Cleaning

Travertine is one of those natural stones that happen to be more popular than most people realize. In fact, some people think marble and limestone are synonymous with travertine, and this isn’t completely inaccurate. Both marble and travertine can be considered limestone because of the high concentration of calcite minerals, but their geological formation processes…

Granite flooring and countertops look great, particularly if the stone has been honed and polished to a glossy finish, but when a cloudy film forms on the surface, you get the opposite effect. With haziness and cloudiness on granite surfaces, there are various levels of causes and severity. In most situations, this is something you…

When it comes to proper maintenance of natural-stone or engineered flooring and countertops, selection of cleaning products is crucial. Unlike solid surface, laminate, and ceramic construction materials, quartz and natural stone are more sensitive to the chemicals found in common household cleaners. For this reason, Granite Gold® offers cleaning products specifically formulated for natural stone…

In a memorable episode of the reality television series Keeping Up with the Kardashians, Kylie Jenner mentioned that her office featured a marble shower, which wasn’t actually shown until she posted a photograph of it on Instagram. While a marble shower in an office may seem to be over the top, light-colored natural-stone surfaces are…

After choosing natural stone for your kitchen floors and countertops, it’s only natural that you’d consider extending this choice to your backsplash sections. The rationale behind backsplashes is more than aesthetic. You want to protect the walls from everything that can splash onto them during meal preparation, but you also don’t want to compromise the…

Not all types of natural stone are created equal. For example, igneous rocks are formed by plutonic and volcanic processes that start out as magma before numerous minerals solidify and crystallize by means of pressure or cooling down. Sedimentary rocks such as sandstone are formed by detritus, precipitation, and chemical reactions. Metamorphic rocks such as…

Natural stone on outdoor spaces such as courtyards, garden paths, and entryways will always add a touch of elegance to a home. However, this kind of upgrade requires a certain level of maintenance to protect your investment from being damaged by the elements. Environmental stains caused by dust and acid rain are major concerns in…

Proper maintenance of natural-stone flooring boils down to realizing that Mother Nature created and nurtured the beautiful surfaces of your home, and now it’s up to you to care for them. The finishing process stone tiles go through prior to installation isn’t natural. The polished limestone floors that adorn your foyer didn’t look like that…

The beauty of natural stone makes it one of the most popular materials for bathroom countertops, but it’s still susceptible to surface stains, particularly from makeup and personal hygiene products. Even the least porous natural stones such as slate, granite, and soapstone can be stained by lipstick, mascara, and other types of makeup if not…

Soap and water is one of the most common household cleaning mixtures, but it cannot be recommended for natural-stone surfaces. Despite having gone through millions of years and heavy geological processes of formation, natural stone such as marble, granite, and travertine won’t react well to many of the substances that make up common household cleaning…

Thanks to their timeless elegance, natural-stone shower spaces can add significant value to residential properties, but only if homeowners resolve to render proper care. Walk-in showers made of marble, granite, limestone, and other types of natural stone can look like new for decades as long as they’re adequately maintained. The stone tiles and wall panels…

Homemade cleaning solutions featuring vinegar have become very popular in recent years because of their natural appeal. Even though a significant amount of the white vinegar found on supermarket shelves these days is synthetic, which means it’s a carboxylic acid produced by a chemical process that happens to be very similar to the biological process,…

Daily cleaning is one of the keys to keeping natural stone looking great. If you’re new to stone care and aren’t sure how to clean granite and other types of natural stone such as marble, sandstone, travertine, and slate, proper stone care begins with choosing the right cleaning products, and Granite Gold Daily Cleaner® is…

Bathhouse ruins in places such as Caracalla, Bath, and Wiesbaden are certainly magnificent, but they would look even better these days had ancient builders been able to develop a sealant formula. Marble and travertine, the most commonly found materials in ancient bathhouses, happen to be very porous and absorbent, which means they’re susceptible to water…

The sophisticated look of marble tiles in the bathroom can add significant value to a property and enhance the overall bathing and grooming experience, particularly when exotic stone such as creamy Carrara marble is used. When it comes to showers and tub surrounds, marble isn’t difficult to clean if you know how to do it…

-When you go online to look for advice on removing wine stains, you will likely find more than two million websites offering advice, tips, and numerous methods to handle this household situation. Spilled wine is something that happens far too often. This ancient fermented beverage is known to ruin favorite garments, sofas, rugs, and carpets,…

As ancient and durable as natural stone is, it’s not impervious to substances such as oil, grease, and wax, which can break through the protective seal of tiles and cause stains and damage that could be permanent if they are not handled properly. The reason granite, marble, and other types of natural-stone tiles are vulnerable…

As the most elegant and timeless construction material in the world, marble has a natural property that makes it vulnerable to stains. Marble is a metamorphic rock, which means it started off as limestone that was eventually changed by chemical and geological processes. This metamorphic property is not lost when marble blocks are extracted from…

By Paul Denikin, DadKnowsDIY.com Getting a jump on home maintenance is smart. By doing preventative upkeep, you can save yourself costly repairs and keep things running smoothly and efficiently.  Here are some preparations you can make now before the temperatures fall. Safe and warm.  Some of the basic maintenance items you should tend now will…

Stone countertops are a major investment in a home’s value, and the last thing you want is to damage a surface that should last as long as the home. However, improper maintenance and cleaning of natural stone like granite and marble can lead to a noticeable haze or cloudiness that detracts from the appearance of…

Granite countertops are low maintenance, but it’s still important to follow the correct care guidelines to prevent damaging your natural stone. Granite and other types of stone like travertine and marble can sustain damage if you use the wrong cleaning products, such as those made with acidic or abrasive compounds. One of the most commonly…