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MAINTENANCE GUIDANCE
Natural Stone and Mosaics
Natural stone tiles such as Travertine, Limestone, Marble and Slate are extremely hard wearing and durable products and over the centuries have proven to be a suitable material for almost any internal application. Learning about the different types of cleaners available on the market and how they will affect your tiles is important and with this experience you will be able to maintain them correctly and keep your tiles in perfect condition.
SEALING
The best way to reduce the maintenance of natural stone tiles, is for the tiles to be treated with an impregnating sealer such as NST Professional Sealer, before and after grouting, during the installation process. The sealant used will make a massive difference to the maintenance of your tiles, help reduce cleaning and prevent staining.
For future guidance on sealing please see our Installation Guidance Natural stone tiles and Mosaics available to download or view on our website..
DAY TO DAY CLEANING
When cleaning all types natural stone tiles such as Marble, Travertine, Limestone, and Granite it is important to use the right type of cleaner. Any cleaner you use must be PH neutral and suitable for natural stone products. These cleaners are often available as concentrated solutions that are diluted with warm water, not unlike typical floor cleaners, widely available through any natural stone distributor and most good builders’ merchants.
The reason it is so important to use these PH neutral cleaners is because of the nature of the stone to be cleaned. Most natural stone will react badly with anything acidic and stones such as travertine and limestone are especially susceptible and the reaction between the acid and the tile can cause it to slowly start to disintegrate, etching the surface and leaving unsightly rough, opaque marks on the surface of the stone.
Daily cleaning is important, wipe up any spills immediately and sweep floors every day with soft broom to stop any buildup of dirt.
Weekly mop your Natural Stone floors with clean water and gentle neutral cleaner at the recommend ratio shown on the bottle. For walls we would recommend using the same process but with a clean damp cloth. This is an excellent way to prevent buildup of dirt and debris and keep your natural stone tiles looking prefect.
If grout joints become dirty use the same PH neutral cleaner and a toothbrush or similar to, clean the grout lines.
WE RECOMMEND THAT YOU USE THE SAME BRANDED SEALANTS AND CLEANERS TOGETHER AS THEY ARE FORMULATED TO WORK WITH EACH OTHER AND MAINTAIN THE LIFE OF THE SEALANT AND THEREFORE THE STONE ITSELF.
If you have any staining from oil or grease on your natural stone tiles, this will cause the area of the tile to become darker on the surface, we will first recommend a product called Extreme Clean. This will draw out the stain from most natural stone surfaces, but these strong PH neutral clears should only be used occasionally as your tiles will need to be re-sealed after using this product. Other products are available on the market but please always ensure that they are suitable for natural stone before application. We would always recommend you try this in a small test area in an inconspicuous place before any larger application is carried out.
If the staining persists, please insure you seek professional help if you find yourself unable to remove the stain with the above method.
REPAIRING NATURAL STONE
Unlike any other tiling product natural stone tiles can always be repaired, please see the list below of possible damage that may be caused within normal daily usage and its solutions:
Chipped tiles – small chips can be filled and re-honed (sanded) using marble glue and the correct coloured pigments.
Scratches – lighter scratches can be re-honed (sanded) and removed using a floor polishing machine, this is normally a specialist job as specialist equipment and diamond pads will be required.
Chemical damage – if the incorrect cleaners have been used the surface can always be re-honed (sanded) back to the desired finish, this job is normally done by a specialist.
WE WOULD ALWAYS RECOMMEND A SPECIALIST CONTRACTOR FOR UNDERTAKING ANY REPAIRS TO YOUR NATURAL STONE TILES.
IF YOU NEED ANY ADVICE PLEASE CONTACT A MEMBER OF STAFF AT YOUR LOCAL DEPOT, ON ONE OF THE NUMBERS BELOW, WHO WILL BE HAPPY TO ADVISE YOU ON ANY OF OUR PRODUCTS.