Chinese North Country Slate Tiles for Walls & Flooring

North Country Slate Flooring

Chinese North Country Slate - Characteristics

The colours of North Country slate are mainly rusty, brown shades on a blue-grey background. The slate is dense and very tough making it suitable for external & internal applications. The test results below indicate it is one of the best natural stone flooring products in the world.

Sake Sushi Restaurant & Bar, The Rocks

Interior designers Luchetti Krelle specified North Country slate for the refurbishment of the Sushi Restaurant & Bar in Argyle St of Sydney's Rocks precinct. The images on the top left, right and right below were taken shortly after completion of the project in 2010. The rustic charm of the slate was chosen to compliment the colonial aesthetics of the historic Argyle Centre.

The slate in this project was used on both the floors and walls and the result is wonderful and a great credit to the designers. This slate ticked a lot of boxes - appealing, tactile, warm rustic colours, durable, low maintenance, water resistant, fire resistant and best of all - totally natural!

Slate Floors - Firesafe & Quite Natural

A measure of the environmental credentials of a building product is the involvement by man and process up to the point where it is fixed to a building. On that basis this slate is a clear winner. This slate has a natural split surface which means it is split along natural cleavage lines and does not require expensive, energy demanding, processing machinery to saw it. However, It does mean the thickness of the material varies a bit - naturally!

Floor Slate With Excellent Durability - Test Results Prove It!

North country slate is as tough as ticks! Its one of our most popular slates for indoor and outdoor use and the test results below indicate why so many people come back for more. It's one of the world's great flooring products because of its durability and low maintenance requirements.

Slate Tiles - Colour & Texture Enhanced with Natural Split Surface

Slate splits naturally along planes reveals pallets of vivid colour not seen in stone with processed surfaces. The topography of the surface is intricate and has character, depth and grain - as you will see in the image above. Flakes of slate that are occasionally seen are evidence that the stone is high enough quality to split naturally and that it is genuinely slate. The flakes if present, are easily removed when laying as explained in the FAQ section.

To Seal or Not To Seal?

The test results below indicate that North Country slate should not need to be sealed, afterall it's dark, variegated colour is not likely to show the usual coffee, tea or red wine stains! So there is a good argument for saving your money.

However, there are three very practical reasons for sealing. When used indoors, some people prefer the colour enhancement provided by surface sealers and on the natural split surface cleaning is much easier as well. This was certainly the case at the Sake Restaurant & Bar (image on the right) where cleaning is a daily priority.

The second reason sealants are used, is to protect the slate from oil and grease stains especially around food preparation areas. Unless these are wiped up quickly, they will leave marks on an unsealed surface (though they are often hard to spot!).

The final reason applies to outdoor applications only. North Country ocasionally has small outcrops of iron compounds that can rust over time, if exposed to salt air. The application of a surface sealer for slate used outdoors is therefore recommended as it will prevent any discolouration or pitting.

Chinese North Country Slate

The images below are of unsealed slate

North Country Slate

Specifications

Tiles - 300x200, 300x300 & 400x300x10-15mm

For more information on floor & wall slate, go to specifications.

Stone Quality Rating - North Country Slate

(5 stars = best quality)

Density
Porosity (1 star = highly porous)
Water Absorption (1 star = highly absorbent)
Flexural Strength (dry)
Flexural Strength (wet)
Slip Resistance

Indicative Test Results

Density (ASTM C97-02) - 2714 kg/m3
Water absorption (ASTM C97-02) by volume (porosity) - 1.78%
Water absorption (ASTM C97-02) by weight - 0.66%
Flexural strength (ASTM C880) (dried) - 37.7 MPa
Flexural strength (ASTM C880) (wet) - 24.6 MPa
Slip resistance (AS/NZS 4586-2004) - 49W (risk of slipping when wet = low)

For more information on floor & wall slate, go to test results.

Quotes

If you have a project in mind and would like us to arrange a quote for both supply and fixing your slate floor, contact us on the number below. There is absolutely no charge for this service and you are most assuredly free of any obligation to proceed.