What To Know About Baltimore Granite

Posted by Unknown on 1:24 AM with No comments
By Anna Olson


Granite refers to one of the strongest, most long-lasting, and beautiful stones in modern use for the production of various artistic and architectural products. The stone is prestigious and has a composition that make it possible to shape it into various forms. It is used as a symbol of elegance and quality when used in a place. It is in wide use in exterior as well as interior applications. In Baltimore granite stones have been in use for a long time and they are held in high esteem.

These stones are majorly applied in the construction industry. In external construction, the stone is used as a building material for making monuments, buildings, bridges, and pavements. Internally, it is used to construct countertops, desktops, stair treads, and tile floors among several other structures. This material is majorly used to make countertops for use in kitchens according to some research.

Granites are prone to certain structural problems just like any other building materials. Problems that occur in granites are usually classified under two main classes, that is, human-caused problems and natural problems. Natural causes result from conditions of exposure and qualities of the material and are not influenced by human activities.

Main problems classified under natural/inherent issues are blistering, detachment, efflorescence, erosion, chipping, cracking, flaking, rising damp, spalling, staining, and peeling. Small swellings that occur in the surface of the stone are called blisters. The swelling appear thin with light skins before they rupture to form small depressions. Causes of blistering include ground water or de-icing salts. Blistering precedes spalling and exfoliation.

When small or big pieces of the stone separate from masonry units, the process is referred to as chipping. Chipping commonly occurs at mortar corners, edges, or joints mostly. What causes this process is impact caused by deterioration or repair. The impact may be caused by hard pointing mortar, accidents, or vandalism. Cracking is another commonly occurring problem in granites. It is shown by narrow fissures occurring in the stone.

Some of the major causes of cracking are structural overload caused by settlement, flaws in the material, and too hard mortar mix. If the cracks are minor, they may not pose any major danger or concern. However, minor cracks may also be an indication of major structural problems to be expected. Cracks may provide a point through which water enters the stone to cause salt migration.

Detachment is usually not failure occurring in the stone, but a failure of the construction system. The failure may occur in joints or connectors. Detachment can be corrected easily by using proper methods of repair. Penetration of water into the points of detachment can accelerate the problem and cause major issues in the structure.

The man indicator of efflorescence is presence of local deposits that are white in color. The deposits may be caused by various factors, including the use of improper cleaning agents, air pollution, mortar, de-icing salts, rising damp, and chemical landscaping treatments. However, it is not in all cases the white deposits indicate occurrence of efflorescence.




About the Author: