sealing limestone hearth tile (travertine)

[beefstew]

I'm almost done with a hearth/pad/wall shield I'm building for a small woodstove. Floor for the hearth area is 12x12 "Travertine" (Limestone) tile from Menards. I just finished grouting tonight and have been trying to figure out if I should seal the grout or tile.

I don't know the specific chemistry, but I assume most sealers work by producing some kind of oil/plastic/wax coating. If a coal falls out of the stove door while loading, having an oil/plastic covered surface for the coal to fall onto seems like a bad idea.

Have any of you been down this road of unlikely worry before? Is there a good solution? Right now I'm leaning towards leaving the floor unfinished and just embracing the "aging" of the floor.

Also, the next-summer plan for the wall/heat shield is to build out a 4" block wall of limestone from up the valley. Not sure how to split the stone by hand, so if you have any suggestions...

 

[begreen]

Silicone is a neutral and common tile sealer.

 

[Warm_in_NH]

Have similar tile in our bath. Definitely seal it, it'll take several applications and need to be re done yearly (depending on traffic).
It's a very soft stone full of small holes and will be a totally different color in a year if you don't get something on it.
I wouldn't worry about a sealer making the stone flammable, a little bit goes a long way.