and is not considered a defect of the stone. If desired,
these new voids can be filled quickly and easily with grout, epoxy or equivalent fillers. Some
travertine tiles can come prefilled by the factory with either cementitious or synthetic fillers.
Filler colors in a prefilled travertine can vary from batch to batch as the coloring is changed
to match every production line. Although it does not happen oen, it is not uncommon for
synthetic fillers to dislodge post installation or as a result of regular wear on the floor.
Allowable Industry Size Tolerance for Porcelain & Ceramic
An inherent characteristic of all fired products is that they will bow, wedge and warp to a
certain degree and may slightly vary in size from batch to batch. These variations in size
and color are due to changes in moisture and thermal loads which can alter the tiles during
production. Batches of tile are identified and separated into lots by specific shade and caliber.
For specific allowable size tolerances by product type please refer to ANSI A137.1 Table 8 for
ceramic and Table 10 for porcelain. The values indicated in the charts are noncumulative.
Green Friendly Products - VOC’s
Emser products are not FloorScore certified. However, certification is not needed to satisfy
LEED® specifications. The test methodology specified in CA Department of Public Health
Standard – Section 01350 is the same one used for the following certifications:
• SCS/RFI FloorScore
• SCS Indoor Advantage, Indoor Advantage Gold
• AQSI/GEI Greenguard, Greenguard -Children & Schoolsd
• CRI Green Label, Green Label Plus
Due to the manufacturing process of all of our fired floor tiles, the temperatures that these
tiles are produced at inherently eliminate the presence of any off-gassing and results in no
detectable emissions of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). As such, Emser’s floor tiles
exceed the requirements of the FloorScore certification. Hard surface flooring products can
contribute to gaining 1 POINT for low-emiing materials in LEED® V3 and V4 rating systems.
The credit definition is: “Mineral-based finish flooring products such as tile, masonry, terrazzo,
and cut stone without integral organic-based coatings and sealants and unfinished/untreated
solid wood flooring qualify for credit without any IAQ testing requirements”. For this reason,
it is assumed that ceramic and porcelain floor tiles are negligible sources of VOCs and are
available for credit without any testing requirements.
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