Cleaning

Cleaning Instructions for Benchtops

Rule No 1: DO NOT USE green scouring pads.
Diamonds and Silicon Carbide are some of the very few materials harder than Granite.
Green scourer pads contain silicon carbide and can, if used regularly, dull the surface of natural granite.
For best results, simply wash bench-top surfaces down with warm soapy water and dry off with a clean tea towel.
Alternately, a number of commercial cleaners and polishes are available from Absolute Stone from our showroom.
No chemicals such as bleach should be necessary.
Enyo or similar micro-fibre cloths also work brilliantly with granite.
Please consult your Absolute Stone dealer for more details.
Spills should be cleaned off immediately. The sealer is designed to give you time to clean surfaces (within 1 to 2 hours is normally fine), however leaving the surfaces uncleaned overnight may result in some marking.
Most marking from oil can be removed simply with products like “Oil-Ex”, available from your Absolute Stone dealer.

Hard to remove grime:
If a build up of any grime occurs and is hard to remove, simply use OOOO Steel Wool.
Steel is not as hard as Granite, so the steel wool will not damage the surface.
Should a stain occur, it can generally be removed by the use of a poltice or Commercial absorption agent. Absolute Stone stocks an exceptional product called “Oil-Ex” which will remove most stains overnight.

 

Cleaning Instructions for exterior Granite Paving

Note : All external paving should be sealed to increase the ease of cleaning.
Granite is no different.

Absolute Stone recommends the application of 2 coats of a good quality “penetrating” sealer.
We do not recommend the use of surface sealers or epoxy-based sealers.
These typically alter the look, slip resistance and colour of natural stone.
Unlike “penetrating” sealers, surface sealers also break down with UV exposure and need re-sealing regularly.

Once sealed correctly, granite requires minimal ongoing maintenance, other than a good cleaning schedule. (as durable as it is, granite is not ‘self-cleaning’)

Step-by-step procedure :
Clean spills and stains quickly.
Note : Allowing any soiling on the stone surface to be baked on in direct sunlight for weeks at a time, makes stain removal more difficult.

Granite can be cleaned and washed down as per any other external paving, generally with a non-acidic-based detergent or bleach.

Periodically, depending on the traffic received, it should be high pressure cleaned with warm water and / or detergent.
For high-traffic areas, mechanical scrubbers can also be used periodically.
For example in addition to normal street sweeping, the Hay St Mall is scrubbed and washed down approx. every 3-4 weeks with a ride-on machine.

Spot cleaning can be done when needed, using neat detergent, bleach, or in extreme circumstances, diluted (30:1) hydrochloric acid.
Note 1 : Paving should be thoroughly wet down before any acid is applied
Note 2 : Please always check with stone supplier for confirmation that the particular stone will not be adversely affected by acid.
For general week-to-week cleaning, we recommend the use of bleach or any of the MB brand commercial granite cleaners.
These are non-acidic based and thus have no adverse affects on the stone.


For hard to remove stains, contact Absolute Stone and we can recommend qualified people to arrange cleaning.