Hello, my daughter recently dropped a pitcher of white grape juice on my new floor. (ST. Laurent polished marble.) I cleaned it up immediately. I can still see the spill mark. It looks like a dull spot in the floor in the shape of the puddle. I am not sure if it is etched or what. I tried polishing it out but the polish wiped off when I clean the floor. Any suggestions on how to remove the large stain or what kind of stain it is? Thanks

 

Dear Ryan:

A stain – a real stain – is always darker than the stained material. If it is lighter, it's either a mark of corrosion created by an acid (etching), or a caustic mark created by a base (bleaching). There are no known exceptions to this rule. In the cas e of natural stone, bleaching can't occur, and therefore they are etch-marks all the time: plain and simple surface damages, like shallow chemical scratches.

 

“ I am not sure if it is etched or what. ”

 

It is not what: it is etched! L

 

Since it is a surface damage you can't technically remove it; you have to repair it.

How?

If it were a small etch-mark I would suggest you to get a good quality Marble Polishing Powder like MB-11 (you already found that a so-called “marble polish” is only some sort of wax that does not actually polishes marble, right?... J ), but since you're describing it as a large etch, I am hesitant, also considering how difficult Black St. Laurent is to polish. (No two marbles polish the same way, even with the same product.)

Your best bet is to hire a reputable stone restoration contractor.

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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