America's Natural Stone Crafter
Recent News
Looking For Those Granite Counter Tops?
30 November,2009There is no doubt that looking for granite countertops can be considered one of the biggest investments that you'll ever make. One of the first things that you need to do before you even start selecti...[more]
Granite Countertops: More Versatile Than You First Thought
07 October,2009Mention granite countertops and people immediately think about the kitchen. The first place that most of us think installing granite countertops would be a great idea is in that room , but that's not ...[more]
Learn more about our products!
Continuing our If you find it difficult to understand terminology used in a granite busisness don't worry! Use our guide below to clarify technical mambo jamb.
- back arch
- a concealed arch carrying the backing of a wall where the exterior facing is carried by a lintel.
- baluster
- a miniature pillar or column supporting a rail, used in balustrades.
- balustrade
- an ornamental fencing consisting of a series of balusters supporting a handrail or molding.
- banker
- bench of timber or stone on which stone is shaped.
- basalt
- a dense-textured (aphanitic), igneous rock relatively high in iron and magnesia minerals and relatively low in silica, generally dark grey to black, and feldspathic; a general term in contradistinction to felsite, a light-colored feldspathic and highly siliceous rock of similar texture and origin.
- bed
- the top or bottom of a joint, natural bed; surface of stone parallel to its stratification. (1) In granites and marbles, a layer or sheet of the rock mass that is horizontal, commonly curved and lenticular as developed by fractures. Sometimes applied also to the surface of parting between sheets. (2) In stratified rocks the unit layer formed by semidentation; of variable thickness, and commonly tilted or distorted by subsequent deformation; generally develops a rock cleavage, parting, or jointing along the planes of stratification.
- belt course
- a continuous horizontal course of flat stones placed in line marking a division in the wall plane.
- bevel
- when the angle between two sides is greater or less than a right angle.
- bluestone
- a dense, hard, fine-grained, commonly feldspathic sandstone or siltstone of medium to dark or bluish-gray color that splits readily along original bedding planes to form thin slabs. Bluestone is not a technical geologic term. It is considered to be a variety of flagstone, the thin relatively smooth-surfaced slabs being suitable for use as flagging. The term has been applied particularly to sandstones of Devonian age that are being or have been quarried in eastern New York and Pennsylvania and in western New Jersey, but similar stones that occur elsewhere may be included. It has also been applied in places to thinly layered gneisses and schists that can be split and used as flagging, but such stones are not properly embraced by this definition, although they may be marketed properly as flagstone.
- bond stone
- used in varying percentages to anchor or bond the stone veneer to the backing material. Bond stones are generally cut to twice the bed thickness of the material being used.
- border stone
- usually a flat stone used as an edging material. A border stone is generally used to retain the field of the terrace or platform.
- box
- a tapered metal box wedged in the top of columns or other heavy stones for hoisting.
- broach
- to drill or cut out material left between closely spaced drill holes; a mason's sharp-pointed chisel for dressing stone; an inclined piece of masonry filling the triangular space between the base of an octagonal spire and the top of a square tower; a type of chisel used for working narrow surfaces.
- brownstone
- a sandstone of characteristic brown or reddish-brown color that is due to a prominent amount of iron oxide, as interstitial material.
- brushed finish
- obtained by brushing the stone with a coarse rotary-type wire brush.
- building stone, natural
- rock material in its natural state of composition and aggregation as it exists in the quarry and is usable in construction as dimension building stone.
- bull nose
- convex rounding of a stone member, such as a stair tread.
- buttering
- placing mortar on stone with a trowel before setting into place.
- black granite
- rock species known to petrologists as diabase, diorite, gabbro, and intermediate varieties are sometimes quarried as building stone, chiefly for ornamental use, and sold as "black granite". As dimension blocks or slabs, they are valued specifically for their dark grey to black color when polished. Scientifically, they are far removed in composition from true granites though they may be satisfactory used for some of the purposes to which commercial granites, are adapted. They possess an interlocking crystalline texture, but unlike granites, they contain little or no quartz or alkalic feldspar, and are characterized by an abundance of one or more of the common black rock-forming minerals (chiefly pyroxenes, hornblende, and biotite).
Granite Blog Posts
Looking For Those Granite Counter Tops?
There is no doubt that looking for granite countertops can be considered one of the biggest investments that you'll ever make. One of the first things that you need to do before you even start selecti[more]
Why to Select Granite Countertops?
Granite is a gorgeous and luxurious stone. It is used mostly for flooring purposes and for countertops. In fact, granite has been the most popular choice am[more]
Granite Articles
Caring For Granite Counter Tops Is Easy
Like a lot of other high end things that you buy caring for granite countertops is easy but they do require regular maintenance. When you start shopping for the right granite countertop for your house...[more]
Granite Countertops Are Easy To Maintain
The thing about granite countertops is the fact that they are easy to maintain. That's on top of a the natural beauty that they have. And that's the whole thing about this natural wonder. Once you se...[more]
Testimonials
New design of granitetopia is awsome. i like it
Granitetopia is a proud member of marble institute of america