WILLOW SANDSTONE (HONED SURFACE)

FLOORING TILES & PAVERS

This product is the lightest of any sandstone available. It has a silky smooth texture when dry but when wet becomes surprisingly 'grippy' which makes it an attractive outdoor surface even in wet weather or around pools. Of all available sandstones, it has very good qualifications for use around salt water pools even though it just misses out on the water absorption benchmark of 0.1%. The Willow sandstone range is our most popular sandstone because of its beautiful variation in light and cool summery colours. This is the lightest coloured sandstone on the market.

although it's a favourite around pools, one should be wary that like sand at the beach, it can be a little glary in summer due to its very light surface colour and may show the dirt. Sealing with Sealers Choice Gold Rapid that lasts 10-15 years is a good insurance against staining from food beverages, leaves, dirt and bird droppings though. The colour of the stone in dry form is white, straw and grey with tinges of eucalyptus green and pink. After rain, the colour will darken showing the full spectrum of colour that is more apparent in Willow Natural Split. Willow Sandstone in honed surface is ideal for indoor and outdoor surface applications.

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SPECIFICATIONS

Tiles - 400x400x15mm & 600x400x15mm

Pavers - 400x400x30mm & 500x500x30mm by special order. Other sizes also available by order.

Bullnose coping - 400x400x22mm, 400x400x30mm & 500x500x30mm; others sizes available by request.

Ledge tile - 600x400x15mm with 25mm bullnose

Treads with bullnosed edge - 1000x350x30 & 1500x350x30mm

PROJECT IMAGES

SANDSTONE STAIRS: POPULAR & PRACTICAL

Honed Willow step treads are popular for use on stairs. It is the lightest and most durable sandstone on the market and the treads have a soft, rounded bullnose edge that doesn't catch on shoes or feet. The honed surface is quite smooth to touch when dry but becomes surprisingly grippy when wet. Safety is an important factor to consider with stair surfaces. Slip tests should be used as a guide; these are published at the foot of the page.

OUR SANDSTONE IS COLOUR SORTED

Our Willow range of sandstone has been colour sorted by our supplier in India; this has been done to remove the unpopular green and brown colours that are characteristic of standard lines of Indian or "Himalayan sandstone". There is a lot more effort and a little extra cost involved but our customers tell us "its worth it" because rogue pieces get eliminated before they arrive in Australia.

HONED WILLOW STEP TREADS

Honed Willow step treads are popular for use on stairs. It is the lightest and most durable sandstone on the market and the treads have a soft, rounded bullnose edge that doesn't catch on shoes or feet. The honed surface has an impressive silken honed finish which is quite smooth to touch when dry but in rain or when wet they surprise everyone with a grippy, safe surface to walk on. Safety is an important factor to consider with stair surfaces. Slip tests should be used as a guide; these are published at the foot of the page. These beautiful step treads can come in up to 2m lengths and are one of our most popular products. They are easy to damage in transit, so we pack them very carefully.

SUITABILITY & USES

Explanatory Note - A good all round surface with surprisingly good slip resistance when wet. It stays relatively cool in exposed areas but may be "glarey" at certain times of the day.

SUITABILITY FOR SALTWATER POOLS

If you are thinking of using sandstone around a salt water pool then we'd advise you to have a read of this article first - "When Good Stone Turns Bad". There are risks involved in using sandstone around a saltwater pool and this article will help you achieve a successful outcome.

INDICATIVE TEST RESULTS

Slip resistance (AS/NZS 4586-2004) - 60V (risk of slipping when wet = very low)
Flexural strength (ASTM C880) (dried) - 19.4 MPa
Flexural strength (ASTM C880) (wet) - 16.1 MPa
Density (ASTM C97-02) - 2421 kg/m3
Water absorption (ASTM C97-02) by volume (porosity) - 5.25%
Water absorption (ASTM C97-02) by weight - 2.17%
Resistance to salt attack weight loss (AS/NZS 4456.10) - 0.2%
Resistance to salt attack classification (AS/NZS 4456.10) - A (suitable for wet, dry & salt attack cycles)
Resistance to salt attack (AS/NZS 4456.10) mode of decay - no decay visible

NB The benchmarks for use of stone around salt water pools is 0.1% weight loss or less with a minimum slip resistance classification of W.

Architects - AS HB197 (see below) may be used to approximate Oil Ramp test R values - there is no conversion table as the tests are vastly different. On this basis, V (on the more relevant & less costly wet pendulum test) is closely aligned with R11 and X with R10. Thankfully oil ramp tests are being phased out - not before time either as they are impractical and far too costly.