Glossary
Marble
Formed over millennia from limestone, this crystalline rock is extremely durable making it ideal for floors. Due to the creation process, veins and colour changes can appear in the stone which can look like faults but are actually an inherent characteristic of the stone and are of no concern. Marble can come in a variety of textures and finishes due to its versatile nature. It can be polished to a high gloss finish and other common finishes include honed, split-faced, and acid washed. Onyx, serpentine, travertine, and verde antique are all types of marble, although the term is often used to describe any calcium carbonate stone capable of being polished.
Modular size
Tiles manufactured in a range of sizes that are multiples of the same index dimension, typically 50mm.
Moisture Expansion
The increase in dimension or volume of materials, such as porous ceramic tile, due to changes in prevailing moisture conditions.
Mosaic
A design, pattern or image on a wall, floor or other surface created using small pieces of ceramic or porcelain tile (tesserae), natural stone, coloured glass, or other materials, including metals. Mosaic tiles are often premounted on a backing for ease of installation.
Movement Joint
A stress-relieving profile used to compensate for movement of tiles and / or the substrate, by separating a large tiled area into independently moving tile fields to prevent cracking, bulging/ tenting or debonding. Movement joints should be planned so that the maximum tile field should be no more than 10 metres in any direction but, in practice, movement joints may be required at intervals of between five and eight metres, such as where thermal influences exist or when tiling over suspended floors.