Stone Flooring Hardness Scale

One of the most important properties of natural stone to consider is its hardness.

Stone flooring hardness scale. The harder the stone the less likely it will scratch. Travertine stone has holes within the stone which are caused by carbon dioxide evasion making great for needs slip resistance areas like pools and patios. This hardness scale as with many hardness scales is a relative measure and doesn t give the entire picture of how durable the material being measured is. Mohs hardness scale is applied to flooring tiles to show how hard their surface is.

Slate 2 5 4. According to the mineralogical society of america moh s hardness scale was developed by frederich mohs in 1822. Marble is a dense crystallized rock a form of limestone that has been transformed by extreme heat. The pei scale was established by the porcelain enamel institute to help create standards consumers could rely on to help determine which tiles to buy for which purpose.

Limestone 3 4. A janka rating provides a great barometer for determining how well a particular floor may withstand denting and wear. Understanding how the janka hardness scale works is simple. On the mohs hardness scale where 1 is the softest and 10 the hardest the following stones are.

The pei rating is and indication of tile hardness and pei floor ratings are valuable to guide tile choices for different projects. In other words shore hardness is a measurement of a product s ability to resist a concentrated pressing load. When it comes to classifying a natural stone granite before making a purchase stone buyers like to focus on the relative granite hardness to know how hard a stone is in comparison with other natural stone products like marble sandstone slate limestone and quartzite. Travertine is comparable with marble in terms of hardness ranking a 4 on the mohs hardness scale.

What is moh s hardness scale. Granite 7 8. In hard surface products i e ceramic tile porcelain tile stone tile etc. The lower the number the softer.

Travertine is formed in hot springs and or limestone caves. The wood hardness scale gives part of the picture of how scratch resistant wood is like the mohs scale of hardness addresses the scratch resistance of. Avoid using in kitchens where spills and. In short a higher number rating on the janka scale equates to a harder wood species.

It should be noted that the pei rating involves testing of only the surface wear layer of a tile s enamel glazing. A car tire has a shore type d hardness rating of 15 while a hardhat has a hardness rating of 80. Travertine 3 4. Marble 2 5 5.

Ceramic and porcelain tiles are rated though most people seem to be more concerned about the. The purpose of the scale is to determine how scratch resistant a mineral is and is related to the breaking of chemical bonds in the material as well as microfractures on the surface.