When it comes to figuring out how to start remodeling your home, it can all feel very overwhelming. You might have a lot of questions that just keep piling up. “How do I get this look?” “What measurements will I need?” “How do I figure out what materials to invest in?” To answer some of those questions, it might be helpful to first learn about the entire process your stones will go through.
Before we purchase stones to stock in our warehouse, they first have to be mined from a quarry. This is done through a variety of methods, but blasting is the most popular option. For blasting, the stone gets drilled holes and then filled with explosive powders (this is known as “charging”). After this, tamping ensues, which means that whatever portions are leftover get filled with clay, ash, fuse, and wirings. Then the firing begins, thanks to the help of electrical power supplies or match sticks.
Once the stone is extracted from the quarry, it is shipped off to a facility to be cut into slabs. At the fabrication facility, the stone will be cut into 2 cm or 3 cm thick slabs (which is the industry standard). This is done by running the stone through giant saws, which use diamond wire blades. While the saws can cut many slices into the stone at once, it does take around an hour to go through one foot of stone, so it is quite an intense process.
Next, the slabs are polished to make everything smooth and pretty. The slabs are run horizontally through slab polishing machines, which have large, diamond polishing pads. It only goes over the top of the slabs, so the edges are still rough. After this process, the slabs are put into bundles (about 6 slabs per bundle) and are sent to us.
This is the part where you become involved; you’ll come to our showroom and warehouse to check out our selections, decide what materials fit your vision, and then collaborate with one of our sales associates to start making plans. We’ll come to your location to get the proper measurements, run your slabs through our fabrication machines, and then install.
It’s a long journey for stones, but the final result is so worth it. Stay tuned for next week’s blog post; we’ll talk about different types of stones and how to incorporate them into your remodeling plans!
