Water Marks on Slate Tile

by Susan
(Ft Lauderdale)

Hi,

I have a beautiful but probably impractical natural slate tile on the floor and walls of my bathroom, including the shower.

The shower floor has stains on it that seem to be beyond soap scum, perhaps lime or hard water stains.

What would you recommend for cleaning it before re-sealing?

Thanks!





Susan,

Thanks for posting a picture, as this helps me tremendously to understand your problem.

Unfortunately, I see this problem almost every time we see slate tile in a shower location.

You can try a few different things before re-sealing.

First you can try cleaning the best you can with a soap-scum remover and a razor blade.

It looks like it could be some soap scum and calcium build up.

This is how we attack the cleaning, with varied results.

Remember the sealer will not last very long in such a wet setting, so it will have to be done more often than you think.

One thing I also see in the photo, is the slate seems to be shiny. Is there coating on the slate tile?

If so, this could be even more challenging than just a cleaning.

To re-coat your slate tile, you may need to strip the coating.

Not sure what's going on exactly, but if there is coating on it, then maybe more challenges await you.

I wish I could be more help, but slate tile should not be in a shower and any coating should not be on any natural stone.

Always use penetrating sealers and if you want some finish, use a color enhancer sealer to darken the stone.

Pedro