Travertine in Paradise Valley, AZ

Paradise Valley is a town of custom estates on acre-plus lots, most of them tucked between Camelback and Mummy Mountain on land zoned for low density and open space. The backyard is the point here, large, private, and visible from nearly every room of the house. Almost every estate already has a pool, which is why travertine is our most-requested surface in town. Solterra does not build pools, but we design and lay the entire deck, coping and patio around the one you already have. A travertine surround in ivory or tan reads as part of the architecture, not an add-on, which is the standard homeowners in Clearwater Hills and Camelback Country Estates expect from any exterior work.

Travertine earns its place in Paradise Valley because of the heat. It is a natural limestone quarried in soft ivory and tan tones, and its dense, slightly porous surface holds far less heat than poured or stamped concrete, so it stays walkable on an August afternoon when a concrete deck would scorch bare feet. Ivory and light tan reflect more of the intense Arizona sun and stay coolest of all. Because the stone is quarried rather than dyed, that color will not fade or wash out under years of full desert exposure the way tinted concrete can. On an open acre lot with a pool used barefoot all summer, that cooler, lasting surface is the entire reason to choose travertine.

Most estates on the flanks of Camelback or Mummy Mountain do not sit flat. Slopes of 10 percent or more fall under the town's Hillside Building Committee, which reviews grading, drainage, retaining walls and exterior lighting before anything is built. We plan a travertine deck or terrace to work with that review, not against it, grading the pad so monsoon water runs off toward drainage instead of pooling against the house or the pool. On these lots we also preserve the protected saguaros and palo verde, and we lay out any deck lighting to respect Paradise Valley's low-glare ordinance, so the mountain stays the view at night. A view terrace in ivory travertine finishes a hillside lot without fighting its grade.

Every travertine job starts underground, which matters more on these lots than the stone on top. Paradise Valley soil is dense with caliche that sheds monsoon water and heaves under any rigid surface, so we excavate to depth, compact an aggregate base in lifts, screed a bedding layer, then set the travertine, most often in a French pattern of mixed sizes. Edges are restrained so the field cannot spread, and joints are filled to lock the stone against weeds. Because travertine is porous, we seal it for the desert against hard-water etching from pool splash, monsoon dust and sun bleaching, and we recommend refreshing that seal every few years. Set on a real base and sealed, a travertine surround holds for decades. Solterra is licensed since 2012, ROC 359628.