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Flagstone Floor for a Kitchen DIY's intrepid stone warriors tackle a kitchen floor using quartzite tile for a natural stone look. From "Rock Solid" episode DROC-312

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Cutting Stone

Eventually, you'll need to make cuts (figures A and B). Mark the stone with a pencil where it needs to be cut, and use a wet saw to cut it in a straight line.

Rock Solid Tip: Whenever you're doing any kind of tile work, whether it's ceramic or real stone, rent a wet saw.

Figure A

Figure B

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	Figure C
	Figure D

Transition Strip And Final Cuts

If your new floor is meeting an existing floor, you will usually need to install a transition strip to cover the seam between the two rooms (figure C). Transition strips can be found at your local supplier.

Make any necessary cuts up against the transition strip so your slate pieces will fit exactly together. You may want to use quick-setting thinset for these last pieces so you can move on to the grouting step sooner. Quick-setting thinset dries in about 30 minutes.

Grout Prep

• Once the thinset has dried, wash the stones clean of thinset. Use a bucket of clean water and sponge them down. You may need to wash the stones two or three times before they are clean (figure D).

• Once the slate has set and been cleaned, add grout release. This is going to prevent any grout from staining the stone. Also, porous stones are easier to clean when treated with a grout release. Pour some grout release in a bucket and apply it with a clean sponge. Apply a thin layer to the stones — enough to cover them.

• Allow the grout release to dry for a half hour.

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