PLEASE HELP!! Stained Marble Vanity Top

Mr. Maurizio, I just recently bought a new home and decided to use Kaboom on the polished marble counter top in my bathroom. On top of that there is a quarter sized Lime Away spill. Both created etching. I went to home depot and a guy there referred me to "Stone Spray-N-Sealer". It lists marble as one of the stones it seals. Do I want to try this stuff on my already damaged counter top?

 

Dear Mark:

Is that what they told and sold you at the Home Depot?... WOW! They sure know stone, alright!! L

I only hope that you did not open that totally useless (under the circumstances) bottle and that you still have the receipt, so that you bring it back there, get a full refund and suggest them that if they want some stone intelligence they should come to marblecleaning.org!

The surface of your stone has been corroded by the acidity of the two products you mentione. Those products did not peel any sealer off the marble surface: stone is polished mechanically, by abrasion and friction, not by slapping a sealer onto it.

In other words, the damage is in the stone itself, and it is certainly not by applying to it a penetrating, below-surface impregnating sealer like the one that the HD sold to you that you will ever fix that damage!

 

Under normal circumstances, I would suggest you to get a good-quality Marble Repair Kit like the one that I make, but I know quite well the power of the two products you used on your stone, and I can tell you right here and now that the severity of the etching that you have is way beyond the performance of a home-kit.

 

Your only option is to hire a bona fide stone restoration contractor who will lightly grind (hone) and re-polish your stone.

Now, you'd better watch out! I consider stone refinishing as the very pinnacle of all the activities related to stone from a professional point of view. Unfortunately, there are a lot of quacks on the loose out there! You get one of those, and you may even have to kiss your stone bye-bye!

How could you tell a champ from a chomp? Could you trust the recommendation of your local stone distributor, or contractor, or your interior decorator? Hardly!

We have available a very comprehensive article on how to select a bona fide stone restoration contractor, which will give you all the intelligence you need to make a competent choice. It does carry a small price tag, and you can order it by logging on the Educational Literature section 0f our website at:   http://www.mbstone.com/literature/literature.htm. It's available in pay-per-download format and I consider it a cheap “insurance premium” to pay when there are thousands of $ involved! Not to mention the little and much needed support you'd be giving to the cause – YOUR cause, since every single penny of the cost of the article will be used to support it.

Also, will you please read and sign our Statement of Purpose at: http://www.marblecleaning.org/purpose.htm? By spreading the word about this valuable site among your friend & family and the stone trades' people you've been dealing with you will be rendering everybody a valuable service!   

Moreover, do take advantage of the plethora of FREE Helpful Hints available at:   http://www.mbstone.com/HH_promo/helpful_hints.htm. They're on the house!

Thank you.

Ciao and good luck,

Mauri z io Bertoli

 

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