Cleaning Natural Stone

Why is cleaning natural stone so important? because it's an investment you made in your home to add beauty and value.

When I watch those shows on TV about flipping houses, so many people opt to install natural stone because of the value it will add to the selling price.

I've seen it over and over again, where someone has installed marble or travertine to their home and have not given proper care or have used the wrong chemicals to maintain it.

In general, mopping stone floors regularly with a neutral floor cleaner and a flat mop, will be the best and easiest way to maintain the stone floor.

For deeper cleaning needs click this link for a great natural stone tile grout cleaner.

Cleaning and maintaining your natural stone investment, isn't hard, as long as you know what to do. Also, strong chemicals aren't needed to maintain your stone surfaces. For more on cleaning natural stone read on.

How to Clean Natural Stone Surfaces

Cleaning your natural stone isn't a hard task and you shouldn't be worried about damaging your stone.

Granite is a very hard stone made up many different minerals that usually are not calcium based like marble, travertine and limestone.

You should perform a lemon juice test to make sure there are no calcium based minerals like calcite in the stone.

For every day cleaning of granite surfaces, it's okay to use dish soap with warm water, as it's pretty mild. Depending on the dish soap brand, some brands can leave a soapy film after time (the blue Dawn seems to be the best).

We always recommend neutral cleaners neutral cleaners for all natural stones, which are pH 7.0 on the pH scale. These neutral cleaners are safe for all tile and grout surfaces and natural stone surfaces.

What ever you clean your stone surface with, always rinse well and dry completely with a cotton or microfiber cloth. Drying it completely helps because any wet area

Cleaning Slate Floors

Cleaning slate floors can sometimes be a laborious task because of the unevenness of the slate tiles.

Cleaning Slate Floors

Cleaning slate floors can sometimes be a laborious task because of the unevenness of the slate tiles.

Cleaning slate tile on regular basis will keep them looking great and last you a lifetime.

Read on and learn how to clean slate with cleaning products you already have in your home.

To take care of slate all you need are; a bucket, deck and grout brushes, dry mops and some time.

There are many different types of slate floors available and most of them aren't sensitive to acidic solutions, but always do a test in an inconspicuous area before drenching the entire floor.

In general, mopping slate floors regularly with a neutral floor cleaner and a flat mop, will be the best and easiest way to maintain your slate.

For deeper cleaning needs click this link for a great natural stone tile grout cleaner.

How to Clean Slate Floors

The first thing you want to do before you begin with the heavy duty cleaning is, sweep or vacuum the entire area you're going to cleaning.

You also want to have a plan of where to begin and end, working small areas at a time.

Work an area about 5 ft. X 5 ft. or you can even double this area if you want.

After you've diluted the stone cleaner to the strength needed, apply to the slate floor.

After dwelling, use your grout brushes for the grout lines, and your deck brushes for cleaning the slate tile.

Scrub rigorously, cleaning the slate the best you can.

Either mop up the dirty solution or use a wet/dry vac to suck up the dirty solution.

If you use the wet/dry vac, make sure to remove the filter before sucking up the solution.

Now rinse with warm water with a mop or pour water on the area and use your wet/dry vac to suck it up.

Dry with cotton or microfiber cloths.

Continue with this method until the entire floor has been cleaned and you are satisfied.

Allow the slate floor to dry completely before sealing. It's important to seal the slate floor, because slate tile is porous and will stain.

The slate tile sealer we recommend is a color enhancer penetrating sealer.

A color enhancer will not only protect the slate, but darken the stone, bringing out the natural colors.

When it comes to cleaning slate floors or just maintaining natural stone and tile and grout, we strive to help educate our customers on the best protection they can have, helping them save time and money in costly restoration costs down the road.




Cleaning slate tile on regular basis will keep them looking great and last you a lifetime.

Read on and learn how to clean slate with cleaning products you already have in your home.

To take care of slate all you need are; a bucket, deck and grout brushes, dry mops and some time.

There are many different types of slate floors available and most of them aren't sensitive to acidic solutions, but always do a test in an inconspicuous area before drenching the entire floor.

In general, mopping slate floors regularly with a neutral floor cleaner and a flat mop, will be the best and easiest way to maintain your slate.

For deeper cleaning needs click this link for a great natural stone tile grout cleaner.

How to Clean Slate Floors

The first thing you want to do before you begin with the heavy duty cleaning is, sweep or vacuum the entire area you're going to cleaning.

You also want to have a plan of where to begin and end, working small areas at a time.

Work an area about 5 ft. X 5 ft. or you can even double this area if you want.

After you've diluted the stone cleaner to the strength needed, apply to the slate floor.

After dwelling, use your grout brushes for the grout lines, and your deck brushes for cleaning the slate tile.

Scrub rigorously, cleaning the slate the best you can.

Either mop up the dirty solution or use a wet/dry vac to suck up the dirty solution.

If you use the wet/dry vac, make sure to remove the filter before sucking up the solution.

Now rinse with warm water with a mop or pour water on the area and use your wet/dry vac to suck it up.

Dry with cotton or microfiber cloths.

Continue with this method until the entire floor has been cleaned and you are satisfied.

Allow the slate floor to dry completely before sealing. It's important to seal the slate floor, because slate tile is porous and will stain.

The slate tile sealer we recommend is a color enhancer penetrating sealer.

A color enhancer will not only protect the slate, but darken the stone, bringing out the natural colors.

When it comes to cleaning slate floors or just maintaining natural stone and tile and grout, we strive to help educate our customers on the best protection they can have, helping them save time and money in costly restoration costs down the road.



left to dry, may have dirt left in it which doesn't evaporate like the water does.

Calcium based stones such as marble, travertine or limestone, are mostly made up of CaCO₃, which is calcium carbonate or the mineral calcite.

The calcium in the the mineral will react with any liquid that is acidic (pH less than 7.0), so there should be zero contact with any acidic liquids.

There are tons of tile cleaners and cleaning chemicals that are acidic and before using any cleaning product, be sure to read the label and preferably the MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet) before using. Usually the cleaning product will indicate if it's marble safe or not.

Again, for cleaning natural stone surfaces, we recommend neutral cleaners. For deeper cleaning of marble, travertine and limestone use this stone tile grout cleaner.

There are many stone cleaners you can buy at your local tile shop, but a lot of them contain other things like wax in them so it leaves the natural stone shiny or as they will say polished.

I would stay away from these as they just leave unwanted residues on the stone itself.

Your natural stone surface should always be sealed, to protect it from any staining agents. Please see our sealing natural stone page for more information on sealing.

If your don't want to clean your stone surface by yourself, have it done by a professional at least once a year. This accomplishes two things.

First your natural stone is cleaned thoroughly, making it look it's best and allows for the stone professional to inspect it for any staining or more serious stone issues.

Secondly, after every cleaning of your natural stone, we apply a penetrating sealer to the stone protecting it for the upcoming year. Cleaning and sealing done by a professional at least once a year will help make maintaining your natural stone easier all year long.

When it comes to cleaning natural stone or just maintaining your natural stone and tile and grout, we strive to help educate our customers on the best protection they can have, helping them save time and money in costly restoration costs down the road.

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