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Stone grinding is one of the effective ways of removing the scratches and the dull spots from the surface. This abrasive process is also known as natural stone restoration. As you look at the marble surface, you will note a natural shine. Marble does not need a layer of wax for this preferred finish. All you need is a skilled worker and some diamond pads which will be used to retain the shine. A delicate polish will ensure that you have a smooth and shiny texture for days.

If you are looking for a matte finish, you will need a large number of diamond powders or pads to get that special shiny touch. Most restoration experts are careful about protecting the furniture and walls from dents and splashes while they work on smoothening the surface. In case of diamond grinding, you will need water. This may damage the wooden floor. So they prefer using the floor covering while they work on the restoration process. For granite restoration, the abrasive brushes or the abrasive powder will be used. This is called the flamed finish.

The same technique can then be used for outdoors. The granite surface is generally heated with a flame and then cooled rapidly with water so that inner circles pop out before the flamed finish. You will need the open flame torch for this purpose. Before you start with the flaming process, all inflammable items should be removed, and the room should have ample ventilation. With marble, one has to be extra careful with the restoration process. Marble is generally soft in nature. It is porous and can be damaged with any acidic element like orange juice, tomato juice or the vinegar. Some can also develop stains and spots.

The tumbled marble or the limestone’s are extremely popular among the homeowners for their elegant colors and fine textures. Marble can be sealed to avoid stains, but you will need an expert for sealing the floor. When you select the floor tile, you should consider either marble or granite as both of them are durable and beautiful. The polished marble tiles on the floors can be protected with a sealant. This should be reapplied on the surface so that the floor remains sparkling and clean.

Common kitchen detergents contain harmful chemicals which might cause damage to the floor. This may lead to corrosion or may cause the floor to discolor. After you apply the solution on the floor, you should wipe the portion clean to reduce the chances of blemishes and spots. The marble floor should be free of dust. You can clean and mop them with a dry cloth. A mild neutral ph cleanser should be helpful in keeping the floor clean. You can install a floor mat at the entrance of the room to keep away the gravel, sand and dirt. From time to time, you can polish the floor so that the luster and smoothness of the stone remains intact.

However despite all precautions taken with the passage of years marble at times lose its shine. In such a scenario, make sure that you get the perfect person for natural stone restoration and restore that shine.

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Many of you want to have a marble floor or marble statues in houses or offices. Marble for decades have been one of the popular materials for decorative and building works. This stone from the ancient period has been associated with aristocracy and luxury. If marble pieces are selected carefully and maintained properly then the house can get a luxurious appearance.

Marble can last several years if a person manages to handle it properly. It is a porous rock and gets stained easily. To retain the shine and luxury of marble one needs to follow some cleaning tips. One should clean the marble immediately if something is dropped on it. Beverage glasses placed directly on marble can leave moisture rings. So, one should avoid it.

Proper cleaning is required not only for the marble floors but also should be followed for the marble furniture too. Marble gets stained easily. If anything falls on marble then it should be wiped off immediately. The beverage glasses should be placed on the coasters to avoid the formation of moisture rings on the marble.

Marble surfaces should be cleaned after some weeks. It should be washed with lukewarm water and then should be dried with clean cloth. Depending on the type of soil, one can wash marble with detergent solution once or twice in a year. The detergent used for this should be mild. The surface should be rinsed properly and wiped dry. To protect the surface, one can add a light wax coating. Colorless wax should be used in this case. Many people apply marble sealer for the cleaning of marble. This will protect staining of marble and will also help in wiping off the soil easily.

To brighten up a dull marble surface one can use commercial cleaners and polishes for marble. One should purchase the marble cleaner, which is meant for the marble of United States. It is recommended to avoid imported cleaners as they can be hard on the marbles. Tin oxide or putty powder can be useful for polish of dull or etched surface. If the surface of marble is damaged severely then one can take the help of professionals to clean it.

As marbles get stained easily, a person who has marble flooring or marble decorative in the house needs to take proper care of stain removal. To remove stains from marble one need to make poultice with any white absorbent material like facial tissue, paper towel, blotter or napkin. This should be dampened with recommended stain removing materials.

Marble can get stained for various reasons. Organic stains are common in marble surfaces. To remove stains of coffee, tea, and soft drinks one can use some drops of ammonia on the absorbent poultice. Stains from oil or oily substances like lotion, hand cream and butter is also common in many houses. One should spread absorbent powder on the surface immediately after oil is spilled. Then it should be wiped with proper stain removing material. People sometimes complain rust stains in the marble surface. To remove these stains one can use any rust stain remover available commercially.

Technorati Tags: Ancient Period, Aristocracy, Beverage Glasses, cleaning of marble, Cleaning Tips, Detergent Solution, granite, granite cleaning, Lukewarm Water, Marble Floor, Marble Flooring, Marble Floors, Marble Furniture, Marble Marble, Marble One, Marble Pieces, Marble Sealer, Marble Statues, Marble Surface, Marble Surfaces, marble wholesale, Popular Materials, Porous Rock, Tin Oxide, Wax Coating

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Granite countertops have an aura of extreme elegance and sophistication apart from looking innately exquisite and classy. The charm of granite is rivalled by few other stones and it is a remarkably resilient material that can do wonders for your home decor and offer it an embellished look. The material has the power to give your interiors a complete face-lift coupled with a durable disposition. Though granite countertops require minimal care and maintenance due to their no-fuss and enduring nature, there are a few handy tips that will help you keep you countertops sparkling clean.

Use a specially devised stone cleaner to cleanse your countertops and utilize hot water for power-packed speedy clean ups. Avoid excessive usage of dish soap and harsh cleaning agents as they are known to corrode the countertop sparkle. It will help to use a mild ph balanced cleaning liquid. Generic cleaners may help you save money initially but you’ll end up spending a lot more for maintaining your countertops in the long run. Hence it is best to avoid common cleaners when scrubbing your granite countertops. Before cleaning the countertops with a cleaning agent, wipe off any liquid spilled on the tops with a sponge. Avoid keeping hot pots and pans on the surface. This practice will avoid staining and abating the value of your countertops over a period of time.

To protect your countertop surface from scratches use cutting boards and as far as possible get into the habit of utilizing coasters under cups, bottles and cans to avoid any damage to the surface. It will keep your countertops protected and as new as ever without any signs of a wear out or repulsive scratches. Use a mop to clean the countertop rather than a vacuum cleaner. The latter has a high tendency to get the surface scratched or worn out.

Take care to ensure that acidic foods don’t come in contact with your surface very often. Foods like lemon and vinegar are known to scrape the granite surface. Although granite as a stone is extraordinarily durable it isn’t totally immune to damage. A lot of people who upgrade to granite commit the fallacy of taking the virtues of the stone for granted and are of the belief that it is completely impermeable. That really depends on the way you handle it and the stone does require care and attention for it to last long and retain its sheen.

Granite countertops can bring a lot of warmth to your kitchen in addition to a rich and colourful look. Small albeit important maintenance tips as part of your daily routine will go a long way to protect the durability and lustre of your tabletops.

Technorati Tags: Acidic Foods, Bottles And Cans, Cleaning Agents, Coasters, Cutting Boards, Dish Soap, Excessive Usage, Extreme Elegance, Face Lift, granite care, granite cleaning, Granite Countertop, granite countertops, Granite Surface, Handy Tips, Hot Pots, marble company, Minimal Care, Pots And Pans, Resilient Material, Scratches, Ups, Vacuum Cleaner

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Now that you have your new countertop, you’ll want to keep it locking as great as it did when it was first installed. Fortunately, granite is a strong product, second only to diamonds in strength, and needs just a few pointers for care.

Prevention is the best first step in maintaining your counter. Always use coasters for liquids. Use trivets or hot mats for hot plates or pans. Use a cutting board. If you are going to put used dishes on the counter, make sure they have been rinsed off first. Avoid putting foods directly on the counter. Stains occur when a liquid cannot leave the granite without the help of chemicals. So, take care the oils from food are not likely to be absorbed into the counter. – That pizza box could even be a problem if there is oil seeping through it.

When you do have spills, wipe them up immediately. Granite is most prone to stains from liquids containing oil or acid. So be as thorough as you can with cleaning up spills from those kinds of liquids.

Always use a soft rag or regular (non-abrasive) sponge. Most of the time all you’ll need is hot water. You can also use dishwashing liquid but be sure to rinse thoroughly to prevent a soapy build up.

Weekly, you can use a stone cleaner. Never use scouring pads or cleansers that have abrasives or bleach. Also, avoid “all purpose” cleaners with disinfectants unless they state they are made especially for granite. Also, avoid products with lemon, orange, vinegar, or citrus since the acid can dull the finish. With the popularity of granite it should not be difficult to find a stone cleaner especially designed for granite cleansing.

If you do have a stain, don’t despair; most can be eliminated easily.

For regular kitchen stains: Mix one cup of flour with two tablespoons of dishwashing liquid and apply the paste to the stain. Cover it with plastic wrap and leave overnight. The next day, gently scrape off the paste, using a wooden spoon or other (non-sharp) wooden utensil. Then rinse thoroughly.

For stains from oil, grease, or milk: Follow the same steps but substitute hydrogen peroxide for the dishwashing liquid.

For stains from coffee, tea, fruit, or fruit juice: rub gently with a mixture of 12% hydrogen peroxide and ammonia.

For marker stains: acetone or lacquer thinner will work well on dark granite and hydrogen peroxide will work for light granite.

Eventually, your countertop will need to be resealed. The sealant is what protects granite from stains and discoloration. Like all rocks, it is naturally porous and needs the sealer to prevent it from absorbing liquids. No matter how gently you handle your counter, sooner or later the sealant will begin to wear off. This could be anytime between one and five years, depending on the type of granite and its usage. Your installation company will be able to give you details about your particular product and recommendations about when to schedule resealing.

In the unlikely event you do end up with a chip or scratch to your counter, do not make this a DIY project. Contact your installation company for repairs or for a referral for a source for repairs.

With very little effort, you will be able to maintain your countertop’s like new condition for its lifetime.

Technorati Tags: Abrasives, Bleach, Coasters, Countertop, Cutting Board, Disinfectants, Flour, granite, granite care, granite cleaning, Hot Plates, Hot Water, kitchen countertop care, Liquids, Pizza Box, Purpose Cleaners, Scouring Pads, Soft Rag, Sponge, Stains, Vinegar, Wooden Spoon, Wooden Utensil

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Laminate, wood, tile, concrete, stainless steel, and granite are the most common materials used for home counters. When choosing a surface, appearance and price are always the top priorities. Homeowners should consider the sanitary properties of each material for their counter tops.

In an experiment published by the Hospitality Institute of Technology and Management in 19991, each of these six materials was tested to see which was the easiest to sanitize. A sample of each surface was treated with E. coli, the bacteria responsible for food poisoning. Afterward, each sample was washed with regular dishwashing soap and a washcloth and then rinsed. This experiment replicated the most common household cleaning practices.

After each surface had been washed and rinsed, samples were taken from each material to determine which had retained the most bacteria.

Granite performed the best, with less than 0.003% of the bacteria remaining after cleaning with only dish soap. The retention of the E. coli was from most retained to most removed as follows:

1. Laminate
2. Wood
3. Tile
4. Concrete
5. Stainless steel material
6. Granite

In the next part of the experiment, the washed and rinsed samples were cleaned with a solution of vinegar and water. This test simulated the cleaning practices done in commercial kitchens. Laminate, wood, concrete and tile did not perform as well as stainless steel and granite samples. In this test, stainless steel proved the most effective, with 0.0000005% of the remaining bacteria, compared to 0.and 00002% on the granite.

In both cases, the amount of E. coli remaining on the surface is well below sanitation guidelines and would be considered safe. Cleaning the laminate and wood with vinegar removed as much bacteria as soap and water on the granite. When selecting kitchen countertops material, homeowners should reflect on their own cleaning practices. Cleaning a solid surface, such as granite or stainless steel, will only require a mild detergent. Tile, laminate and wood would require harsh chemicals for the same result.

It’s no surprise that stainless steel performed well in these tests—it has been the surface of choice in the commercial kitchens for years. However, granite’s sanitary properties may surprise some. Unlike stainless steel, granite is available in many designs. Granite is popular in homes because it doesn’t show fingerprints and will never dent or scratch.

When shopping for new countertops, it's tempting to choose a material based on looks alone. That. Granite kitchen countertop is also the cleanest and it has become the top choice for home countertops.

1 O. Peter Snyder Jr., Ph.D. The reduction of E. Coli on different countertop surfaces.” Hospitality Institute of Technology and Management 22 MAR 1999 30 Sep 2008

Technorati Tags: Bacteria, Commercial Kitchens, Common Materials, Counter Tops, Dish Soap, Dishwashing Soap, E Coli, granite, granite cleaning, granite maintenance, Hospitality Institute, Kitchen Countertops, Laminate Wood, Sanitation Guidelines, Soap And Water, Solid Surface, Stainless Steel Material, Surface Appearance, Top Priorities, Vinegar And Water, Washcloth, Wood Tile