how to clean marble?

[Huligar]

How do you all clean marble? I am not asking how you restore it, just how you clean it.

	Marble MARBLE: CHARACTERISTICS This standard includes general information on the characteristics and common uses of marble and identifies typical problems associated with the material. INTRODUCTION Marble is an extremely hard, metamorphic stone composed of calcite (CaCO3). It is formed as a result of the recrystallization of limestone under the intense pressure and heat of geologic processes. The effect of this process is the creation of a stone with a very tight crystalline structure and small but definite porosity. Because of its structure, marble can take a very high polish and is a very popular decorative stone for architectural and sculptural uses. The limited porosity of marble, especially polished marble, makes it less vulnerable to the leaching effects of water. Calcium carbonate, however, of which marble is composed, is highly susceptible to attack by acidic agents. Marble is readily dissolved by acids, even very dilute acids, however the actual results of acidic exposure will vary with the nature of the acid. Chlorides, nitrates, sulfates and other chemical compounds react differently with marble and produce various by-products, which have a wide range of solubility and impact on the durability of marble. For this reason, it is always important to determine the exact type of pollutants causing marble deterioration. Marble itself can be of two types, one composed of calcite and the other of dolomite. Dolomitic marble is much more resistant to acid attack than calcite marble. The color of marble ranges from the brilliant white of calcite to black, including blue-gray, red, yellow and green, depending upon the mineral composition. TYPICAL USES Marble has many decorative and structural uses. It is used for outdoor sculpture as well as for sculpture bases; in architecture it is used in exterior walls and veneers, flooring, decorative features, stairways and walkways. The way in which the stone is used may be a factor in limiting or controlling the severity of exposure. The use or function of the marble may also affect the feasibility of applying certain treatments, but type of use is not the primary factor in the major types of deterioration and damage to which marble is susceptible.

[makverk]

how to clean marble?
easy!

Check out the HTC twister program.
Its from sweden, it works.

	Marble MARBLE: CHARACTERISTICS This standard includes general information on the characteristics and common uses of marble and identifies typical problems associated with the material. INTRODUCTION Marble is an extremely hard, metamorphic stone composed of calcite (CaCO3). It is formed as a result of the recrystallization of limestone under the intense pressure and heat of geologic processes. The effect of this process is the creation of a stone with a very tight crystalline structure and small but definite porosity. Because of its structure, marble can take a very high polish and is a very popular decorative stone for architectural and sculptural uses. The limited porosity of marble, especially polished marble, makes it less vulnerable to the leaching effects of water. Calcium carbonate, however, of which marble is composed, is highly susceptible to attack by acidic agents. Marble is readily dissolved by acids, even very dilute acids, however the actual results of acidic exposure will vary with the nature of the acid. Chlorides, nitrates, sulfates and other chemical compounds react differently with marble and produce various by-products, which have a wide range of solubility and impact on the durability of marble. For this reason, it is always important to determine the exact type of pollutants causing marble deterioration. Marble itself can be of two types, one composed of calcite and the other of dolomite. Dolomitic marble is much more resistant to acid attack than calcite marble. The color of marble ranges from the brilliant white of calcite to black, including blue-gray, red, yellow and green, depending upon the mineral composition. TYPICAL USES Marble has many decorative and structural uses. It is used for outdoor sculpture as well as for sculpture bases; in architecture it is used in exterior walls and veneers, flooring, decorative features, stairways and walkways. The way in which the stone is used may be a factor in limiting or controlling the severity of exposure. The use or function of the marble may also affect the feasibility of applying certain treatments, but type of use is not the primary factor in the major types of deterioration and damage to which marble is susceptible.

[Huligar]

I do not see a home owner using this.
What do you tell your customers when they ask you how to clean the counter-tops.

HTC Sweden was founded 1987 as a contractor company, but the business developed quickly. Today HTC consists of technology and product development, as well as manufacturing and sales of complete grinding and maintenance systems for floors, along with floor solutions.
As early as 1992, the first grinding machines were completed, built according to an own patent and with a completely new concept. HTC's owners Håkan and Gunn Thysell both work actively in the company and Håkan is the originator of most of the ideas for products and processes.

HTC has the market's most complete program of grinders and separators, which is constantly under development to meet the requirements of the market. The grinders are used for preparation, grinding and polishing of concrete floors, natural stone, terrazzo and wood, together with HTC's diamond tools. There is continuous development on the diamond tools, and HTC has established connections with a wide network of international expertise, participating in development of new products and technology.

HTC is market leading on all major industrial markets, including the USA, and over 85% of production is exported, primarily through a well-developed network of exclusive distributors, HTC Global Partner. These partners represent HTC in Europe, North America, Asia and Africa. Sale to other countries is managed from Sweden or the closest partner.

HTC has developed the unique floor concept HTC Superfloor®, brand and method for high quality, polished concrete. HTC Superfloor®is on its way to become an international industry standard, and the certified entrepreneurs vouch for a perfect result.
Due to the increasing demand for polished concrete from industry and sales, HTC has recently developed a system for industrial production of HTC Superfloor®, HTC 2500 iX, which enables cost-effective, efficient polishing of very large areas.
The traditional machines have also received an entirely new function that dramatically enhances productivity: our patented Mist Cooler System.

Finally, we would like to call attention to our new maintenance solution for several types of floors, HTC TWISTER, which allows the floor to keep the quality of the newly renovated floor ”forever”. TWISTER is a combined cleaning and polishing system for combination auto scrubbers. Usage areas are both terrazzo and natural stone, where with normal cleaning time and cost for daily maintenance, a dull and worn floor can be transformed into a glossy, brightly polished floor. TWISTER is excellently suited for superstores, airports, schools, hospitals and other types of shop premises. TWISTER is also the best system for maintenance of HTC Superfloor® (polished concrete). No additional floor care effort is required to restore and maintain the floor's natural lustre. TWISTER is a maintenance system developed and patented by HTC.

	grinding This is the second stage in securing a flawless surface. This stage will remove all scratches from any de-lipped surface.

	Polishing Polishing: This is the final stage, which leaves the surface with reflective characteristics.

[Lou Noble]

What kind of cleaning are we talking about here?

[Huligar]

what ever you use OR what ever you give your customers.

[Maurizio Bertoli]

It depends what kind of soil you have to deal with.
You can't get away with one single "marble cleaner" to clean all sorts of soils, just because they're sitting on a piece of marble, can you?
So, you need specific cleaning agents rated "for natural stone" depending on the soil that you have remove from a stone surface: light soiling (fingermarks, light mud, dried-on water, etc.), medium soiling (oil, grease, cacked-on food, etc.), heavy soil (soap scum, mineral deposits, etc.), biological soil (mold and mildew).
Find a company that makes products for each of those types of soils and you've got the answer to your question...

Ciao and good luck,
Maurizio Bertoli

	Marble MARBLE: CHARACTERISTICS This standard includes general information on the characteristics and common uses of marble and identifies typical problems associated with the material. INTRODUCTION Marble is an extremely hard, metamorphic stone composed of calcite (CaCO3). It is formed as a result of the recrystallization of limestone under the intense pressure and heat of geologic processes. The effect of this process is the creation of a stone with a very tight crystalline structure and small but definite porosity. Because of its structure, marble can take a very high polish and is a very popular decorative stone for architectural and sculptural uses. The limited porosity of marble, especially polished marble, makes it less vulnerable to the leaching effects of water. Calcium carbonate, however, of which marble is composed, is highly susceptible to attack by acidic agents. Marble is readily dissolved by acids, even very dilute acids, however the actual results of acidic exposure will vary with the nature of the acid. Chlorides, nitrates, sulfates and other chemical compounds react differently with marble and produce various by-products, which have a wide range of solubility and impact on the durability of marble. For this reason, it is always important to determine the exact type of pollutants causing marble deterioration. Marble itself can be of two types, one composed of calcite and the other of dolomite. Dolomitic marble is much more resistant to acid attack than calcite marble. The color of marble ranges from the brilliant white of calcite to black, including blue-gray, red, yellow and green, depending upon the mineral composition. TYPICAL USES Marble has many decorative and structural uses. It is used for outdoor sculpture as well as for sculpture bases; in architecture it is used in exterior walls and veneers, flooring, decorative features, stairways and walkways. The way in which the stone is used may be a factor in limiting or controlling the severity of exposure. The use or function of the marble may also affect the feasibility of applying certain treatments, but type of use is not the primary factor in the major types of deterioration and damage to which marble is susceptible.

[Lou Noble]

That is what i was getting at Jo, alot of companies tend to make a neutral soap for every sort of cleaning. As we all know neutral soaps are good but dont work for heavy soiling and or staining. For everyday cleaning i would use a neutral soap and water. for heavy soiling an alkaline cleaner works good and for stains a poultice works well. for man made stone some of the acid cleaners work well too.

	Poultice This operation takes a minimum of twenty-four hours to extract foreign materials (stains) from most natural stones.

	alkaline ALKALINE A water soluble chemical with a pH greater than 7. Some typical alkaline chemicals are ammonia and sodium hydroxide.

[Timm Sowders]

personally I save the neutral stone soap of cleaner for the client to use for everyday cleaning. I like to use an alkaline cleaner for marble. This with either a towel or white 3m pad will get just about anything off. Mom has a chemical that is call Oyx something. It is not the oxyclean that you see in the stores or the professional grade oxygenator that carpet cleaners use. She picked it up at a home show and the sales person and her spent 90 minutes arguing about whether or not you could use it on marble - he said it was safe and she said that if it uses citric acid that you couldn't. Well he gave her a sample and she went home and tested it out on 10 different marbles that we had and couldn't get it to do any damage, except cleaning it pretty good. and if you leave it on the grout for a couple of minutes it does a great job of cleaning any grout without bleaching it.

	alkaline ALKALINE A water soluble chemical with a pH greater than 7. Some typical alkaline chemicals are ammonia and sodium hydroxide.

	grout GROUT The material used to fill in the joints between stone tile. Grout can be cement or plastic resins.

	Marble MARBLE: CHARACTERISTICS This standard includes general information on the characteristics and common uses of marble and identifies typical problems associated with the material. INTRODUCTION Marble is an extremely hard, metamorphic stone composed of calcite (CaCO3). It is formed as a result of the recrystallization of limestone under the intense pressure and heat of geologic processes. The effect of this process is the creation of a stone with a very tight crystalline structure and small but definite porosity. Because of its structure, marble can take a very high polish and is a very popular decorative stone for architectural and sculptural uses. The limited porosity of marble, especially polished marble, makes it less vulnerable to the leaching effects of water. Calcium carbonate, however, of which marble is composed, is highly susceptible to attack by acidic agents. Marble is readily dissolved by acids, even very dilute acids, however the actual results of acidic exposure will vary with the nature of the acid. Chlorides, nitrates, sulfates and other chemical compounds react differently with marble and produce various by-products, which have a wide range of solubility and impact on the durability of marble. For this reason, it is always important to determine the exact type of pollutants causing marble deterioration. Marble itself can be of two types, one composed of calcite and the other of dolomite. Dolomitic marble is much more resistant to acid attack than calcite marble. The color of marble ranges from the brilliant white of calcite to black, including blue-gray, red, yellow and green, depending upon the mineral composition. TYPICAL USES Marble has many decorative and structural uses. It is used for outdoor sculpture as well as for sculpture bases; in architecture it is used in exterior walls and veneers, flooring, decorative features, stairways and walkways. The way in which the stone is used may be a factor in limiting or controlling the severity of exposure. The use or function of the marble may also affect the feasibility of applying certain treatments, but type of use is not the primary factor in the major types of deterioration and damage to which marble is susceptible.