Strategies To Keep Your Marble Flooring Looking Its Best
Natural stone floors are highly absorbent. Despite being designed to last, these surfaces can be subject to a number of damages that affect both their integrity and their overall aesthetics. This makes it important for consumers to have a clear understanding of how to properly care for these investments once they’ve been installed. Following are a few tips to help you keep your marble flooring looking its very best.
It is generally a good idea to keep these surfaces covered in areas that see a lot of traffic. This is a popular option in natural stone for entryways. Keep in mind that small particulates such as grainy pieces of sand can actually cause scratches to develop if they are dragged back and forth across the tiles or slab.
Placing a mat down will ensure that these abrasive particulates are captured and kept away from the from. Once every several days, you should make sure to carefully lift this rug and shake it free of dust outdoors. This way, you won’t have to worry about ground-in particulates causing problems either.
It is also best to avoid using brooms on these surfaces for the exact same reason. If there are tiny, abrasive materials on the surface of your marble, a broom will do little more than rake these back and forth. The most efficient and appropriate cleaning method for this type of flooring is vacuuming.
Rather than dragging a heavy and cumbersome vacuum over your natural stone, however, think about using a small, lightweight unit. You always want to prevent heavy attachments from crashing down. Vacuuming will suck up all abrasive materials before these have the chance to cause any harm.
Do not use soap and water and a traditional string mop to wash these floors either. You actually want to avoid applying too much moisture to natural stone at any time. Water can soak into these porous surfaces and cause discoloration. One easy way to prevent this from occurring is by applying a proper stain. You can also use a sponge mop to get rid of any tacky or sticky messes, along with an appropriate, natural stone cleaner. This will apply sufficient moisture for eliminating messes, and without causing discoloration or other saturation-related issues to occur.
These surfaces are also very vulnerable to things that are acidic in nature. This is definitely something worth keeping in mind if you have had this stone installed anywhere in your kitchen. If lemon, lime or other citrus fruits are dropped onto your floors, be sure to pick these up and to clean the affected area right away. If you don’t, etching can occur.
Your installer should apply a heavy seal at the time that your floors are put in. This sealant will need to be reapplied once a year or once every two years depending upon the recommendations of the product manufacture. There are also natural stone cleaners that have sealants built-right into them. Every time you use one of these products to clean your floors, the overlying seal will be restored.