Terrazzo: what’s the difference between cement and resin based?
Terrazzo being one of our most popular material, I get asked daily by clients what the difference is between cement and resin based. I thought I would write a short article describing the difference between cement and resin based terrazzo.
As you might already know, Terrazzo is a material used for centuries made of marble chippings, pigments and a binder, either cement or resin. It is usually used for floors, but it can also be used for walls, worktops, stairs, or even precast elements.
For the purpose of this post, we will focus on Terrazzo made in tiles or blocks as other types of production such as in situ or precast have further implications. Expect another post on this topic soon.
(Chip) size matters
The marble chips used in Terrazzo are actually one of the key element which will dictate if cement or resin should be used as a binder. Resin being stronger than cement, we are able to have larger chips in the mixture.
With cement based terrazzo, you are limited to approximately 25mm chips, as the mixture needs to be more compact to be strong enough to make slabs and tiles. Resin on the other hand can have chips of over 100mm in size without a problem.
You can see the Variostone cement range here and the resin based, or conglomerate terrazzo as we also call it, here.
Why not only use resin then?
Resin being more expensive than cement as a raw material. Thus creating an identical design is resin would simply be more expensive without any major advantages than cement.
Another reason is that certain marble chips such as Carrara for example absorb a little bit of the resin. This creates a sort of halo around some the chips, which can make the design not look as crisp. Overall cement Terrazzo generally has a more natural feel, and is preferred by our clients.
Gloss vs Matte Finish
Resin based Terrazzos due to their nature are usually made polished as a standard. The reason is that their texture and composition makes them ideal to reach high levels of polish.
Cement on the other hand is usually supplied in a honed or matte finish. It can be made to a polished finish as well, it is however a bit more complicated and requires the use of acids to help with this process.
Don’t hesitate to get in touch with me if you are looking for marble, terrazzo, precast concrete or other stones for your projects. We take on projects worldwide small and large. You can email me at kevin@variostone.com
