Natural Stone Restoration: Bring Back the Beauty of Your Stone (Contd.)

Natural stone care is a lot more than what to use on your stone and what not to use on your stone.  There is also the issue of what you do when your stone is clean.

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Stone Cleaning:  Know What Works for Your Stone

Each stone type is different and requires different levels of care.  Marble can be ground down a bit and polished, for travertine, however, it's not that great of an idea.  As we said earlier, a lot of store bought products can actually damage your stone.

Stone cleaning does have some universal things that you can do. For example, you never want to wet mop. If you're using tap water, there is a good chance is has trace amounts of chlorine in it, and as such, it can damage your stone. Damp mopping is okay, as is using a soft cloth dust mop. Never use any sort of wax based stone cleaning product as wax can build up and leave ugly residue behind that will dull the finish of your stone.  You also want to make sure you ask your stone care service for tips to keep up the shine and polish between visits.  One thing that can help is jute rugs at each of the entry points to help trap fine grit that can abrade your stone.  Taking off your shoes is also a good idea, particularly shoes or boots that have any sort of spike or shank in them such as high heels or steel-toe boots.  But what about specific types of stone?  What other universally accepted things can you do to safely clean your stone?

For one thing, make sure that you consult with a natural stone care professional for tips that you can follow to clean your stone between visits.  One thing that he will most likely recommend is that you get stone sealing.

Why Should You Do Stone Sealing?

Why should you do stone sealing?  All forms of natural stone are very porous.  And these pores are vulnerable spots within the stone.  All if takes is a bit of damage inside some of the pores, and the next thing you know, your stone is damaged, and you'll have to go for stone restoration instead of merely cleaning your stone.  However, when your stone is protected with an impregnating stone sealer, the pores are filled with a quickly drying resin that hardens and protects your stone.  Stone sealer makes your stone liquid proof, which helps to protect it from damage.

So remember, you want to go with a professional. Only a pro will give you practical cleaning tips for your stone, as well as natural stone care tips to keep your stone looking it's best.

Morris Cleaning & Restoration
1007 N.Sepulveda Blvd. #1204
Manhattan Beach, CA 90267
(310) 545-8750
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Natural Stone Restoration: Bring Back the Beauty of Your Stone

Natural stone restoration brings back the natural beauty of your stone.

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Natural Stone Cleaning:  Do it Safely

There is a lot of misinformation out there about natural stone cleaning.  A lot of store bought products will promise miraculous results, however, if you use the wrong product on your stone, you may find that not only did it not clean your stone, it damaged it irreparably.  What a lot of people don't know is that a great many natural stone types are surprisingly fragile.

Granite seems tough for example.  It makes up a good chunk of the Earth's crust, so it should be tough enough to take what you can give it  stone cleaning wise.  The problem with granite is that it is a composite stone.  As such there are some pieces of stone within the matrix of the granite that are softer and more vulnerable than others, particularly if there is any stone that is a member of the calcium carbonate family of stone such as travertine, limestone, or marble.

Stone Cleaning and Restoration in Manhattan Beach

The calcium carbonate family of stones includes marble, limestone, and travertine.  Like all natural stone, they add a touch of class to a home.  What a lot of people don't know is that all calcium stone is vulnerable to anything acidic.  Bleach, coffee, lemon juice, vinegar, orange juice, and red wine are just some of the substances that can eat away at stones like these.  Travertine has an additional problem.  It's not a solid stone.  It has natural gaps that are filled in with resin to make the surface more uniform.  So you could find the resin dissolving, and your $1000 travertine countertop looking like very cheap Swiss cheese if you make a mistake while you're cleaning it.  The same holds true for marble and limestone.  One of the many so-called cleaning authority websites out there states that it's a good idea to clean your marble with a mixture of lemon juice and water.  We're amazed they haven't been sued, but they have a good disclaimer, we guess.  For the record, if you try to clean your marble with lemon juice and water, even if it has had stone sealing done on it, you're not going to need stone cleaning.  You'll need stone restoration instead.

So remember, what you don't know can hurt you, or more accurately, hurt your stone.  You may consider hiring a professional stone cleaning service instead.

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

Travertine Cleaning in L.A.: Part of a Hard Day's Work

Travetine cleaning in L.A. is based on a paradox.  Travertine is a stone, so obviously it is hard, and tough to damage.  Right?  Well, not exactly...

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What Can Damage Travertine?  

Whether you have carpet, tile, or in this case stone, you want certain things out of your floor.  You want it to be durable, and you want it to look nice.  Above all else, you want to avoid causing damage.  What can damage travertine?  Well, quite a few things actually.  Harsh chemicals such as bleach and ammonia are pretty much a given, but did you know that you can also damage your travertine simply by spilling coffee, red wine, orange juice, or even tap water in some of the beach cities.  Why tap water?  Well some municipal water sources are either from fossil springs which can have chemically reactive minerals in them, or they are partially chlorinated which can also react chemically to your stone. In addition, without the chlorine and minerals present, you can damage your travertine with tap water because of the presence of bacteria.  Certain forms of bacteria are acidic and will eat away at your stone.  

With all that can go wrong with travertine cleaning, it's a wonder that more people don't realize that cleaning their stone is best done with the help of a natural stone restoration service.  What trips people up is the dubious fascination with home improvement shows and the whole Do It Yourself movement.  

Call a Travertine Cleaning Service in the Beach Cities Instead

In theory, doing something yourself helps to save a lot of money, and it can; However, like everything that sounds too good to be true, there is always a downside.  For example, if you go cheap on some sort of cleaning equipment, or you don't have the knowledge and expertise that a professional travertine cleaning service in the beach cities will possess, you could run the risk of damaging your stone and needed professional restoration work done instead.  So all of that money you save could end up costing you 3-5 times more when you have to get a pro in to fix it all.  

So remember, while travertine is a stone, it is one that can be fairly vulnerable to damage.  So, be shrewd.  Know 100% what you're doing when you're trying to clean your stone, or if you don't make sure that you call a professional stone cleaning and restoration service in L.A. or wherever you call home.  

Morris Cleaning & Restoration
1007 N.Sepulveda Blvd. #1204
Manhattan Beach, CA 90267
(310) 545-8750
Contact Us

Stone Cleaning in the Beach Cities (Contd.)

What's the difference between cleaning stone yourself and calling a stone restoration service in the beach cities?  The level of service that you will get, for one thing, as well as a fair amount of safety.

Professional stone cleaning in South Bay | (310) 545-8750

Natural Stone Restoration in the Beach Cities

As we covered previously, what you don't know can hurt your stone, such as spilling orange juice, coffee or wine on your stone floor.  That's why you want to hire a pro to clean your stone.
A professional stone cleaning service in the beach cities will not just clean your stone, they will also tell you how to protect it between visits.  First off though, if they're any good, they will clean your floor thoroughly as well as remove any damages such as scratches, pits, or chips.  Once they have cleaned the stone surface, then they will most likely recommend that you seal your stone with an impregnating sealer.

Should You Opt for Stone Sealing?

Should you opt for stone sealing?  Absolutely.  Stone is naturally porous, and as a result anything spilled on it can sink into these pores and leave behind a nasty stain, making for a much harder stone cleaning job the next time around.  Once your service has completed restoring your stone, they will most likely tell you how to maintain your stone surface between visits.
For example if you spill anything, any spills should be mopped up immediately and blotted dry with a towel.  You should sweep your floor with a broom or dust mop and damp mopping with a mix of water and a neutral ph cleaner.  This will help to reduce blemishes and spots appearing. It is also a good idea to install a floor mat at the entrance of each room that has stone flooring; this will reduce grit and other things that can mar your floor's surface.  Above all else, he will recommend that unless you know what you're doing, don't try to do any sort of stone restoration on your own, you could damage your floor.
Ultimately, you want to take care of your floor regardless of what type of stone you have.  The alternative is way more expensive, namely having to replace some, if not all of your floor.  So get on the phone to a stone restoration service in the South bay area to make sure you enjoy your stone for years to come.
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Morris Cleaning & Restoration
1007 N.Sepulveda Blvd. #1204
Manhattan Beach, CA 90267
(310) 545-8750
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Stone Cleaning in the Beach Cities

If you want to find a service that does stone restoration in the beach cities, you want to make sure that they know what they're doing.  You want a rare combination of experience, reputation, and a high level of service.

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Natural Stone Care in South Bay

Whether you have a marble floor or a granite countertop, natural stone adds a touch of class to either a commercial property or a residential one.  Most people like some form of natural stone in their home. Been in an upscale hotel?  Guess what the floor is made of?  That's right, you have a fairly However, if you have any sort of stone, while it does provide a touch of class to the place, you also want to keep it up.  That's where a commercial stone restoration service in the south bay area  of Los Angeles comes into play.  If you have natural stone in your home or business; it is both beautiful as well as functional.  However, after years of foot traffic, spills, scuffs and bumps you may find your floor looking like a shadow of it's former glory.
Natural stone, however, is one of those materials that can be restored with the help of a commercial stone restoration service.   One thing to note is that calling  a beach cities based stone restoration service is not as expensive as you might think.  Usually such services offer a wide variety of things that they can help you with, such as stone cleaning, stone honing, stone polishing, as well as sealing your stone.

Natural Stone Restoration

What is natural stone restoration? This is a combination of the services we have described above.  Some harder stones like marble or granite do well with stone grinding or honing.  This process takes out the scratches, pits, and other blemishes.  However, you want to make sure you go with a professional service.  If you try to grind a softer stone, or a stone that has natural gaps in it such as travertine, you could find yourself having to rip up your floor and starting all over again.  They can also work with you to get the level of polish that you want for your floor or countertop.
Maybe you want a glossy shine, or a matte finish.  A good polishing might be in order with diamond abrasive pads.  After you have had stone cleaning done, make sure that your stone cleaning service in the south bay offers you stone sealing.  This will help to protect your stone from spills and stains between visits.
Natural stone is porous. Anything acidic such as  orange juice, vinegar or wine can have a chemical reaction with your stone. And the things that can harm your stone don't stop at drinks.  Bleach is horribly bad for stone surfaces, as ammonia can be, and guess what's in a lot of cleaning agents?  So as you see, call in a professional stone cleaning service in the beach cities. 
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Morris Cleaning & Restoration
1007 N.Sepulveda Blvd. #1204
Manhattan Beach, CA 90267
(310) 545-8750
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Natural Stone Care: The Expert's Guide

Natural stone care is all about CAMPS.  What is CAMPS? We're glad you asked.

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The First Steps of Natural Stone Cleaning and Care

CAMPS or Cleaning Appearance Maintenance Polishing and Sealing, are the ways that you can keep your stone looking its best.  Cleaning is not just about what you should do, but what you shouldn't do as well.  Regardless of the sort of stone that you have, never ever use harsh chemicals for stone cleaning.  Some stones are chemically reactive, particularly those in the calcium carbonate family of stone such as marble, limestone, and travertine.  Other stones such as granite aren't chemically reactive, however you can stain or discolor the stone permanently if you don't know what you're doing.
Granite is a composite stone, made of many different types of rock fused together.  It is one of the hardest stones around, and id remarkably diverse in the way it feels or look.  Granite can have all of the reflective qualities of polished glass, with the smoothness as well, or it can feel rough. Ironically, when granite feels the roughest is the point that it is most vulnerable to damage.  All stone is naturally porous, after all, and rough feeling stone means that it has likely never been sealed, and as such, anything spilled on it, even fairly innocuous substances such as toothpaste, cologne, or perfume can sink into the pores of your stone.   This in turn affects the polish and the shine of your stone.  Without proper maintenance, your stone will soon lose its appearance.  However, if you call in a company that does commercial stone restoration, they will most likely recommend that you seal your stone.  And we cannot recommend stone sealing enough. 

Why Should You Do Stone Sealing? 

Why should you do stone sealing?  After you clean your stone, sealing it helps it to not only stay clean, but it makes it easier to keep clean, particularly if an impregnating stone sealer is applied to the surface.  Stone sealant sinks into the pores and helps to form a barrier that makes it a lot harder for stains to sink in, and it also makes it easier to clean as well.  Even with stone sealer applied however, do not use harsh chemicals on your stone.  It could potentially eat away at the sealant barrier and ruin your stone. 

So remember, while there are several methods of natural stone care, we are a big fan of CAMPS.  Just a piece of advice from your friendly commercial stone restoration experts. 
Morris Cleaning & Restoration
1007 N.Sepulveda Blvd. #1204
Manhattan Beach, CA 90267
(310) 545-8750
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