Fine handmade terrazzo stone bath ware

GOING GREEN WITH TERRAZZO

Nothing beats Terrazzo in the realm of “green”. 


QUALITY

We produce products we believe in. Products we can stand behind. We believe in quality of product and material, craftsmanship in construction and finding quality in life by the choices we make everyday 




GOING GREEN WITH TERRAZZO

Nothing beats Terrazzo in the realm of “green”. The first Terrazzo-like floors created nearly 9,000 years ago in the middle east still exist today, and ancient Terrazzo floors still stand in many buildings throughout Europe.

Terrazzo-like floors created thousands of years ago still exist many of them with a compression strength of nearly 500 pounds per square inch.

Cementitious Terrazzo  still stand in many ancient structures throughout Venice, including at least one installed as early as 1309.

There is no clearer confirmation of Terrazzo’s superior sustainability than to examine the Renaissance-era  created in the 14th century. Utilizing pre-consumer waste chips from marble slab processing operations, these floors were one of the world’s first recycled products.

Ancient Terrazzo is remarkably similar to modern cementitious Terrazzo, almost to the point of indistinguishability, and these surfaces are still serviceable and aesthetically pleasing even after hundreds of years. 

Terrazzo is a non-porous system with no grout joints. It does not support microbial growth and does not allow the accumulation of water.  This lack of water absorption and porosity results in a surface requiring only minimal cleaning processes, without the need for use of harsh cleaning chemicals. 

Terrazzo’s advantages in sanitation result in an overall improvement of the indoor air quality of buildings such as Hotels and Homes and anywhere else indoor air quality is a factor.

Terrazzo’s meets the most stringent environmental standards, including the State of California’s Special Environmental Requirements Section 01350 Standard Emissions testing for indoor air quality.

Not Green Acrylic Resin Bathtubs From China 

EVALUATING FIBERGLASS AND ACRYLIC RESIN BATHTUBS

The first type of shower surround that may come to mind is the typical formed-fiberglass surround. They are inexpensive and a common surround material for tubs in American homes. However, while minimal and mostly limited to effects of cutting, moving, or disturbing fiberglass (such as when you remove it in a later remodel) there are some health concerns associated with fiberglass.

Health effects from exposure to the fibers in fiberglass include:

  • skin, eye and upper respiratory tract irritation

  • skin rash

  • soreness in the nose and throat if the fibers are inhaled

  • aggravation of respiratory conditions such as asthma and bronchitis

  • stomach irritation, if the fibers are swallowed.

Acrylic tub surrounds look incredibly similar to fiberglass tub surrounds. Acrylic is made from the mixture of acrylic acid and meth-acrylic acid, together with other chemicals. The most common type of acrylic resin is poly-methyl .

  • While the EPA has not classified acrylic acid itself as a carcinogen, acrylic resins may contain traces of ethyl acrylate, a known health concern.

  • The Ecology Center has found that acrylic can cause breathing difficulties, vomiting, diarrhea, nausea, weakness, headaches and fatigue. Because of these health concerns and your chemical sensitivity, fiberglass and acrylic are not viable options, so we’ll look at some of the alternatives.