How To Recognise Cracked Tiles

Limestone and marble tiles can have lines in them that look like cracks; they are in fact veins of calcite which have the technical name of stylolites. Their presence is natural and does not reflect a defect or natural weakness in the tile. So the good news is that you don't have faulty tiles, and the lines are an acceptable characteristic of natural stone tiles, and won't crack when walked upon. Read More >>>

All About Dijon Limestone

Dijon is a lovely beige limestone with intricate grey fossil-like detail on a soft beige background and its antiqued surface and worn edges make it look as though it's been worn over many years. Read More >>>

The general facts about Natural Stone Tiles

Natural stone has seen a significant shift in popularity over recent years. Travertine was the forerunner about 8 years ago but tumbled limestone and marble is the material of choice these days. New production methods and lower prices have brought what was once for the select few to a whole new market. Read More >>>

Carrara Marble Tiles

When somebody talks about marble, the first type to come to mind tends to be Carrara Marble. This beautiful white marble with grey veining in all its variations originates from the region around the city of Carrara located in Tuscany, Italy. Carrara Marble has been mined for centuries and used throughout palaces and homes ever since. Its enduring beauty keeps it a firm favorite today. Read More >>>

What is Travertine?

Travertine tiles were the number one choice in natural stone about 10 years ago when interior designers took this lovely cloudy beige stone to their hearts and customers soon followed suit. While it’s not as popular as it was, travertine is still a lovely stone and sits at the more affordable end of the market. Developers and the likes still fit a lot of travertine in new houses as it gives an instant wow factor, without breaking the bank! Read More >>>

Take The Travertine Challenge

Travertine tiles come in shades of cream and beige through to brown and even silver. It also comes in many different qualities and as a “filled” material, some cheaper tiles know as “commercial grade” often get miss-advertised as premium grade. The challenge is to get the best quality at the best price, which you can right here at Stonestore! Read More >>>

The Truth About Travertine

The truth is not all travertine is the same. As a generic type of stone, it’s available from many different quarries in a number of different qualities. Unfortunately, lots of companies advertising travertine, online and offline, have miss-sold this lovely beige stone for decades. If you want to know what to look for and what you should really be buying if you want travertine, read on for the “truth about travertine”. Read More >>>

What Is Limestone?

Limestone deposits can be found all over the world but most limestone produced in tiles comes from the near east. Turkey and Egypt lead the way in manufacture of limestone tiles but India & Portugal also produce a lot of limestone. Limestone in general is quite a dense stone and as a rule of thumb, the darker it is the harder it usually is. If you want to know exactly what limestone is and if it’s suitable for your home, it’s all here. Read More >>>

What Is Quartz?

Quartz is a manmade material composed of ground quartz stone, sand and colour pigments all held together with a hard resin binder. The most popular varieties of quartz tiles have crushed mirror pieces in and are often called “starlight” or “Sparkle tiles”. Quartz sparkle tiles have been popular for a long time and we don’t see any slowdown in the market. Popular colors are black quartz, white quartz and grey quartz tiles. Beware though as cheap quartz tiles have high resin content and will not wear as well as our high-quality quartz. Read More >>>

How Do I Decide Which Size Tiles I Need?

How Do I Decide Which Size Tiles I Need? The design trend for large format tiles continues, but which size is best suited to your tiling project? There are a number of factors to consider. Read More >>>

How To Choose Bathroom Tiles

Although we believe that all our natural stone tiles are beautiful, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, which is why choosing your bathroom tiles will be personal to you and you’ll need to agree a layout with your tiler to ensure a smooth, successful installation. Read More >>>

Your tiles are much cheaper than anywhere else. Why is this?

Stonestore has been at the forefront of online stone retailing since 2008. While we started out selling only travertine, our stone range now includes luxurious marble and antique flagstones. Alongside our stone range sits a fine Italian porcelain tile range made up of products from the best design-led factories in the world. We import and stock all our own tiles and work on a tight profit margins so you can get the best tiles at the best possible price. Nobody can beat us on quality or price, guaranteed! Read More >>>

Which tiles are suitable for which applications?

Natural Stone Tiles can be used anywhere in the house from kitchen tiles to bathroom wall tiles and everywhere in-between. Generally, you can use all the stone tiles we sell in any room. Limitations come on thickness and what can be used on walls. Most of the 2cm thick heritage stone we sell is only suitable for floor use but 10mm Jura Limestone tiles or Carrara Marble tiles are suitable for both floors and walls. This article tells you all you need to know about what you can use and where. Read More >>>

Can I get hold of samples of your tiles and are they free of charge?

In a word, yes. We offer 2 tile samples absolutely free of charge and for each subsequent tile sample we only charge for delivery at £2.50 per samples. All products listed on the website have free samples available. Standard cut tile samples are dispatched by Royal Mail. You can also get a larger 300x300mm tile sample free of charge by calling the office but we do charge delivery with FedEx at £10 which is refundable upon order. Read More >>>

Will my samples really look like the actual tiles?

We cut samples from our current stock of tiles. Natural stone tile samples are 100x100mm and porcelain tile samples are 150x200mm. A good representation of the overall style and finish can be seen from the samples and we rarely get anyone saying the tiles they have received don’t look like the samples. Looking at the samples at the same time as the images on the website is also a good way of gauging if they are what you want. Read More >>>

Do You Import Your Own Stock Or Buy It From Wholesalers?

StoneStore is one of the UK’s leading importers of natural stone and Italian porcelain tiles, ordering directly from quarries and manufacturers from Europe and around the world. Find out why we do it this way. Read More >>>

Do you have you own warehouse where we can see stock?

One of the questions we are often asked is whether we have a warehouse that customers can visit and see the stock. Read on to find the answer. Read More >>>

Using your tile sample as a reference point and not a guarantee.

Free tile samples are available for all our products online. Natural stone tile samples are 100x100mm, and porcelain tile samples are a larger 200x150mm. We cut all samples from the current batch of tiles we have in stock, and they are hand-selected by specially trained staff to be the best representation of the tiles. Read More >>>

How long will delivery take after I've placed my order?

StoneSuperStore is one of the leading UK importers of natural stone tiles. In reality there are only a few major importers of stone and porcelain tiles in the UK and we are one of them. Read More >>>

What is the best way to order from StoneSuperStore.co.uk?

Most customers like to receive a tile sample before they place an order. More often than not customers at the start of their decision making process start out wanting a natural stone tile as they have either seen them in a friend’s house, hotel bathroom or had them before in another property they might have inherited from the previous owner. Read More >>>

Getting your tile measurements right. A general guide

Typically most customers have a professional installer lined up to “fix”the natural stone tiles to their walls and floors. Generally our advice when it comes to measuring up is to get them to do this for you as part of their job. A professional installer will be able to get accurate measurements of all surfaces to be tiled. Read More >>>

Can I choose a specific delivery date?

Full information about our delivery service can be found on the Deliveries page of the website. Read More >>>

I have a gravel driveway is this a problem?

All tile orders are delivered on large wooden pallets that are carried by large delivery lorries. At the point of delivery, these pallets are removed from the delivery truck by means of a “tail lift” platform that lowers them to the ground. They are then maneuvered by the delivery driver using a pump truck/pallet truck to the nearest safe point of entry to the property. Read More >>>

Can my order be left with a neighbour if I’m not in?

In general, the answer to this is no. When the order is placed, a member of our sales team will organise delivery on a day when you, or one of your representatives (a builder or tiler etc.) will be there to accept the order. It is really important that whoever is going to receive the order on the day of delivery is there to check that it is in good condition when it arrives and to check they have received what was actually ordered. Read More >>>

I live down a narrow lane; will you be able to deliver to me?

All orders dispatched from StoneSuperStore are delivered on standard sized wooden pallets that are generally carried on large lorries. All delivery lorries have a tail-lift platform at the rear of the lorry to offload the order. Read More >>>

Tile sizes always vary slightly. Here’s an explanation why.

Natural stone tile dimensions are subject to certain allowable size tolerances. This is on the thickness and on the overall dimensions of the tiles. Most of the natural stone tiles we sell have what is known as a “rectified” edge. This is a square cut edge with a sharp corner to the surface of the tile. Polished/honed marble tiles, honed travertine tiles, honed/polished limestone tiles and polished granite tiles all have a rectified edge as do our quartz tiles. Read More >>>

Natural stone tiles are often supplied wet. Here's why.

All natural stone tiles are manufactured with machinery that uses water. There are numerous processes that a large block of stone, which has been quarried out of the side of a mountain, has to go through before the end product, the tiles, are packed into wooden crates. Water is used for a number of purposes - primarily for keeping the cutting machinery cool and acting as a lubricant of sorts to aid in the manufacturing process. Read More >>>

What To Do Before Tiling Over Vinyl Or Linoleum

You may be considering installing natural stone floor tiles, or man-made porcelain floor tiles, and wondering if it’s safe to install the tiles over your existing vinyl or linoleum floor. The short answer is its safe do so, as long as the flooring and substrate are sound and stable. Read more about the necessary conditions to ensure the success of your project. Read More >>>

Will all tiles I order be from the same batch?

In a word – yes, but it shouldn't be assumed that what arrives will definitely be from the same batch. There are a couple of issues here that an installer, whether it's a customer doing a DIY installation or a professional installer, must consider BEFORE they start tiling. Read More >>>

Some vital pre-checks prior to installing natural stone and porcelain tiles

Before installing tiles of any kind, whether they are porcelain tiles or natural stone tiles, certain considerations should be taken into account. Irrespective of who has chosen or purchased the tiles, it should be confirmed by whoever is doing the installation that the tiles purchased are suitable for the application they are intended for. Read More >>>

How To Properly Seal Honed And Tumbled Natural Stone Tiles

Honed and tumbled natural stone tiles are given their finish at the quarries manufacturing plant prior to shipping. To ensure that perfect showroom finish is maintained honed and tumbled these tiles should be sealed on installation to protect the surface from everyday stains and dirt. Read More >>>

Laying Natural Stone Floor Tile ‘Patterns Sets’

Square tiles are laid in a linear straight line, whereas rectangular tiles offer the alternative of being laid in an overlapping ‘brick-bond’ design. A ‘pattern set’ consists of a number of varying size square and rectangular tiles laid in a traditional pre-determined design. Read More >>>

How To Clean Tiles Before Grouting

Natural stone tiles have adorned floors and walls for centuries and cleaning your tiles before grouting will help keep them in showroom condition for almost as long. The same to goes for modern porcelain tiles, be they polished, matte or a textured surface. Read More >>>

What Is A Reasonable Amount Of Tile Wastage?

Allowing a number of tiles for ‘wastage’ is normal for any installation, and an important consideration to be made before you purchase your tiles. But what is a reasonable allowance for ‘wastage’ for your particular installation? Read More >>>

How Much Should A Tiler Cost?

See how much you should expect a professional tiler to charge based on capability and the size of your project. Read More >>>

How can I find a professional installer?

Whether you’re replacing your kitchen floor tiles, or tackling a complete bathroom renovation project, getting a professional tiler involved at the earliest opportunity will increase the likelihood of a successful installation. Finding a tiler can be tricky – how can you tell the real professionals from the cowboys? In this guide, we’ll tell you. Read More >>>

How to seal natural stone tiles before grouting

All natural stone tiles are porous, therefore sealing before grouting is essential to fill these pores with protective sealer. If this is not done, minute particles of grout will sit in the pores and result in a hazy surface appearance. It’s prudent to discuss sealing of your tiles with your tiler to ensure this vital process is incorporated into your budget and the work schedule. Read More >>>

Tiling On Concrete

Whether you're fixing Jura limestone natural stone tiles, or Alpine Flax wood effect porcelain tiles, you need to assess whether your substrate is concrete, and prepare it suitably to ensure your tiling project is a success. Failure to assess and prepare your substrate correctly may result in the floor tiles cracking, coming loose, or the tile adhesive de-bonding from the substrate. Read More >>>

Do I need to use trims for the edge of my tiles?

Each tile installation is different, and so the need for tile trims is different too. The practicalities of the room, coupled with aesthetics and design trend, tend to dictate whether tile trims are utilised for any particular project, whether it be fixing natural stone tiles in a kitchen, or rectified porcelain tiles on bathroom walls and floors. Read More >>>

Tiling onto uneven floors

Whether you're fixing Dijon limestone tiles or architectural porcelain tiles and the floor is uneven, you need to assess if the floor is suitable to tile onto and what action is required to ensure your tiling project is a success. Failure to assess and prepare your substrate correctly may result in the floor tiles cracking, coming loose, or the tile adhesive de-bonding from the substrate. Read More >>>

Tiling over electric under floor heating

Whether you're fixing natural stone Cappuchino marble tiles, or classic polished porcelain tiles and electric under floor heating has been installed, you need to assess your substrate and consider a number of other factors before you begin fixing floor tiles. Read More >>>

What space should I leave between tiles?

Referred to by tilers as 'grout lines', the gap size you opt for depends on the type of tile you're using for your project, the type of substrate the tiles are being fixed to and personal preference. Consideration should also be given to the type of grout to be used. Read More >>>

I can see what look like cracks in my tiles – what are the these and are they acceptable?

If you think you can see cracks in your tiles, they may not be cracks. Read on to find out more about what they actually might be and if your installation is OK. Read More >>>

Tile Haze, What To Do?

I have a 'haze' all over the surface of my tiles. What should I do? Generally "haze" occurs in three tiling installation situations. In this article, we’ll give you all the answers. Read More >>>

Tiling On Top Of Tiles

Whether you're fixing natural stone Black Emperador marble tiles, or wood effect porcelain tiles such as Albero Hazel, and considering fixing new tiles onto existing tiles you need asses the condition of the existing tiles, and suitability of the substrate underneath to ensure your project is a success. Read More >>>

Tiling Onto Wooden Floors

Whether you're fixing natural stone Carrara marble tiles or Albero Gris wood effect porcelain tiles, tiling onto wooden floors needs different preparation from other materials such as concrete. The key reason is the movement, or 'bounce', inherent to wood, which needs to be taken into account. Read More >>>

Professional installation: How to find an installer and get the best job done.

Like any other “trade”, the techniques required to successfully tile an entire bathroom or kitchen floor have to be learned over a period of time before you can call yourself a tiler. Whilst you don’t need to have studied at Oxford, it still requires a certain amount of brainpower and skill to achieve the best results. Read More >>>

Do I need to seal my floor with a primer before tiling?

As a general rule, we would say use a primer of some description to prepare your floor prior to tiling. However, it’s not always necessary to use a primer, as there are many high quality adhesive products available which are specifically formulated for installing large format natural stone tiles and porcelain floor tiles onto many different substrates without the use of a primer. Read More >>>

Where Is Best To Start Installing Tiles

Where to start tiling or "Setting Out" can take a bit of planning and thinking about. Measuring a room and deciding where to start, and end, tiling can be a daunting process for the uninitiated but with a little help and advice from Stonestore, you could be well on your way to getting your tiles laid in a symmetrical and aesthetically pleasing way. Read More >>>

DIY Repairs To Stone Tiles

Natural stone tiles can become scratched or damaged over time. You can always get them brought back to life by a professional cleaning company but there are some quick fixes a DIY enthusiast can do. Read More >>>

How To Repair Scratched Tiles

Your cleaning and maintenance regime has been effective since you had your floor tiles fitted and sealed three years ago, then disaster strikes and something sharp gets dragged across them and scratches the surface. It may be time to call in the professionals. Read More >>>

How To Clean Natural Stone Tiles

Looking after a natural stone floor is easy as long as it was installed correctly in the first place. A simple cleaning regime using appropriate products will keep your beautiful stone floor looking like new for a long time but when it does need a proper freshen-up, there are companies that will come out and bring it all back to life for you. Read More >>>

How to clean porcelain tiles

Porcelain tiles don't generally need special cleaning products but some care should be taken if you have polished porcelain tiles. Strong acidic products or gritty based products can kill a polished floor. It's best to use a cleaner made specifically for the type of floor covering you have. Read More >>>