Avoid these 5 Mistakes When Caring for Your Marble Floors

Marble is a luxurious stone that can make your home look elegant and sophisticated. Adding marble floors to any room in your home can instantly give it cachet, as well as improve its value. The stone is beautiful and durable, and it is known for being of high quality.

To keep reaping the benefits of marble, you need to properly care for your marble floors. Otherwise, you’ll end up with discolored and marred stone that will actually make your house look worse. You might be able to get professional natural stone cleaners in Mesa in Queen Creek to restore the floors, depending on the damage. However, the best way to ensure that your marble floors stay in great shape is to learn how to take care of them.

Sometimes, the best thing to do to take care of something is to learn what not to do to damage it. Here are five mistakes you should not make when caring for your marble floors:

1. Not Use Doormats

Marble may be durable, but it is not invincible. It can become discolored and damaged over time from foot traffic, pets, and more. One of the most common areas this can happen is right in front of doorways. People and pets will bring in dirt and pebbles on their feet, which can damage the marble.

Simply using doormats next to all your entryways can protect your floors. The mats will provide a buffer against that debris, making it easier for you to clean your marble floors, as well as protecting the floors from damage.

2. Let Spills Sit

Because marble isn’t going to warp the way a laminate would, and it’s not going to mold the way carpet would, you may feel tempted to leave a spill when it happens. If it’s water, you may just leave it to dry. If it’s something else, you’ll clean it up, but you might not rush.
You need to rush. Any kind of liquids can discolor marble, including water. Liquids can also leave behind light spots that can dull the overall beauty of the marble. You need to thoroughly clean and dry any spills immediately after they happen.

3. Not Mop Regularly

Marble floors are easy to clean, but if you aren’t consistent, dirt and other debris can accumulate and discolor or dull the stone. The dirt can settle into the tiny crevices in the grout and around the stone, making it very hard to get it out.

You can keep your floors clean by mopping them regularly. Use a Swiffer or dust mop to get up the debris without wetting the floors unnecessarily. Taking the time to mop regularly will spare you the cost of professional natural stone cleaning later.

4. Use Acidic Cleaners

TCleaners that contain acidic ingredients can etch and otherwise damage marble floors. You should avoid any cleaners that contain lemon, vinegar, or any kind of acid as listed on the ingredients label. Check all labels carefully before using any cleaner on your marble floors! You may not realize that potential harmful ingredients are in the cleaner.

Also be careful with acidic foods! If anything with lemon, tomatoes, vinegar, or alcohol hits your floor, clean it up immediately and rinse the area.

5. Not Seal the Stone

Marble is a porous stone, though it may not seem like it. If you don’t seal it, water and dirt can get into those tiny spaces and permanently stain and dull the stone. You need to seal the marble to protect its look and its functionality over time.

Not only should you seal your marble floors when they are first installed (or when you first move in), but you should seal them regularly to maintain that protection. Typically, you should re-seal your floors every year, depending on how much traffic you get or what kind of sealer you use.

Avoiding these mistakes and taking the simple steps to maintain your marble floors will keep them looking great year after year, helping to protect your investment in the floors and in your home. If your floors do become stained or dull, call on the professionals for natural stone restoration. Attempting to do the work yourself could end up causing more damage, so don’t do anything more than mopping and sweeping.

Call Arizona Stone Care in Queen Creek if your marble floors aren’t looking as good as they used to. We’re professional natural stone cleaners offering tile and grout cleaning and other natural stone restoration. We have the right tools and techniques to make your marble shine or to bring back the life of your other natural stone. Call us in Phoenix to get an estimate for your natural stone cleaning or restoration.

Published By:
Arizona Stone Care

Phone: (559) 660-6002