Polished stone like granite and marble are naturally stain resistant, but it still needs proper care and cleaning. Even composite stone and other synthetic stone surfaces needs routine maintenance and preservation. If you determine that your work top or bar top needs sealing, you must use protective sealant to treat the surface. The sealer will fill in the pores of the stone and repel spills on the surface, giving you time to wipe and clean the worktop.
There are many kinds of sealants and protective finishing that you can use to protect your stone worktop. Here are some examples:
It is recommended to use cold water when damp mopping.
Damp Mopping: A damp mop can pick up small abrasive dirt and some staining agents. Regular damp mopping is recommended for smooth and polished surfaces. It is best done after sweeping or vacuuming.
Drying Oils: Nature offers original polymer in the form of Linseed, Soy, and Tong oil. These oils harden as they dry and have great latent use for sealing your stone worktops and surfaces. Drying oils are natural and organic which means they can yellow with age. It is the sealant choice if you do not want to use chemical protective coating.
Oil Repellents: There are proprietary products that repel oil, water, and other liquids. These specialized sealants offer waterproofing and protective coating against some chemicals. Most fluoropolymer-based sealants have high resistance to solvents, acids, and even heat. They are designed for use not only on stone worktops but also industrial surfaces.
Stearates: This affordable water repellent is readily available in hardware shops for wood, concrete, and masonry. You must ensure uniform distribution to ensure waterproofing. While it is a hydrophobic sealant, constant reapplication may be needed.
Silicates: These are specialized mineral glasses that can seep into and fill up porous surfaces. It acts as a repair agent and is useful for restoration of stone that has been damaged externally by chemicals or weathering. The silicate replaces the lost minerals and binds into the stone which protects it from further destruction. Silicates are specialized materials which that are formulated and applied by experts.
Siliconates
Siliconates: Water-based silicone derivatives are suitable for light-coloured porous stone such as limestone and concrete. It must not be used on dark-coloured stone or important surfaces. It is affordable but applying a second coat is not possible because it can repel itself. Siliconate residues that are not absorbed by the stone will damage surface with a fine salt-like scum.
Siloxane: Siloxane is a solvent-based protective coating made from silicon, oxygen, and alkane. It is used primarily for exterior stone surfaces that are made of granite, marble, limestone, and concrete. It is highly recommended for surfaces and work tops that are exposed to weather and elements. It does not cause darkening on most stone surfaces.
Silicone Water Repellent (synthetic oils): Generic elastomeric coatings can be used to make your worktop hydrophobic. The application of the silicone water repellent will seal the surface by seeping and penetrating the porous substrate. It is still permeable by gas and vapor and has the tendency to attract dust. Some waterproofing chemicals can also darken some stone surfaces.
Montan Wax
Waxes: Waxes may be natural or synthetic and include beeswax, paraffin, and montan. They are designed and formulated into pastes or emulsions that can be applied to any stone surface for sealing purposes. Waxing will waterproof your worktop for an amount of time and will still need reapplication.
Finishing Dressing for Stone Surfaces
Coatings: Coatings are usually acrylics, lacquers, and varnishes. These film-forming polymers are useful in protecting some stone surfaces, but it is not usually used on natural stone. A common use is protective coating applied to floors that maintains a physical barrier and waterproofs and protects the floor from abrasion. These coatings are considered temporary and used mostly because it is cost-effective to restore the coating when it gets damaged than to restore damaged stone surface that did not have any coating applied to it.
Apply finishing dressing to your stone worktop on top of using protective sealants.
Soaps: They are very useful because soap residue can be intentionally built up and used as a natural paste, wax, or dressing. The residue left behind by soap can be utilized as a sealant. Soap is important in the maintenance and preservation for stone surfaces. It can act as a finishing dressing and nourish the stone by preventing it from drying out. Stone surfaces washed with soap will be less dehydrated and won’t become overly absorbent.
Waxes: Paste waxes are commonly used as dressing stone surfaces. Beeswax and paraffin are the most common, but there are other synthetics brands. Carnuaba-based waxes are fitting for low abrasive surfaces. They are effective at maintaining a polished shine and preventing most liquid stains. Some professional products are made of dyes and pigments that can maintain and protect the color of black, green, and red stones.
Stones like granite and marble are perfect worktops because of their durability, but routine maintenance is needed to preserve their outward appearance and strength. Click here to understand more about granite worktops or marble worktops and see the different varieties. If you are looking for advice, you can also call us on 0208 216 2041 or use our contact form here.
