Sealing Granite Countertops After Removing Stains
by Rose Jeffrey
QUESTION:I purchased shiva kashi stone for my kitchen two years ago. After about three months I noticed darkening in the most used areas. I called the installer and asked if he could remove the stains, he said he could not and that I should have called him earlier.My position is that it was not sealed correctly. After long and hard research I have learned a lot about granite and have collected a few stain removing solutions. What kind of sealer should I use for resealing? ANSWER:Shiva Kashi granite countertops typically aren't excessively absorbent, but enough so that it will stain without proper sealing.But it should be noted, that a granite sealer does not create some absolutely impenetrable shell over your granite. Any absorbent surface can still stain (even when sealed) if spills are left too long on the surface. Granite countertops and all natural stone need to breath, so sealers are designed to work below the surface in a way that allows the stone to breath while dramatically slowing down absorption (giving you much more time to clean), but cannot absolutely prevent it. So, even when sealed it is necessary to clean messes in a timely fashion and refrain from storing bottles of oil or other products that could leak and go unnoticed for a few days. In most cases proper sealing will extend the time it takes a substance to absorb enough that it will often evaporate before staining. But of course, oily solids will always be trouble. Most likely you kept everything clean and just had the misfortune to pick a more absorbent slab, which can happen since granite is a natural product and has no set characteristics. Even within the same color/variety absorption rates will vary, which is why it's always a good idea to perform the water test for sealing granite countertops on exact samples of any slab you intend to purchase. Now that you have successfully removed the stains you would like to re-apply (or maybe apply for the first time!) a granite sealer. Obviously, your installer isn't too experienced. Any true stone professional knows how to remove stains from stone. Click here for our recommended impregnating sealers. SenGuard is THE best currently available. We became quick fans as soon as it came out. It's the only retail sealer to use the most advanced chemical technology that bonds permanently to the stone. So, once properly applied and your granite completely sealed you won't have to re-apply again for a very long time and quite likely never again. SenGuard also will not degrade with cleaning like all other sealers will. It's more expensive up front, but pays off in the long run by eliminating the time, expense and labor of periodic re-sealing needed with all other sealers. The other sealers we recommend are still very good and will do the job. We've found them to be the best of the "last generation" sealer technology. You may have to apply a few coats since your granite appears to be rather absorbent and you'll have to repeat the process as it loses effectiveness over time. 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.
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