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January 25, 2019


Quartzite vs. Marble: The Misclassificaiton of Some of Our Favorite Stones

Quartzite and Marble have become some of the most widely applied natural stones in recent years. If you’ve recently purchased either, you may have noticed they look very similar in some cases. This has lead to an increase in misclassification of the stones. Many marbles are being labeled Quartzite and some Quartzites are even being  labeled as Sandstones. 

This creates a problem for the consumer who believes they’re buying something that won’t etch, patina or stain.                              (side note- no stone is 100% stainproof )

Lets look at some of the biggest differences:


Marble 

Quartzite
Primarily made of Calcite, comes in a large variety of colors Primarily made of Quartz, colors are mostly white/grey tones
Will etch, stain and patina, will not hold a high polish for the life of the stone Much harder to etch or stain; will not patina and will remain at a high polish forever
Will scratch Will not scratch easily

 

How can you tell the difference? Unfortunately, there’s only a few ways to tell the difference and even with a well trained eye, it’s easy to be duped. There are chemical properties the stones can be tested for, a “glass scratch test” that can be performed and years of experience to know the difference also helps. 

Within seconds of our blade hitting the stone, our trained craftsmen can tell what kind of stone is being cut. Quartzite is extremely hard to cut and takes twice as much effort to process from block to finished product than any Marble. Marble is soft and can be easily cut and finished.

When shopping for your next project, be sure to do your homework and contact us for a clear understanding of the product and it’s limitations. 

I doubt however, that if you’ve already chosen one of these gorgeous stones, that you’ll be easily swayed to change your mind…

 

 

 

Give us a call!