Foul odor from slate tiles

Hi Maurizio, I have an outdoor deck that has natural unsealed slate tiles. When we hose down the deck or when it rains, a horrible sour milk smell seems to rise from the tiles. If you get down on your hands and knees and smell the tiles, you can actually smell it coming right from the tiles. I cannot find anything on the internet about this problem and short of scrubbing the tiles down the pine-sol (which is only a temporary fix), we are at a loss. Again, it is only when the tile is wet or recently wet. Any ideas? Have you ever heard of this stinky problem? Thanks, Ellen

 

Dear Ellen:

My standard automatic foreword when somebody inquires about slate is:

“By saying slate you're saying very little – if anything at all. There are many different (and I do mean different) kinds of slate that span from dense and (almost) acceptable rocks, to slate that will actually fall apart under running water or turn into mud, and everything in between.

So which slate do you have?”

That comment is always valid and covers just bout everything about slate. Or so I thought… Until you came in with this stinky slate thing, that is!...

I really never heard of such a… phenomenon and, consequently I am as much at a loss as you are!! Only the gods know what your slate (the original mud it metamorphed from) is made of!...

I know it's a serious matter for you and, probably, I shouldn't be saying this, but I can't help smiling… J

May I ask you now to please read and e-sign our Statement of Purpose at: http://www.marblecleaning.org/purpose.htm?

Ciao and good luck,

Mauri z io Bertoli

 

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