How to lay porphyry

Laying porphyry requires careful consideration of the choice of material, the intended use of the paving, and the proper execution of the work. Italporphyry technical and expert support to designers, contractors, and private individuals.

Why laying is as important as the material

The biggest mistake one can make in the context of horizontal architecture is to assume that flooring is simply the algebraic sum of two main factors: material and installation. In other words, two components that, incidentally, are often incorrectly considered in isolation from one another.
After all, even the most prestigious of materials can be devalued by an inexperienced installer. A competent and skilled installer can make all the difference and provide real added value, even when working with stone of modest quality.

Basic rules

The reality is that a stone paving cannot be considered the simple assemblage of disjointed operations as much as a complex system, the result of logical choices inspired by a principle of executive coherence. This coherence is capable of balancing in a balanced way the different variables that insist in equally different ways on individual design situations. We are talking about functionality, durability, technical requirements and, of course, aesthetics. This means that on a par with a vertical construction, a pavement cannot disregard a control room that knows how to plan and, above all, coordinate the action of all the players involved. From designers to manufacturers to suppliers and/or commercial intermediaries, from builders to installers to testers, professionalism and competence must be demanded that are always up to the role and responsibilities involved.

Porphyry knowledge

If this is lacking, the result will certainly be mediocre. Even more so with the use of layered porphyry, an atypical material where knowledge of the stone, tradition, experience and workmanship have always made the difference. This is a guarantee for results of excellence or at least honorable and respectable quality. When this is not the case, however, the sacrosanct principle of user/buyer satisfaction, i.e., the citizen, is zeroed out. The floor, made with second-rate materials and unprepared cheap labor, loses its identity connotation. It responds only to completely distorted market logic, to the utmost discredit of the entire stone industry.

Tools for practitioners

Yet there is certainly no shortage of tools for reading and interpreting the correct execution and requirements that a porphyry pavement must meet (The Porphyry Manual; Porphyry Laying-Rules and Practical Tips; Atlas of Trentino Stone; Uni Standard 11322, UNI 11714-1:2018).

Laying

Here we aim to contribute to the construction of an informative/comparative framework that not only can shed light on paradoxical and obvious circumstances, but also on the detailed aspects that are indispensable for a porphyry work and that too often escape the attention of the uninitiated.
Contrasting arcs paving executed in full compliance with the construction rules, even the final cleaning of the cubes was performed correctly
In the work there is a lack of total control of arcs, non-compliance with rules for arc development, distorted and indecipherable laying geometry
Extreme control executive detail, change direction arcs according to construction rules
Total chaos, inability to handle change of direction; leaks out of measure, poor quality material
Contrasting arcs paving executed in full compliance with the construction rules, even the final cleaning of the cubes was performed correctly
Porphyry wall cladding completely disfigured by grouting
Slab cladding with maximum harmonious interlocking control of the elements
Laying of porphyry for contrasting arch paving with poor quality material: random arch development with denial rules for laying at retaining sides
Regular arcs development with perfect management of tapering and/or out-of-square enlargement of the arches, control of the average size of the joints, and clean sealing that allows the reading of all the typical colors of Trentino porphyry
Laying with random arc development with denial rules for laying at the arch key (vice), where the interlocking of the elements is very sloppy; sealing smears also undermined the result further
Irregular slab paving unpresentable in every single construction aspect, from the distribution of the joints, to the failure of the elements to fit together, to the sealing that covers every single porphyry slab, nullifying the colors irreparably even by resorting to acid, used in special cases, to clean the porphyry
The photo shows the added value that an installer can give to a pavement made in uncertain work, control of joints, regular development of the joint size, impeccable cleanliness
Paving by laying peacock-tail porphyry cubes in two colors, perfectly executed with matching between each individual arch and the fill cubes
Peacock tail paving with unsuccessful attempt to highlight the upper gray arch and without any internal correspondence between the fill cubes and the arches. This necessitated the insertion of broken and resized elements
A poor attempt to fill in the area surrounding a manhole, by means of porphyry tiles. It can be guessed that the installer not only lacked the basic work skills, but also did not have the necessary tools to shape the perimeter figures (diamond disk; chisel/correcting jig, etc.).
Contrasting arcs paving executed in full compliance with the construction rules, even the final cleaning of the cubes was performed correctly

Conclusions

The above roundup of pictures is obviously not exhaustive to illustrate what and how many mistakes can be made in the execution of a porphyry pavement. However, photos much better than words can make one understand the importance of the technical and cognitive support that serious porphyry manufacturers can provide to the designer or the simple private consumer, already at the time of quotation and planning of the work.

Italporphyry is available for any technical, regulatory and/or installation issues, but also to dispense simple and useful advice.

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Tel. +39 0461 829835
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