looking for a kitchen floor - love the look of slate but.....

[pashmina]

have heard it isn't very practical, needs a lot of after care.

anyone got any good ideas?

anyone got any good links to suppliers?

we have slate and I so wish we hadn't. It cost around £1k to tile and more for the fitters.Its a nightmare to keep clean, always looks dirty and is a nightmare all round.

It's costy to fit real slate due to the fact that a certain cutter is needed.

My mum is due to have her kitchen refitted, she showed me a brocure yesterday from B&Q. Flooring that locks together Apparently mum says it looks exactly like tiles. They do a range of colours. Will see if I can find more info for you.

We have slate and it's great. I think as long as you treat it properly when you initially put it in, it's failr bomb-proof really. So - lots of coats of floor sealant to stop it from staining and then it's just wipe and go!!

I think you would probably end up having to polish it every year or so...but apart from general comments about it being cold, etc. then I can't see the problem and we love ours!!

think this is it. The brocure has more variety and I presume the store do as well.

\link{http://www.diy.com/diy/jsp/bq/nav/nav.jsp?fh_search=tough+loc&zone=all\tough loc}

shhhh, you make a good point. my mum has tiled floor all over the house. always looks (and feels if you walk on bare feet) dirty no matter how much you mop.

HBA, think thats where we went wrong. The guys lay it etc but rushed off before sealing it as we wanted. They only gave 1 coat and I had to do the rest . Ours is a kitchen/breakfast/family area so it was a nightmare to seal.

In hind sight I should have insisted the lads stayed to finish it but you know what some workmen are like.......

BTW pashmina,like hba said about coldness..everyone comments but neither dh or I find it cold.

I had tiles in my last house, but this is for a much bigger area - kitchen, dining and family room.

I didn't like the coldness of the tiles (i hate wearing slippers), but they are practical.Does anyone know anything about synthetic slate look tiles?

Lilacbump - but if you go for dark slate - I think we've actually got indian slate which has every colour under the sun in it from brown through to green / grey...then I find it actually hides the dirt exceptionally well! Great for people who like me - just don;t have the time to constantly clean!!

We have laminate flooring that looks like slate tiles from B&Q and I love it - never looks dirty, warm under feet, things don't break so easily when you drop them

We have something called Karndean (sp?) which looks like slate but is lovely and warm and things don't break as easily when you drop them-frequent occurrence in this house!

We have something called Karndean (sp?) which looks like slate but is lovely and warm and things don't break as easily when you drop them-frequent occurrence in this house!

We had a new slate floor laid at the holiday hosue where i work (by new i mean reclaimed form the farm yard buildings)

anyway before it was sealed i dropped a WHOLE pot of double cream on it.... need i say that mark will be there for ever

also its SOOOO hard.... I broke at least 3 plastic cups (picnic style "quality" ones from John Lewis) and of course anything made of glass / china does not get a second chance!

also its freezing cold

i wouldnt choose it again if i ever i ahd the oppertunity to choose it!

I also agree about the "breaking" things. I am sooo clumsy and I have lost count about the amount of glasses/cups/plates etc I have broken by dropping them on the floor.I usually ram my cupboards full of stuff so when I open them everything falls out. Not a good idea.!!

The floor ALWAYS comes out better!!

Amtico do fake slate, much warmer and wipe clean and doesn't break stuff

\link{http://www.amtico.co.uk/home/site_search.asp?kws=slate#\look at the links here}

my mum has slate in her kitchen, the sort (indian?) with lots of different colours, i don't think she finds it any more difficult to keep clean than any other type of flooring she's had in there (vinyl, tiles). it also looks v. fab! we recently put travertine in kitchen & dining room, with an under tile heating element beneath - works really well we find & fairly economical. sorry to others but i think the real thing knocks spots off laminates...

I've just bought loads of \link{http://www.stonelldirect.com/products.asp?str=3&id=83&pt=6&ptx=&pk=&h=&l=#83\Desert Sand} slate for my kitchen/breakfast room so am reading this thread in a rather jittery way.

Thanks for all the advice - I have contacted Karndean and amtico for details.

would love to have natural stone/slate, but I am worried about the upkeep, anf I am aleays dropping things, so these may be best option!

We've just had a marmoleum floor put down in our kitchen.

whats marmoleum? any extra benefits over laminate?

We got tiles fitted, that look like slate but aren't, got them a couple of years ago from Homebase. Also got them quite cheaply and bought while during a 10% day.

Marmoleum is softer and quieter, also comes in lovely colours.

mrsdarcy, thats the colour I wished we had got. We have the black mountain slate. Lovely if in a show home but horrendous in our kitchen .

Your tiles should be fine colour wise..

we are about to change our kitchen floor and I'm stuck in a similar quandry - I want a dark floor that I can mop (because of dog and dirt). Love the look of slate but it comes out quite expensive.

thanks SHHHH