Tomato Stain on Marble Window Sill
QUESTION:How do I remove rain water spots from my mom's marble window sills? And... how do I remove white stains from tomatoes on the kitchen window sill?ANSWER:The rain water spots may take some diagnosing, but the white stains from the tomatoes are actually etch marks and not "stains."A stain occurs when a substance is absorbed into the pores of the marble below the surface. A stain is always darker than the marble color. Etch marks are marks of corrosion where a substance (either too acidic like tomatoes or too alkaline like most common cleaning products) has eaten into the marble and essentially destroyed a little bit of the marble. Etching will remove the polished layer creating a dull and sometimes lighter or white spot. Both stains and etch marks can be removed in most cases, but they require completely different methods. To remove etch marks on polished marble use a good compound like SCP: Marble Polishing Paste, which we find to be the most effective... specifically made for removing etch marks on polished surfaces (honed marble requires a different technique to remove etching). The rain drop spots could be stains due to rust or something in the water or etching (acid rain). So, you need to determine if the spots are darker (a stain) or lighter (etching) than the marble. If the rain drops appear to be etching, then use the polishing paste to remove. If they are stains, then you'll need to follow the procedure outlined in Removing Stains Manual. Unfortunately, there isn't a product that you can just spray on and scrub to clean a stain. Why? Well, stains are by their very nature below the surface, so no cleaner or scrubbing device can get to them. But the step-by-step guide above will provide the most effective and cheap method to get out these and any other type of stain. 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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