Butting Travertine Tile (with follow-up!)
Can travertine tile be butted up tight with each other and grout applied thus not having any or very little grout showing? Thank you.
Ed
Hello Ed,
The short answer is, “No”. Furthermore, I never recommend butting Travertine tile for several reasons. First, the travertine tiles are never cut perfectly and require a joint in order to maintain a steady module across the floor. Second, you can’t put grout into a joint that does not exist. If you do not open up the joint to 1/16″ minimum the grout will not bond to itself and the tile; therefore, it will fail. Third, it is almost impossible to eliminate lips from tile to tile with butted joints, unless you grind down the floor after installation.
Best wishes,
Tom Cordova
Thanks for responding to question about travertine tile being butted up. Can travertine tiles be laid in a staggering pattern or is it best to lay in the traditional pattern so the grout can have more bonding authority?
Ed
Hello Ed,
It is quite nice to run travertine in a staggering pattern, otherwise known as a ‘running bond’. I highly recommend this look because it adds a bit of customization to an otherwise typical looking ’square pattern’ floor. In this case you would eliminate the first problems I mentioned with butting the tiles, but the other two issues still exist.
Best regards,
Tom Cordova
