Cleaning Marble Bleach Stains and Lost Shine
by Fernando
QUESTION:My wife by mistake cleaned our marble floors with a solution with bleach. Our marble was not too shinny but nevertheless it lost all the shine. It is now dull and it shows as if it is scratched or dirty. It looks horrible. The main areas is white bianco marble (sort of light beige) and the bathrooms are dark brown.What could we do to restore the original look. Need your HELP! Thanks in advance Fernando ANSWER:Cleaning marble is not difficult, but you do have to be aware of the right way to do it. Unfortunately, most common generic (bleach, vinegar, ammonia) and brand-name household cleaners will damage marble leaving it dull and discolored.In the future be sure to use only products safe for cleaning marble. The damage from the bleach is like a chemical burn. It's called etching. Harsh chemicals will eat into the marble and destroy the surface finish. So, a shiny marble will become dull as the raw marble underneath is exposed. Etching can be repaired on polished, shiny marble (on marble that was shiny before being etched) using the Marble Polishing Paste/Etch Remover. Although, this product is made for repairing small etch marks. If your entire floor is etched and damaged from cleaning marble with the bleach, then you only real option is to call in a marble maintenance professional to re-finish the surface. Re-finishing large areas is not a DIY job. It takes considerable skill, knowledge and experience to do this well. If it's a small area (50 sq ft or less) then you could probably get satisfactory results repairing it yourself using the Etch Remover product. Otherwise call a marble cleaning and maintenance pro. Good Luck, Ryan P.S. Get all the facts, answers, explanations and simple solutions with step-by-step instructions for any issue, problem or question with our Granite & Marble Maintenance Manuals. |
