Jerusalem Gold counter stains

We just purchased a new home with a new kitchen counter. We were told that it's Jerusalem Gold, and after looking online it does look similar. We have a number of white stains on the counter, which are mostly only visible when viewed at an angle. The spots look like rings in some cases, and in others like smears. In every case they look like dried sugar water -- cloudy, matte stains or streaks. Any thoughts?

 

Dear Matt:

Although being on the dolomite side Jerusalem limestone is more acid-resistant that the calcareous ones, it's still limestone and acidic substances will corrode its surface on contact. The resulting “stains” are not stains at all; they're rather surface damages known as etch-marks.

The bad news is that there's no sealer on the entire galaxy that could help prevent such occurrences.

The good news is that they are easy to fix by just about anybody.

Here's how:

Get some metal-grade sandpaper in several grits and, starting with the 120 you will take care of the damages. Don't be content with a few strokes: you have to work each grit rather intensively to have a surface completely scratch free. With each additional grit you will go over the previous one of approximately 1” all around. Using an orbital sander would make the job a lot easier. Do not apply too much pressure: let the sandpaper do the job.

After the 120 you will go 240 and then finish the job at 400 grit. Don't expect a perfect blend, but it will be pretty close. And if you want to perfect blend, then do the whole countertop the first time. After that, you will able to b lend all the time.

Of course, to avoid as much as possible the recurrence of those etchings, using specialty products for daily cleaning is a must.

By logging into the Helpful Hints section of our website at: http://www.marblecleaning.org/helpful-hints.htm , you will be able to get the short version of our maintenance guidelines at no charge. The full version of it – a 7-page document considered by many as an industry benchmark – is available in pay-per-download format in our Educational Literature section at: http://www.marblecleaning.org/literature.htm .  

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Thank you  

Ciao and good luck,

Mauri z io Bertoli

 

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