Stone flooring

[judy]

I'm on the hunt for a new stone floor for the dining room and kitchen in our cottage (circa 1830). There are some original stone tiles in the living room hearth, under the stairs and in a cupboard, when i stripped the paint off the hearth tiles I found they are a lovely pinky beige colour, with a matt sandy texture. Being no expert in these matters I wondered if anyone might be able to suggest what they are?

Any suggestions for a robust stone max 12mm deep that can cope with being the primary entry to the house also a boisterous toddler and baby would be greatly appreciated!

 

[FamilyWiggs]

Can you post a pic?

I have a boisterous 5 year old and 7 year old you can have - will they do? I can deliver! :lol: :lol:

 

[Penners]

Whereabouts in the country are you? That information, plus - as FW has suggested - a photo or two, could help the experts on this forum to identify your stone.

 

[biffvernon]

Essex is not exactly famous for its stone quarries and 1830 is before there was much rail transport, so they probably came by boat from oop north.

 

[Penners]

Sorry - I'm still used to the old forum layout, where the location was shown under the poster's name.

As you say, Biff, stone in Essex tends to come in kit form, widely known as 'sand and gravel'.

 

[Nemesis]

I wonder if this is indeed stone, or if it could be pamments?

 

[Penners]

Pictures would answer the question!

 

[chuckey]

What size are they? - pamments are 9" square and about 1 1/2 " thick. They are not really suitable for entrances/high traffic density cos' after 150 years they show a 1/8" depression due to wear.
Frank

 

[biffvernon]

No, one wouldn't want to use materials that show signs of wear after a mere century.

 

[Nemesis]

Pamments can vary in size:

http://www.pamments.co.uk/gallery2.htm

and colour.

 

[Penners]

Ours are about 9in square, and vary considerably in colour from rich terracotta red to pale cream - sometimes within the same pamment.

One of them has a decoration of what we assume are rosemary sprigs. The maker's "logo" perhaps?

 

[judy]

Thank you so much for your responses! From what you've said I think that they probably are pamments, I've enclosed a photo of the hearth to confirm. So if they are 1 1/2 " thick they won't do, as the max depth (without digging up the concrete floor) that we can put in is 12mm, otherwise the boundaries will be too high into the other rooms. I've looked at limestone (too pale) and travertine (best i've seen so far but maybe a bit mediteranean looking?) but haven't found a better option so far. Any ideas?

I've just thought too - can anyone suggest a means of removing several grease stains from the oak surround on our fireplace? We didn't get chance to seal the wood before buttery fingers got at it....

thanks so much again!
Judy

 

[Nemesis]

They come in a variety of thicknesses:

http://www.pamments.co.uk/prices.htm

 

[judy]

Thank you so much! They would be just perfect, however I'm now wondering about whether we should remove the concrete floor inside the dining room or lay these on top? Would there be any benefit other than the reduced floor height to doing so?

There has been a wooden floor in there in the past as there's still an air brick which we discovered last week when we removed the old concrete laid outside the house. We're putting in a channel/french drain to route any rainwater away from the house, fingers crossed that will resolve our existing damp issues!