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What You Thought You Knew About Cleaning Tile and Stone Is Probably All Wrong

        

If you’re like many people, then you might believe some of these common misconceptions about how to keep your tile and stone clean:

  1. All-natural cleaners are gentle and won’t harm my surfaces.
    This assumption can really get you into trouble. Cleaners touting all-natural ingredients like lemon and vinegar can be highly acidic, which can be particularly damaging to surfaces such as marble and travertine. If you have stained grout, this may be the reason, as acids will destroy your grout seal. If your marble counter shows signs of etching, it may have acid damage, but MARBLELIFE® can restore it.
  2. If that stain won’t come up, then scrub harder with a stiff-bristle brush.
    We admire your can-do attitude, but you can actually do more harm than good when you use a stiff brush (especially a wire brush) as it can leave micro-scratches all over your surface. The metal fibers can also contribute to a new problem — rust stains. If you’re reaching for a wire brush, the problem probably has more to do with your cleaner. MARBLELIFE® can help you find the root cause.
  3. Grout naturally gets dingy over time — there’s nothing you can do about it.
    The truth is your tile and grout can look clean and bright for as long as you own it if you protect and care for it properly. And that includes using a high-quality sealer and proper maintenance techniques. It’s far easier to wipe off the sealed surface than try to get a stain from inside the grout. While you’ll always have to perform routine cleaning, there’s no reason your efforts can’t bring your floor back to a pristine condition each and every time. MARBLELIFE® will leave your floor better-than-new and easier to clean with a new appearance in but a few dust-free hours.
  4. I can use the same product on all my surfaces if it’s a good quality cleaner.
    While we all wish things could be this simple, different surfaces have different care needs. That’s why MARBLELIFE® formulates products to optimize performance for each type of surface. You can find the right product for your surface here. This myth is a costly one but also an easy one to remedy for beautiful results.
  5. People who have clean grout must spend a lot of time taking care of it.
    Some people may toil endlessly and needlessly to keep their surfaces clean, but you don’t have to. Simply use MARBLELIFE® products and trust our tile and stone care specialists for your in-home cleaning and restoration services. Once you understand the problem, getting back to clean is easy, and maintaining it is easier still, but there is no miracle grocery store aisle do-all-cleaner, no matter how slick the marketing is. Science trumps marketing every time. MARBLELIFE’s 30 years of study has produced excellent products with great results.
  6. If they sell a cleaner in stores, then it must be safe and effective.
    That’s a hard no. We won’t name names, but you’ll find many types of ingredients in off-the-shelf products that can be harmful, like acids and harsh abrasives, or ineffective, like oils and “shine enhancers” that briefly give the illusion of a clean appearance but actually attract dirt in the long term.
  7. Stone is pretty indestructible, so I should be able to use any type of cleaner on it.
    The saying “hard as a rock” is a little misleading. The reality is that different types of stone have varying susceptibility to cracking, chipping and certain chemicals. You invested a lot in your tile and stone surfaces (whether you installed them or they came with your home). Spend a little time researching your specific surfaces and their individual care needs, and you will reap the rewards for years to come. You can find a lot of helpful information on MARBLELIFE’s online Homeowner’s University.
  8. The best cleaners are only available to professionals.
    Luckily, this is not true. You can purchase high-quality, professional grade products right from the MARBLELIFE® website. They were formulated in our own lab based on years of research and experience. MARBLELIFE® is a science company that provides services and formulates products designed to help our clients avoid the marketing myths and feel-good promotions in order to meet their very real needs. Our MARBLELIFE® professionals use our products not because they have to (they don’t) but because they are the best. Why don’t we require them to do so? Because if there is a better product, we want to know about it so we could improve our solutions and continue to provide our clients the best services and solutions possible.

 

 

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