Lime stone in the bathroom

We have lime stone bathroom floors. The cleaning lady sprayed a clorax based batroom cleaner on them in a snake shape and then mopped the floors. The snake shape which is whiter in color stayed and dull compared to the general touch and feel of the stone. It seems like the top layer (or the matt galze looking surface) is damaged. How can we fix this? Can the floor be sanded and sealed again? Any special dealer we can contact to get someone fix it. We didn't but the stones. The were already in place (brand new) when we bought out home. I appreciate your help. Thank you, Shane

 

Dear Shane:

Stone is finished mechanically, by abrasion and friction, not by applying some sort of sealer on it. If they want to finish it with a honed-finish they bring it up to a certain (limited) degree of sheen; if they want to polish it (assuming that's a stone that can be polished), they go all the way up by using specialty polishing powders. No matter what, the surface of the stone is totally bare.

That said, the acidity of the product used by your cleaning person etched (corroded) the surface of your limestone, due to the fact that limestone, marble, travertine and all calcareous rocks are highly sensitive to acidic substances. In other words, you have a surface damage.

Can it be fixed?

Of course it can, but it will take a bona-fide stone restoration contractor, who will have to re-hone the surface of your stone with professional means and honing powder.

Now remember, it's never too early to think about the proper maintenance of your stone. The issue of what you'll be doing day in and day out to your stone is – like it should be intuitive – vastly more important than its sealing (if and when possible and/or advisable) and it's all too often neglected. As you can tell by reading many of this site's postings, you're not likely to get good information about it from your dealer or installer. Don't become another statistic! 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 .  

And remember, every single penny of the cost of the literature will be used to support this site and its cause: your cause.

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Thank you  

Ciao and good luck,

Mauri z io Bertoli

 

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