Marble Fireplace Smoke Stain

by Kelly
(Baltimore, MD)

QUESTION: We have a historic house in Baltimore city with a white marble fireplace mantel and surround. What is the best way to clean and make it WHITE again?


ANSWER: Restoring your marble fireplace could be a delicate job and given it's historic value, you may want to call in a professional.

But you can try to do a little work yourself first and see if you get satisfactory results.

1. Buy a couple soft bristle brushes. One for larger areas and a small one to get in the grooves.

Also, pick up some metal sandpaper... get a few sizes (80, 120, 180, 240 grit).

2. Use the brushes to dry scrub the entire surface, but especially the smoke stained areas to remove surface particulates.

3. Use the sandpaper. Start with the finer paper until you are comfortable with how much it removes, then use the coarse if you think necessary and prudent.

On a flat area, test whether or not it removes some of the stain. If so, we are on the right track. Stick to just one small test area at first and sand evenly so you don't get depressions.

Pick an area (maybe right in the middle there) where you can work in the middle of a stain, but not the whole stain. This way you will readily notice a change in the color and density of the stain.

Also, I'm assuming that the marble fireplace has a flat or matte finish. If it has a shiny polish, then you should hold off on the sandpaper routine. You would need to re-polish (and you may need/want to anyway, but that is a job for a professional)

4. Once you've gone over the entire surface with the brushes and a small test area with the sandpaper, mix up a spray bottle of one part bleach (sodium hypochlorite) with 4 parts water.

5.Spray the test area and scrub the solution into the marble with the brushes. Let the mild bleach solution sit on the surface for 15-20 minutes.

6. Use another spray bottle with plain water to rinse the area and wipe dry with a clean cloth.

Hopefully you'll notice a change. If so, then repeat with the bleach a couple times in the same test area to know what to expect with when cleaning the rest of the marble fireplace.

Continue with the sanding too, but you'll have to judge how much to do and which grit to use.

I think you'll see some positive results from this, but if you don't then have a professional come look at it.

Let me know how it goes via the comments link at the bottom of this page.

Good Luck,
Ryan