Material guide
Travertine restoration and care
A limestone formed with natural voids. The holes — filled or open — drive most decisions about how it is finished.
Travertine is a limestone deposited by mineral springs, and its defining feature is porosity at a visible scale: the natural voids and channels left as the stone formed. Whether those holes are filled, and with what, changes how the surface can be treated.
Filled travertine has had its voids grouted or resin-filled at the factory. Those fills are not the same material as the stone, so they wear, discolour, and pop out at a different rate — which is why an old travertine floor often looks pitted even where the stone itself is sound.
Unfilled travertine is usually specified outdoors or where a textured, natural surface is wanted. It holds dirt in the voids by design, so cleaning is a different exercise from cleaning a closed surface.
Chemically it is calcite, so everything true of marble's acid sensitivity is true here as well.
Behaviour
What makes travertine different
These properties are the reason the method changes. They are not trivia.
- Calcite-based and acid-sensitive
- Contains natural voids, either left open or factory-filled
- Fills behave differently to the stone around them
- Available honed, polished, tumbled, and brushed
- Very common in pool surrounds and outdoor paving
Common problems
What goes wrong, and whether it can be put right
Described as you would notice it, then what is physically happening, then what restoration can realistically achieve.
- 01
Pitting, or small holes appearing across the surface
- Cause
- Factory fills failing and releasing. Traffic, moisture movement, and age all contribute. The stone is usually fine; the fill is not.
- Outlook
- Addressable — voids can be refilled and the surface refinished. Colour-matching fills is skilled work and an exact match is not always achievable.
- 02
Grey or green discolouration outdoors, often slippery when wet
- Cause
- Biological growth in the surface texture and voids, typical around pools and in shaded areas.
- Outlook
- Correctable with appropriate cleaning. Recurrence depends on drainage, shade, and how much water sits.
- 03
Etching and dullness on interior floors
- Cause
- Acid contact and traffic wear, as with any calcite stone.
- Outlook
- Correctable by refinishing.
Looking after it
Day-to-day care for travertine
A good share of the damage we repair was avoidable. This is the short version of how to avoid it.
Do
- Sweep and rinse outdoor travertine before growth establishes
- Use pH-neutral cleaners indoors
- Keep pool water chemistry in range — splash-out affects the stone
- Have failing fills addressed before they collect dirt and widen
Avoid
- Acidic cleaners and chlorine-based products directly on the stone
- High-pressure washing, which strips fills and opens voids further
- Sealing over trapped moisture outdoors
Finishes
Finishes achievable on this stone
The finish is chosen to suit the stone and the room it is in, not applied as a default.
- honed
- polished
- matte
- textured
- natural
Other materials
We restore more than one kind of stone
Looking for a particular job rather than a particular stone? Browse stone restoration by what needs doing.
Not sure what your travertine needs?
Acidic cleaners, vinegar, lemon, wine, and many supermarket bathroom sprays will etch this stone. Etching is a chemical burn into the surface, not a stain sitting on top of it, so it cannot be wiped away or bleached out — it has to be ground and refinished.