Natural Stone Care Part 1: Marble and Travertine

Part one of a series on natural stone care explores travertine and marble.

What is Travertine?

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What is travertine?  From Wikipedia: Travertine is a form of limestone deposited by mineral springs, especially hot springs. Travertine often has a fibrous or concentric appearance and exists in white, tan, and cream-colored varieties. It is formed by a process of rapid precipitation of calcium carbonate, often at the mouth of a hot spring or in a limestone cave. In the latter, it can form stalactites, stalagmites, and other speleothems. It is frequently used in Italy and elsewhere as a building material. Travertine is a terrestrial sedimentary rock, formed by the precipitation of carbonate minerals from solution in ground and surface waters, and/or geothermally heated hot-springs." SOURCE ARTICLE

Travertine has a tendency to be a softer stone, so you don't want to grind it.  One key part of care for travertine is to get professional stone sealing done.  Stone sealing helps to impregnate the stone with a liquid proof seal that helps to repel stains and protect your floor against damage.  But what about Marble

Natural Stone Care and Marble

Marble is a harder stone, and you actually can grind it and do stone honing, and polish it with coarse grit buffers, however there is a bit of a warning where marble's concerned.  Don't spill anything acidic on it, even something fairly innocuous like coffee or orange juice, or it will literally eat away at your stone.  Like travertine, you can seal marble to protect it from both stains and damage, which considering how much fine marble can cost, is probably a good idea.

So remember, knowing what you can and can't do with your stone will save you a lot of trouble as well as a lot of money.  When in doubt call in a stone care service.

This concludes part one of our series.  For more information, please be sure to read part two and part three as well.

Morris Cleaning & Restoration
1007 N.Sepulveda Blvd. #1204
Manhattan Beach, CA 90267
(310) 545-8750
http://www.morriscarpetcleaning.com