Marble tile? Will I regret it?

[Forget-Me-Not]

We are in the process of picking tile for our new home. Both DH and I fell in love with a hexagonal mosaic tile and are considering splurging on it for the master shower floor. But . . . it’s marble. How hard is it to care for and keep in nice condition? This would be an adults-only bathroom so no kids leaving a bottle of shampoo to drain out across the floor or anything like that. We’ve been looking at ceramic/porcelain look-alikes but there just isn’t anything we like nearly as well. 

Edited February 16, 2022 by Forget-Me-Not
Specifically shower floor

[Catwoman]

We have had marble tile for years and it has held up just fine!  🙂 

[Carol in Cal.]

 I find it too slippery for a bathroom, personally.  

[Forget-Me-Not]

2 minutes ago, Carol in Cal. said:

 I find it too slippery for a bathroom, personally.  

Oh I meant to say it’s for the shower floor. It’s a 2” hex so we’d have grout to provide some traction. But slipperiness is definitely another consideration. 

[Martha in GA]

5 hours ago, Forget-Me-Not said:

Oh I meant to say it’s for the shower floor. It’s a 2” hex so we’d have grout to provide some traction. But slipperiness is definitely another consideration. 

Personally, I wouldn't want to have grout to clean on the floor...

 

[kristin0713]

We had marble for our last kitchen backsplash and it was terrible. It’s very soft and porous, scratches and stains easily. I really liked the hexagon look myself but ended up choosing a 
herringbone porcelain tile for our new build. We’re using the 1x3 herringbone on the shower floor, 4x12 subway pattern on the shower walls and 12x24 on the bathroom floor. 
 

Good luck!! Choosing tile was such a headache for me! 

[Scarlett]

I found this…..I don’t have time to read it but it might give you some direction.

My last shower was 6 inch tiles on the shower floor and it was not difficult to keep the floor clean.  But it was small and it was dark tile and dark grout.   

[EmilyGF]

You can ID marble in the field by pouring vinegar on it and watching it fizz... I would never have it on any place that got a lot of wear.

Emily

[HomeAgain]

We lived in two houses in Italy, both with marble stairs and the one with marble tile floors.  I loved both of them, but the floors especially.  I'm not sure I would do it in a shower, but I might try.  TBH, though, if I was redoing a bathroom my focus would be using the stone as a floor because it is fabulous with radiant floor heating under it. I'm less interested in planning out my own shower, lol, than I am in getting heat in the floors.

[Katy]

DH has forbidden me from ever putting marble on a floor because it’s so slippery when wet. And I learned ages ago that I personally hate tiny tiles with tons of grout. I came to the conclusion that the reason they were popular in historic homes is that they advertised you could afford help to scrub that grout constantly.  Now a grout pen can help, but you need to use them frequently.

Personally I love softer stones like marble and soapstone on counters. I like them not looking perfect forever. But if you prefer something that looks pristine and new always you’ll probably like ceramic better.

[Scarlett]

10 hours ago, Forget-Me-Not said:

We are in the process of picking tile for our new home. Both DH and I fell in love with a hexagonal mosaic tile and are considering splurging on it for the master shower floor. But . . . it’s marble. How hard is it to care for and keep in nice condition? This would be an adults-only bathroom so no kids leaving a bottle of shampoo to drain out across the floor or anything like that. We’ve been looking at ceramic/porcelain look-alikes but there just isn’t anything we like nearly as well. 

One thing I am thinking....if you are anything like me....if you love that marble mosaic you will not think of it as a chore to care for it properly.  You have already thought through that it is just for you and your husband and so you will not have to worry about children or guests  being careless with it.  

[Pam in CT]

I love how marble looks, but concur about too slippery.  Ultimately, bathrooms are... basically the definition of "functional space." 

Would the mosaic you've fallen in love with work as a focal point on a wall?  As design / art, rather than function / floor in a very-wet location?

[MEmama]

I’m on team No Grout. DH wants to redo our main bathroom and I’ve been stalling for 10 years because I can’t find any solid surface flooring that I think would work. I do not want another tile floor.
 

In a shower I wouldn’t want tile because A) I don’t like the look, B) slippery, C) impossible to keep clean, D) I think it would be uncomfortable to stand on and E) it looks dated quickly, especially designs.

Do you need to consider future resale?

Edited February 16, 2022 by MEmama

[plansrme]

I have marble mosaic in my shower floor. I sealed it twice when it was installed a couple of years ago, and it looks as good as the day it went in. It is not slippery at all. I dye my hair at home and rinse it in that shower, and it has not stained from the run-off. We have porcelain for the floor, but marble on the floors (the small mosaic) and walls (a larger format tile) of the shower.

[Forget-Me-Not]

1 hour ago, MEmama said:

I’m on team No Grout. DH wants to redo our main bathroom and I’ve been stalling for 10 years because I can’t find any solid surface flooring that I think would work. I do not want another tile floor.
 

In a shower I wouldn’t want tile because A) I don’t like the look, B) slippery, C) impossible to keep clean, D) I think it would be uncomfortable to stand on and E) it looks dated quickly, especially designs.

Do you need to consider future resale?

This is a custom walk-in shower so I'm not sure what else we would do except tile on the floor?  Are there other options?  In fact, one of the places we went to look told us that the floor tile had to be small so the tiler could work with the slope for the drain.  

Future resale. . . possibly.  We don't plan to move again for a good long time.  Long enough that what we choose now will probably look out by then anyway, LOL.  

Have you considered LVP for your bathroom floors? The contractor was telling us a lot of people in our area have started using it in bathrooms of their new builds because they've matched it to the cabinets they're using throughout the house.  And he was saying there is a waterproof baseboard now that looks like the MDF trim they put everywhere else, but it won't swell if it gets wet.  We are considering this for the other two bathrooms in the house.  

[Forget-Me-Not]

5 minutes ago, plansrme said:

I have marble mosaic in my shower floor. I sealed it twice when it was installed a couple of years ago, and it looks as good as the day it went in. It is not slippery at all. I dye my hair at home and rinse it in that shower, and it has not stained from the run-off. We have porcelain for the floor, but marble on the floors (the small mosaic) and walls (a larger format tile) of the shower.

Oh good to know.  I don't mind sealing it once in a while.  I think you have to be careful about what you clean it with too, right?

 

[kristin0713]

Just now, Forget-Me-Not said:

This is a custom walk-in shower so I'm not sure what else we would do except tile on the floor?  Are there other options?  In fact, one of the places we went to look told us that the floor tile had to be small so the tiler could work with the slope for the drain.  

Future resale. . . possibly.  We don't plan to move again for a good long time.  Long enough that what we choose now will probably look out by then anyway, LOL.  

Have you considered LVP for your bathroom floors? The contractor was telling us a lot of people in our area have started using it in bathrooms of their new builds because they've matched it to the cabinets they're using throughout the house.  And he was saying there is a waterproof baseboard now that looks like the MDF trim they put everywhere else, but it won't swell if it gets wet.  We are considering this for the other two bathrooms in the house.  

We went through all of these decisions 🙂 

I originally wanted no grout on the floor. They would have had to do a special order drop in shower basin and it would have cost a lot more money. They also told me the same thing re: smaller tiles for the drain. Another option was to do a long drain close to the wall and they would slope the floor slightly towards it. That also would have been more expensive. 

We are doing LVP throughout the entire first floor, including the powder room, with the exception of one room which will be the music room and that will get carpet and a door to block out sound. After reading a bunch of design blogs and looking at pictures, I opted for tile in the upstairs bathrooms. We are doing carpet in the bedrooms and I don't love the look of carpet next to LVP for the bathroom. It just looks funny to me. 

[Forget-Me-Not]

I didn't even realize drop-in shower basins were a thing.  But oof. . .  a brief Googling search does show they're expensive and it would appear ours is not a standard size so. . . probably back to tile.  

I've really got to pick cabinets first.  I really want white lowers, but I'm afraid they'll chip and show wear easily. 

Edited February 16, 2022 by Forget-Me-Not

[Scarlett]

The tile dh used in our last shower had a slight texture too it.  It was a very small bathroom and he made the shower zero entrance so we went ahead and did the same tile through out the bathroom.  It looked wonderful and it was very non slick.  And not difficult to clean.

 

[kristin0713]

It's so hard to pick everything. This design blog was a HUGE help to me in my planning 

https://mariakillam.com/10-steps-for-planning-your-new-build/ 

 

[kristin0713]

Here's a post regarding the vinyl plank in bathrooms. Of course, this is just one designer's opinion and I don't agree with her on everything. I did go with a white cabinet in our master bathroom. But I do think she makes great points! 

https://mariakillam.com/dos-donts-vinyl-plank-floors-bathroom/ 

[Scarlett]

I love both of these links. So much of it is things that make perfect sense when you read it but might not have thought about before.

[Pam in CT]

re shower drains

57 minutes ago, kristin0713 said:

... Another option was to do a long drain close to the wall and they would slope the floor slightly towards it. That also would have been more expensive....

I honestly don't understand why this isn't standard practice.  I mean, showers are installed ONCE; someone has to then clean showers UNTIL THE END OF TIME.  Even if it *does* take a bit more effort on the installation end it surely still makes more sense.  And thereafter any floor option anybody wants, itty bitty loads'o'grout mosaic or great 16' x 20 stone tiles or one enormous slab of granite, will work.

But I also don't understand why it's harder on the installation end. Why is it harder to slightly slope the whole [leveled] floor a few even degrees, than shape the entire thing in all directions towards a drain in the center?

[prairiewindmomma]

5 minutes ago, Pam in CT said:

re shower drains

I honestly don't understand why this isn't standard practice.  I mean, showers are installed ONCE; someone has to then clean showers UNTIL THE END OF TIME.  Even if it *does* take a bit more effort on the installation end it surely still makes more sense.  And thereafter any floor option anybody wants, itty bitty loads'o'grout mosaic or great 16' x 20 stone tiles or one enormous slab of granite, will work.

But I also don't understand why it's harder on the installation end. Why is it harder to slightly slope the whole [leveled] floor a few even degrees, than shape the entire thing in all directions towards a drain in the center?

Right? And the great thing about the long drain is that you can get pretty close to zero entry so it’s easier to age in place in your home.

I am anti-marble for shower floors. You have to seal it every 6 months and use marble cleaner weekly to keep it looking nice. I am moving towards LESS upkeep wherever I can. 

[kristin0713]

12 minutes ago, Pam in CT said:

re shower drains

I honestly don't understand why this isn't standard practice.  I mean, showers are installed ONCE; someone has to then clean showers UNTIL THE END OF TIME.  Even if it *does* take a bit more effort on the installation end it surely still makes more sense.  And thereafter any floor option anybody wants, itty bitty loads'o'grout mosaic or great 16' x 20 stone tiles or one enormous slab of granite, will work.

But I also don't understand why it's harder on the installation end. Why is it harder to slightly slope the whole [leveled] floor a few even degrees, than shape the entire thing in all directions towards a drain in the center?

Standard is the cheapest. Everything else is an upgrade. The long drains against the wall are an upgrade, I forget all the why's of it. It’s also slippery to do bigger tiles on the floor with less grout and less traction. I hemmed and hawed about this. I did NOT want grout on my shower floor. In the end, I resigned myself to the cleaning and picked a pattern I loved. 

[MEmama]

1 hour ago, Forget-Me-Not said:

This is a custom walk-in shower so I'm not sure what else we would do except tile on the floor?  Are there other options?  In fact, one of the places we went to look told us that the floor tile had to be small so the tiler could work with the slope for the drain.  

Future resale. . . possibly.  We don't plan to move again for a good long time.  Long enough that what we choose now will probably look out by then anyway, LOL.  

Have you considered LVP for your bathroom floors? The contractor was telling us a lot of people in our area have started using it in bathrooms of their new builds because they've matched it to the cabinets they're using throughout the house.  And he was saying there is a waterproof baseboard now that looks like the MDF trim they put everywhere else, but it won't swell if it gets wet.  We are considering this for the other two bathrooms in the house.  

I love faux wood in a bathroom, we actually installed some (to get rid of the horrible tile, lol) in our downstairs half bath. I’m super hesitant to put it in a full bath, though, because I worry it would turn off future buyers. I could easily see families with small kids or dogs give it a pass—I love the look and simplicity, but I wouldn’t want to take the (perceived) risk if that were our situation either.
 

For a shower floor I’d personally go with an old fashioned solid shower floors— idk what they are called, trays? Easy to clean, and no grout. 🙂 But I actually love the ugly solid surround in our bath, so take my opinions with an abundant serving of salt. I dread redoing the bathroom because I know I’ll have to update the walls with subway tile— it’ll look nice, but I'm going to hate it every day.

[plansrme]

1 hour ago, Forget-Me-Not said:

Oh good to know.  I don't mind sealing it once in a while.  I think you have to be careful about what you clean it with too, right?

 

I am not careful. I wouldn't spray it with vinegar or something that could etch, but think about marble floors in old Italian buildings. They've been there for centuries. I lived in an old apartment once that had marble window sills that looked fine after 80 years. I am positive no one was using special cleaning products on those window sills. 

[prairiewindmomma]

Most public buildings have polished marble floors, which are less porous than honed marble. Polished marble is slipperier than honed marble. Most of those buildings also have a nightly cleaning crew, who are cleaning the floors nightly.

Window sills get little foot traffic---not much exposure to staining materials, and not much maintenance required--weekly wipe down while dusting.  The damage I've seen is watermarks left from plants on a sill.

Honestly, if you can buy marble sample tiles, I'd stick them in your shower for several weeks and see what you think. Be sure to do the occasional accidental drip of shaving cream or shower gel on them, and clean them weekly when you clean your bathroom. Some people can handle the upkeep and love it, but I have a few type A friends who have regretted going the marble route.

[plansrme]

And I will add that I can absolutely tell real marble from ceramic or porcelain look-alikes. Even if the difference is not obvious in a small sample, it is when you are looking at a shower full of the stuff.  If you want marble, ceramic or porcelain is not going to satisfy. I LOVE my shower and have never regretted it. We even put the same large-format marble that is on our shower walls on the tub surround for a bathroom that is used exclusively by two teenaged boys. No, really--and it also looks great. These boys have 15 shampoo bottles between them (they are Central American students who have lived with us for 1.5 years now, have phenomenal high-maintenance hair and use all. the. hair. products). Tub surround goes to the ceiling, and it also still looks brand new. 

[Forget-Me-Not]

37 minutes ago, plansrme said:

And I will add that I can absolutely tell real marble from ceramic or porcelain look-alikes. Even if the difference is not obvious in a small sample, it is when you are looking at a shower full of the stuff.  

Agree 100%. There’s just a dreamy quality to it that can’t be replicated. 

[Catwoman]

4 hours ago, prairiewindmomma said:

Right? And the great thing about the long drain is that you can get pretty close to zero entry so it’s easier to age in place in your home.

I am anti-marble for shower floors. You have to seal it every 6 months and use marble cleaner weekly to keep it looking nice. I am moving towards LESS upkeep wherever I can. 

We have never followed those instructions and our marble still looks like new. We have had it for around 10 years now, and I haven't done anything special to care for it. It's a lot more durable than people think, as long as you pick a good quality marble. 

[shawthorne44]

Those long drains are more expensive also.  Just the hardware part.   After our addition is finished, DH will do our Master Bath.   In college I visited a friend in Sweden.    I fell in love with the bathroom.   It had several drains on the floor and a big handheld sprayer coming from the ceiling.  That was my request for the master bath.    Zero entry shower and several drains in the floor.   That way cleaning should be easy.  I figure I can just slop a lot of water around, and push the dirty water to a drain.    So, anyway I told DH I wanted a couple of those long drains.    He grumbled about how expensive they were, but will be doing it.  

[Clarita]

12 hours ago, Forget-Me-Not said:

I didn't even realize drop-in shower basins were a thing.  But oof. . .  a brief Googling search does show they're expensive and it would appear ours is not a standard size so. . . probably back to tile.  

This was us too. We did find a drop-in shower basin that could be custom sized but $$$$. So we went with ceramic tile, and I told the contractor as little grout as possible. He cut our matte floor tiles to 2" by 4" and tiled the shower.  

Although we did do a slab porcelain marble look alike for the shower and a matching man-made quartz countertop. So maybe I'm not the most discerning. 

[Carrie12345]

20 hours ago, Forget-Me-Not said:

Have you considered LVP for your bathroom floors? The contractor was telling us a lot of people in our area have started using it in bathrooms of their new builds because they've matched it to the cabinets they're using throughout the house.  And he was saying there is a waterproof baseboard now that looks like the MDF trim they put everywhere else, but it won't swell if it gets wet.  We are considering this for the other two bathrooms in the house

We’re doing LVP in all our new bathrooms.
Last night I had a nightmare that they installed super ugly tile instead, lol.

We did our own LVP in our current main bath and I LOVE it.  But I’m always over here talking about my love for LVP throughout much of my current house.
For the new build, my focus has been almost 100% on ease of care/cleaning.  That has meant full LVP through the entire first floor, plus upstairs bathrooms.