Let’s be honest, some days you need a nice, long shower to unwind from the stresses of everyday life. Yet, in all that time your bathroom’s stone tile maintenance could escape notice, resulting in damage before long. No matter what stone is installed in your bathroom, it’s crucial to regularly and properly clean those tiles. To keep your stone shining like new, consider these stone tile maintenance tips for your next cleaning!
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Clean Weekly
While life can get busy, it’s important to ensure proper stone tile maintenance each week for your bathroom. For showers with natural stone like granite or marble, their porous qualities allow soap scum and stains to build up, damaging the stone’s appearance over time. Therefore, scheduling proper upkeep of your stone tiles helps protect each tile’s sheen and longevity within your home.
Remove Excess Water
Despite bathrooms and showers regularly using stone, water can cause damage to tiles overtime. Porous stones like marble or limestone are quite susceptible to stains from grime and soap buildup; likewise, even stain-resistant nonporous stones such as slate or soapstone can become dulled from water spots. To best remove excess water during stone tile maintenance, use a squeegee after showering whilst allowing ventilation with an open window or fan.
Treat Grime
Though gross and difficult, removing mildew and soap scum is needed during regular stone tile maintenance for appearance as well as hygiene. This buildup develops from body soaps, water and dead skin cells, creating bacteria that seeps and stains into stone permanently. Caution must be taken when removing grime from grout and stone as certain cleaners can eat away the finish or sealants. Gentle motions with either an eraser sponge, toothbrush or soft bristle brush can easily clean stone tiles into shining brand new as the friction “melts” away bacteria.
Avoid Harsh Cleaners
Searches for “stone tile maintenance” may present cleaner options like bleach, hydrogen peroxide, and baking soda solutions. Rather than maintaining your stone quality, however, such cleaners have caustic chemicals or acids that can permanently damage your stone. Most common household cleaners and soaps not only degrade sealants but scratch and stain stone finish. For a clean and pristine shower, then, be sure to select and thoroughly rinse with a stone-safe cleaner, drying with a microfiber towel to guarantee excess liquid removal.
Seal Stone Regularly
Upon installation, the first step to stone tile maintenance requires sealing stone tiles as it adds protection to the color while blocking buildup of oils, grime, and stains. However, even these sealants degrade over time; thus, proper stone tile maintenance demands scheduling regular reseals anywhere from 1 to 2 years. Or just apply sealant yourself and buff until dry.
For more about stone care, visit our blog to learn more about different kinds of natural stones and cleaning methods for your home. Contact us today and speak to a qualified ZStone Creations team member for help in choosing and maintaining your natural stone.
