Stained & Worn Outdoor Marble Tile

by S Elkin
(Baltimore MD)

QUESTION:

I have a home built in 1930 and the floor of the entryway is black and white marble squares. The marble is on a covered porch but exposed to the elements and receives heavy foot traffic.

The marble is nearly 80 years old and stained, especially from the white marble squares, which are badly scarred and yellowed.

Since the floor can be wet, I am hesitant to apply anything that could be slippery and dangerous. I would like a shiny finish but finish is now matte and that would be fine, if it were only clean.

I have tried TileLab marble products (cleaner, polish and sealer) but with no success.
Any suggestions?

ANSWER:

The fastest, easiest and best way to get what you want may be to hire a marble maintenance professional to restore the marble.

I would suggest that you do NOT polish it. A polished surface will be very slippery. There are coatings that can be applied to make it less slippery, but many of these will not let the marble breath which is a must in a wet area.

Also, the polish will be constantly worn away by foot traffic requiring periodic re-polishing by a pro.

The yellowing may be from a wax or other coating that should be stripped off. I'd recommend using SCP: DEEP CLEAN Stripper/Degreaser if you'd like to do the job yourself.

Once stripped of any surface coating, I'd use INTENSIVE Concentrated Tile & Grout cleaner with a soft scrub brush to clean surface grim. Spray on and let the INTENSIVE sit for 10 minutes yields the best results.

Using the INTENSIVE and a power washer is often very effective too.

Now, after stripping and cleaning you may find that the marble is stained. Stains are substances that have absorbed into the pores of the marble. Surface cleaners will not remove these.

You'll have to use the procedure outlined in the Removing Stains Manual.

Scratches can be sanded out using 240 or 400 grit metal sand paper unless real deep, then a pro will need to re-surface the marble.

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.

I highly recommend Stone Care Pro Products to maintain all your marble, stone and granite countertops and floors in optimal condition. I've used other good products (Stone Tech, Miracle, MB) but found Stone Care Pro is the most reliable and effective and cheaper too!