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The Best Tips to Clean and Protect Your Marble, Granite and Travertine Surfaces

Written by Jacqueline Tabbah of International Stoneworks, Inc.

marble kitchen 1*Marble Countertop

travertine*Travertine Countertop

It is a new year and there is no better time to learn about the simple and effective ways you can take care of your natural stone countertops, floors, and showers. If you are still thinking about a New Year’s Resolution, make it your 2015 project to create an efficient and safe stone care program for your home.

The best way to clean your Travertine, Marble or Limestone floors:

The best way to clean stone floors is with neutral cleaners. You want to avoid acid-based products. Most natural stones react (etch) when they come in contact with the three A’s: acid, ammonia and alcohol. You can safely and effectively clean all natural stone floors with Lavenet neutral stone cleaner or Lavenet Green.

Lavenet BLVNTGR_300Over time, stone floors may have some light scratches, residues or etch marks. You may need to have a professional company like International Stoneworks, Inc. come and lightly polish or hone the stone floor.

Tips on how to clean and protect Granite, Marble and Limestone kitchen and bathroom countertops:

crystal baby marble*Marble countertop (…Beautiful baby and gorgeous Elizabeth patterned William Yeoward crystal!)

Whether you have marble or granite countertops, we highly recommend cleaning them on a daily or weekly basis and sealing them annually. Again, avoid acid-based products. A great cleaner that is safe to use is Akemi Crystal Clean. It is a ready-to-use cleaner that also removes light calcium deposits. If you want to safely disinfect your countertops, clean with Sani-Tyze.

BCRYCLN_300Sealing your countertops is not too difficult and you can easily do it yourself. Clean the stone first with Akemi Crystal Clean or a solution of Lavenet.

You can seal the stone with impregnating sealer, Seal & Go® S. This product is a penetrating sealer, which will not add any shine or color to the stone surface. This sealer is not a coating. Seal & Go® S can be applied using a trigger sprayer. After 15-20 minutes, wipe off the excess sealer. The sealer will take at least 12 hours to cure. A second application of Seal & Go® S is recommended after the 12 hours.

SG_300How to clean and protect Travertine, Marble and Slate showers:

Since our showers are used daily, it is very important to make sure that your stone shower is cleaned daily or weekly and is sealed annually. We recommend cleaning with Akemi Crystal Clean as often as possible to reduce the buildup of calcium deposits and soap scum.

To help reduce water penetration into the stone, we recommend sealing with impregnator sealer, Seal & Go® S on an annual basis. Sealing helps protect your stone against the constant exposure to water and oil-based products.

stationery balushka*Quartzite countertop (…And Bering’s exclusive Embossed Graphics monogram notepad and Balushka Paper Floral Artistry arrangement!)

All these products are available at Bering’s Hardware Stores. We are giving away a gift basket this month with our best stone cleaners to get you started with your 2015 stone care program!

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