Why Buy Natural Slate?

What Is Natural Slate?

Natural slate is metamorphic rock with fine grain and foliation formed from sedimentary rock that was originally comprised of volcanic ash or clay.  Slate is usually colored gray, although it is actually available in a whole plethora of hues.  This material has cleavage and grain, constituting two “lines of breakability” which allow the user to split it into small sheets.  Even after breakage, natural slate retains its aesthetic appeal while remaining flat, and working well with silicone glue.

Where It Can Be Used

Natural slate is mostly used in roofs, but it is also found in all features requiring stonework.  Tiles can be found in wall cladding, stairs, walkways, and interior and exterior flooring.  Natural slate can also be applied as shims to even out floor joists and combined with other types of stone for damp-proofing and building walls and hedges.  Fine slate also has applications as a whetstone to sharpen knives, and in previous times was used to construct relay controls and switchboards for massive electric motors.  Today, freshwater aquariums use natural slate as decoration because the material does not affect the artificial ecosystem in any negative ways.

What Are The Advantages Of Natural Slate?

Natural slate not only looks better than other types of slate, adding touches of elegance and panache to a roof, but it is also more durable, lasting over 75 years if treated correctly.  It generally raises the value of any house that has this material.  Slate is also very resistant to adverse weather conditions such as acid rain and storms.  It doesn’t tend to fade under sunlight and ultraviolet rays, and it is eco-friendly because it is fireproof.  Natural slate is usually handcrafted to the customer’s specifications, which gives it a uniqueness that can’t be achieved with synthetic fibers.  Natural slate is so dense that it resists moisture, and is therefore useful as a material for building patios because people slipping and falling on it is less likely.  Natural slate patios can also absorb years of high traffic, making it a natural choice for public buildings.

What To Look For When Buying

Texture is crucial in all slate, natural or otherwise, and you should be looking out for its smoothness and durability.  If you are using slate in outdoor situations that are likely to encounter extreme weather conditions such as freezing and thawing, you should consider delaminating or spalling the slate. 

Be aware that many slates will be packed tightly together, and broken pieces may not be detectable at the time of buying.  It might be worth getting an extra case.  Furthermore, new tiles might be filthy dirty from wherever they were first gathered.  Ensure that you wash these before you use them, or they will not be structurally sound.  You should have access to both a right angle grinder and a tile cutter in order to cut the natural slate into the shapes and sizes you require.  Use water when sawing and aim to regularly change the water of your right angle grinder or tile cutter; otherwise, a large amount of dust will be produced which will produce a real, useless mess.  Most important of all, treat the slate with a sealant product once before you start building with it.  If you don’t do this, you could end up with a lot of complications when you grout the slate.  Because there is a variegated thickness to natural slate, you might find it best to place a very thick layer of thin-set in order to even out the high points.  Allow an extra 24 hours for this layer to set.

Precautions And Disadvantages

Like anything else, slate isn’t 100% perfect in every way.  Slate flooring when used in outdoor situations can be slippery after it has been struck by rain, so precautions should be taken in this respect.  Some people complain about the discomfort slate can give the feet when walking upon it.  In a bathroom, for example, you may not want your bare feet to be made cold first thing in the morning while getting ready to have a shower.  However, other people find this invigorating.  This problem can be solved by the placement of bath mats across the stone floor, obviously coordinated with the shades and colors of the natural slate.  Bare feet might also not like to tread upon clefted slate, as this tends to be quite craggy, although this depends more on the material used.  If you think this will become an issue in your house, then discuss this with your dealer before you pay out for something you may not want ultimately. 

Although slate tends to take care of itself even when subject to flooding, its durability can be enhanced by applying chemical sealants, which help fill out the pores in the rock and prevent attack from water.  If you want to preserve the pretty hues of the stone, you may wish to repeat this process on a yearly basis.  Furthermore, slate is among the most expensive building materials out there, although unlike marble and granite, one can install it on a do-it-yourself basis.

Resources And Further Information

The web is full of information on natural slate, companies offering to sell and/or install it, and general advice on its correct practical applications.
http://www.glendyne.com/en/toiture.php - renowned company with good, solid guides on natural slate uses.
http://www.harrisslate.com – another much-loved natural slate company based in the UK.
http://www.slate-stone.com/slate-patios.html - sound advice on laying natural slate patios and what to watch out for.
http://www.infolink.com.au/t/Natural-Slate - interesting and enlightening general information on the topic that everyone interested in natural slate should certainly look at.
http://painterforum.com/art22.html - invaluable resource of information for anyone who plans to use slate in their basement, which can have various pitfalls and risks unless the right precautions are taken.

Conclusion:  A Great Building Material

Natural slate beats so many other materials in the building trade that it must be the first choice for all those people with real taste and discretionn.