I agree. This slab install we polished the ends as well - don't you love the clear look trim on this fireplace! This install was 6 pieces of tarvertine installed onsite. If you look close at the fireplace in this picture you will see we polished the top stone to lap the skinny piece. Travertine is soft and the quality of the sealers and filler varies. The look of this install was enhanced because we ordered a 40% waste factor. We Cherry picked the stone and spent 4 hours doing layout. The extra waste stone will become a laundry room floor. What type of fireplace is it? Make sure to test the effects of heat on your tile. Place a few in front and bring the fire up to full heat for a number of burn cycles. Get one tile set loosely above the fireplace for the same test. Test with the sealer as well. I case you didn't know - I build a lot of fireplaces - I just don't talk about it. I hear Mike Holmes next issue will talk about fireplace renovations. Lets see what the "Experts" have to say... ;)

Delaney, I wrote this on the other thread as well: email me at "mongospecs at comcast dot net", use "kerdi" in the email title, and I'll email you the link. On Schluter's website (or contact their tech department via their 1-800 number) they have certificates that you can print out and present to your building authority. The certificates show that Kerdi complies with and meets/exceeds all the building standards that your inspector is worried about. You can then use Kerdi under the equivalent of the "alternative methods" section of your building code. Mongo

Bill V - I found one of your comments in an old GW post from 2008. I copied and pasted below. So I'm thinking unsanded. If I am wrong, please let me know! Thank you so much for all of your help! As for the explanation of the different grouts, I just posted this in an FAQ thread on the gallery side of the bathrooms forum. Here it is, copied and pasted: Although there are others, for all intents and purposes, there are two kinds of grout-- portland cement based, and epoxy. The portland cement based grouts are the conventional grouts that have been around for millenniums. Although in the last few decades, they've been modified with latex and other polymers to make them stronger and more resistant to mold and mildew, they're basically the very same grouts that have been used since Greek and Roman days. There are two kinds of portland cement based grouts. One is sanded, and the other unsanded. The only difference between the two is, as their names imply, the sand. The ONLY thing that determines which grout should be used is the joint size. NOT the glaze, NOT aesthetics, NOT the material (ceramic vs. glass or polished marble), NONE of those. I'll repeat-- the ONLY thing that determines which is used, is the joint size. Anything under an 1/8" takes unsanded grout. Anything 1/8" or bigger, you use sanded grout. If you use unsanded grout in larger joints, the cement in the grout will shrink way too much as the water evaporates out of it, and the joints will end up shrinking and cracking bigtime. If you try using sanded grout in smaller joints, the grains of sand will literally clog the top of the joint, and not allow the grout to get down INTO the joint, and the grout will flake off in a matter of days.

It's important enough that you try and get in touch with your installer and find out what he used. if you can't, then I'll recommend one of the others.