Dear Steven:
Well, unfortunately all that inconsiderate sealing has probably exacted its toll from the integrity of your poor innocent stone.
If Mother Nature intended to make that particular limestone any less absorbent, she would have done that herself without the “help” of your tile setter, thank you very much. And if you wanted something less porous, you should have chosen a different stone.
That said, hoping that the damage is not too bad, only a proficient stone restoration contractor could do something about it.
With porous stone an impregnating sealer should have been applied never prior the installation (there are grout-release products specifically formulated to enable the contractor to easily remove grout residue from the surface of the tiles; the bit about applying an impregnator to the bottom of the tiles is a true pearl!), and at least a couple of weeks after the installation, to allow for the proper curing of the setting material and the grout. Moreover, if the stone is so absorbent that will require more than one application of a good-quality impregnator, an interval of 24 hours between applications is recommended, no matter what the directions printed on the container of the product say. Those directions are meant to sell products, not to dispense the right kind of advice.
Bottom line, all things considered, nothing in a bottle could ever do the first thing to rectify your current situation. The damage must be fixed first, providing that, hopefully, it can be fixed at all.
Mankind should master nature by understanding, not by force.
Ciao and good luck,
Article ID: 313
Created On: Sat, Aug 11, 2007 at 9:57 AM
Last Updated On: Sat, Aug 11, 2007 at 12:00 AM
Authored by: Maurizio Bertoli [mail@mbstone.com]
Online URL: https://marblecleaning.org/knowledgebase/article.php?id=313