Greenovations: Slate-ish

People tend to love natural looking finishes especially high dollar stone and ceramic tiles.

However, several problems exist with these finishes. The first is that these products are heavy, adding to transportation and handling costs and making them significantly more difficult to install in vertical or unusual surfaces.

The second problem is that while hard and durable, most are brittle and subject to breaking during transport and installation.

I am sure many of you have heard horror stories about bathrooms and kitchens where they ordered just enough tile and too much broke so the project was either delayed or the tile had to be switched with one that was more available.

The third problem is the production and sourcing of these materials. In the case of stone, these products were quarried at great fuel cost and great environmental cost which is certainly not good.

This is where Slate-ish comes into play. This is a stone/tile replacement material that can be used almost anywhere that stone or ceramic products can.

The interesting thing is these tiles are actually made of recycled paper. They are a byproduct of a paper laminate production facility and consist of 65% post-consumer recycled content. This product is available in many sizes, shapes and colors and can also be sealed for additional moisture protection and ease of cleaning.

If you are interested in learning more check out Slate-ish.com.

by Bry Ratliff – The Green Register