Cleaning

As one of the newer go-to choices for kitchen and bathroom countertops, Silestone is a material you’re very likely to encounter in an apartment, house or even vacation rental. One reason it’s so popular? Its reputation for low maintenance. With Silestone, it’s possible to achieve the look and luster of high-end stone surfaces without having…

We’ve all been there: When something goes drastically wrong in your kitchen, it can feel like an extra low blow. You’ve spent huge amounts of time and effort layering your lasagna, emptying your fridge or stewing your family’s favorite chili — when the pot cracks, the baking pan tips off the counter or your toddler…

When you’re cleaning porcelain, you need to move carefully to preserve its delicate sheen; when you’re cleaning grout, you need to use some elbow grease to make sure that you remove grime as effectively as possible from a narrow, rough surface. The challenge is, how are you supposed to clean it well without damaging the…

Think about your kitchen counters as they currently are. You likely have many items stacked on their surfaces — from appliances like blenders and coffeemakers to mixing bowls, cutting boards, fruit and more. Even when your kitchen is clean and spotless, you probably still have these items nestled in your corners and lining the back…

It’s summer — and that means that it’s home selling (and buying) time. If you’ve been ready to move for months, it’s exciting to be able to start going to showings, putting together a house wish list, and seeing yourself in new surroundings. However, to buy the new home of your dreams, you’re likely going…

Whether it’s time to touch up your home in the months after spring cleaning, or a summer storm has led to mud tracked all over your floors, inevitably, you’re going to need to have an efficient, effective (and preferably) easy way to bring your floors back to square one. We also know that there’s a…

If you’re a savvy homeowner and you have natural-stone countertops, floors and other features, you may already have products in your cleaning caddies that you use specifically for your stone. If so  — great! That means you’re already doing a lot to care for your stone in the best way possible. Today, it seems like…

If you’ve been called into service to assist your elderly parents with their home care, you might feel— accurately — like you’ve taken on a lot. Surveying the clutter of their kitchen, unearthing long-covered surfaces, figuring out how to help your elderly parents restore a cozy sense of safety and utility in their spaces: All…

Spring cleaning can be a workout. To dust your surfaces, sweep under them and buff your countertops and tables to a lovely shine, you need some level of strength and range of mobility. Or, at least, that’s what many people think. The truth is, spring cleaning doesn’t have to be a strenuous activity. The use…

You can tell a lot about a culture by their cleaning practices. While we can’t travel back in time to quiz ancient civilizations about their spring-cleaning routines, we can examine the clues they left behind. Luckily, some substances are malleable enough for ancient cultures to leave their mark — but enduring enough to have made…

Gleaming marble countertops, squeaky-clean granite floors, sparkling stone surfaces: There’s just something oh-so-comforting about walking into a kitchen with natural-stone surfaces that are completely prepped and ready for use. As it turns out, there’s a reason we appreciate that tidy, clean feeling. Our brains run on orderliness and our bodies physiologically and psychologically respond to…

Let’s do a quick thought experiment. Take a swift glance around your kitchen. Now of your cleaning supplies. What substances do you see? Do you think they’re safe to use for cleaning your countertops? Even if you keep a relatively neutral kitchen, even if you don’t happen to use more potent substances like bleach or…

Quartz may sound like it’s a natural mineral – and it is. However, the engineered quartz that you see in modern kitchens and bathrooms comes from a man-made, manufactured process. It’s formed of a buffet of ‘ingredients,’ different pieces which include resin and more than 90 percent crushed natural stone We tend to connote man-made…

Dirty tile grout: The bane of every tiled-surface owner’s existence. It’s a little thing that can make an entire room feel grimy. As a result, the temptation is always there to take up a scouring pad and attack it with every fiber of your being. This might feel good. It might feel like you’re doing…

For centuries, families across the globe have upheld the tradition of spring cleaning. (The custom has its roots in many different cultures and religions; it’s traced back to a 13-day long cleaning celebration marking the Persian New Year). Every year, come warm weather, people around the world have opened their windows, aired out their homes,…

We think of the ancient baths, those that originated in early Roman times, as exotic, masterfully built pieces of art that served as luxurious centers of self-care. Now, thousands of years later, we live a faster-paced, less communal life. We tend to retreat to our own personal baths for our daily toiletries. We don’t have…

If you have a natural-stone shower, bath, countertop or other surface in your home, you need to be aware of what limescale is, how it forms and, most importantly, how to safely remove it without harmful chemicals that can damage your natural-stone surface even more.  Many homeowners don’t become aware of limescale until there is…

Wondering how to clean a stone fireplace? The good news is that you can easily care for your natural-stone fireplace in – or outside – your home, giving it a brilliant luster and making it a focal point in any setting. Without a proper three-step cleaning, sealing and polishing routine soot, ash and smoke can…

Did you know your typical, common household cleaner is doing more harm than good when it comes to cleaning your granite countertops? If you’re investing in natural-stone surfaces, then it is important to know the best way to clean granite countertops, the types of cleaners that work the best, the types of cleaners that should…

From St. Peter’s Basilica to the Roman Colosseum and even the lobby walls of Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower), travertine has been used as a building material all over the world throughout history. Travertine is a sedimentary form of limestone that mostly forms in hot springs and caves in large deposits of calcium carbonate. In…

With the widespread popularity of granite and marble countertops, we’ve seen more and more people choose slate as stone countertop alternative. Not only does slate offer a unique look over other options, but there are practical benefits as well. Not only is slate usually less expensive than granite or marble, but it’s a tough material…