Marble Floor Cleaning and Restoration in the Washington DC area

Questions & Answers -
Marble Cleaning and Restoration

1. What is the difference between marble and granite?

Granite and marble both are natural stones quarried from the earth.
Granite is siliceous stone and composed mainly of silica or quartz like particles. Granite is formed deep in the earth’s mantle at extremely high temperatures and is very hard and resistant.

Marble includes limestone, onyx, and travertine. They are calcareous stones and composed mainly of calcium carbonate which begin as sediment animal skeletons, shells and silt of the bottom of water. After thousands of years they solidify into stone.

2. How should I clean my marble floor?

Vacuum the floor daily of possible to get rid of the sand that travels with foot traffic. Frequently use a clean dry dust mop to remove dirt and sand which can damage stone surfaces due to their abrasiveness. It is very important to keep area rugs and mats at each entrance to minimize sand and dirt. Clean stone surfaces with water and P-24 Stone Soap the marble neutral cleaner. Never use products that contain acidic or alkali products that are commonly sold in stores.

3. What is the process of marble restoration?

We use special equipment for wet diamonding the stone with diamond abrasives or aluminum oxide pads. Grinding (if uneven installation, or deep scratches on the stone) Honing (to remove fine traffic scratches, stain marks) Polishing of marble to receive its original luster.


4. Can I use vinegar & water or commercial cleaners on my marble?

Vinegar and water make a great cleaner for porcelain and ceramic tiles, but should never be used to clean polished marble. Vinegar is acidic and will burn the polish of the stone. Many commercial brand name cleaners such as: Lysol, Lime Away, Ajax, Tilex, can etch your marble causing ugly stains. Also we do not recommend the use abrasive scrub pads such as 3M green scrubbing pads or Brillo pads.

5. Is there a lot of dust when you restore marble or other stone floors?

There is no flying dust in the air during the restoration process. Grinding, honing, polishing are wet processes that are vacuumed with a professional wet/dry vacuum.

6. Will grout be cleaned after polishing of the stone?

Before final polishing of marble we clean all grout lines with special chemicals and brushes and grout returns to almost its original finish and color.

7. What is the “Sealing” of the stone?

There are several kinds of sealers:

Above surface sealers include various acrylics and wax. These require a lot of maintenance. Below surface sealers in the stone industry are called impregnators, because they impregnate the interior of the stone with sealers and reject water, oil, dirt and fat infiltration. They do not prevent scratches or etching from acid spills on marble.


8. How often should Stone be sealed?

Each brand of the sealers has its own warranty. Some are warranted for a year, others five, ten, and fifteen years if the stone is maintained and cleaned regularly with our recommended products and procedures. Otherwise it must be sealed more often. Some stones must be sealed periodically. Soft stones, such as limestone may be sealed more often.

9. We have brand new limestone or travertine floor, but since it was installed it looks blotchy, dirty and we can’t clean it. Is that possible to fix it?

Yes, we have a special process for improving your blotchy and dirty looking brand new or used installed floor. We can bring the stone to a better appearance than its first day installed.

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