Marshall's indian sandstone - comments/opinions

[InfAddict]

Hello to Tony and all at the Brew Cabin. It's many months since my last post (and since I started planning my patio project!).

After much deliberation, my lass has decided she likes the look of the Indian Sandstone range made by Marshall's. Interestingly, this isn't present in their 2005 brochure but Jewson's assure me this is made by Marshall's (before you have a heart attack, I won't be buying it from Jewson's - just using them to view products etc.). Haworth Moor came a close second (and was also 20% more expensive).

The price for the Indian Sandstone was about £25 per square metre which I thought was good for natural stone. I'll be price matching to all local Marshall's suppliers before I buy.

Has anyone used Indian Sandstone by Marshall's and have any comments, opinions etc? Finally, any special advice for laying these flags? Is the normal semi dry mix still ok for Indian Sandstone on a light use patio?

Thanks in advance .

[Tony McC]

I have to admit to being slightly annoyed with Marshalls for naming their Indian sandstone "Haworth Moor" - this is an insidious marketing trick, trying to give the unsuspecting general public the idea that the stone hails from Bronte Country, or is at least familiar with the White Rose county and it's celebrated yorkstone, when, in truth, the only connection is that Marshalls have the HQ in Halifax. The Haworth Moor stone actually hails from India.

Having said all that, the word in the trade is that the quarries owned and operated by Marshalls are not likely to be embarrassed by some of the human rights problems that take place in other quarries in the region, and the stone itself is generally very good. However, there's plenty of other, equally good stone out there, and a lot of it is cheaper by several quid per square metre.

It's worth shopping around. There's a list of potential suppliers in the Links section of the main website. Try calling a few of those companies: I've lightly vetted all of them and they all have stock on the ground (not some airy promise that takes weeks to materialise) and tend to supply the better quality stone. However, I know that some of the 'second grade' stuff does slip through, now and again, so, if you find a potential supplier, take the missus out for a ride and let her see it in the flesh, as it were, before handing over your dosh.

[InfAddict]

Thanks for the reply Tony... I totally agree with the 'Haworth Moor' comments... in very small print in the Marshall's brochure is the line 'Haworth Moor does not denote origin'!!!

However, the range we looked at was not Haworth Moor but was simply called 'Indian Sandstone' by Marshall's. As I said, this was 20% cheaper than Haworth Moor and we actually thought it looked better - the finish was smoother and more uniform than Haworth Moor.

Thanks for the supplier advice - some great links on that page - I will give some of them a call .