Marble floor

hogjowl

Idiot™
Joined
Oct 7, 2006
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Prattville, Alabama
Ive got to clean a marble bathroom floor next week. It needs polishing, which I don't know how to do, but she said just clean it.

I assume I need to avoid acids?

What else do I need to be aware of?
 

Fat Mike

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Aug 1, 2017
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AZ
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Mike G
why people put travertine in a restroom then turn it into a rental. homeowners are back in they'll be replacing soon. what would be your plan of attack?

they just want it clean
IMG_5808.JPG
 
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clean image

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Joined
Oct 5, 2012
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Orlando
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Carl Maddock
It really depends on the type of stone, and finish.

Some stones benefit greatly from just cleaning, like the one above- I filled,postfilled with tumbled edge.

If they are asking you to clean a factory honed and polished, then there are other problems , as it's difficult to get dirty

Polished, honed, brushed finish?
Castle installation or standard
Sand unsanded grout lines = width
Butt install or 1/4"
Un filled, postfilled or factory filled trav
Chisel.ed, tumbled, micro bevel, square edge?
 

Nomad74

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Redding
Marty. Stay away if you've never done it. I am one that likes on the job training, but be careful with marble. Don't use a plastic pad driver. You need a metal backing plate for marble so it won't flex and dig into the soft veins. Acid will etch marble and going too fast can cause orange peel texture, which is also caused by over polishing. I would suggest if doing a maintenance cleaning, use something easy like a high grit Monkey pad. They are idiot proof and only water is needed.
 

J Scott W

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Oct 16, 2006
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Shelbyville TN
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Jeffrey Scott Warrington
No acids! Rinse well. I don't recall if you have hard water, but residues form hard water or cleaning agents can leave the floor hazy.

I know you have been cleaning tile & grout for 20 years. Not a lot of difference. Inspect the floor first for loose or broken grout, loose tiles (tapping, listen for hollow sound), any topical coating. You may want to turn your pressure down to about 750 or 800 if the grout is damage or there are cracks in the marble.

Send me an email and I will send you my stone care guide - scottw@bridgewatercorp.net.
 

DAT

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Apr 3, 2017
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Nevada
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Bill Cheryl
I get training first...ive seen people just use white pad with white paste with a rotary then they extract...i have no idea what it is but it always looks great afterward...clean and shiny
 

Nomad74

Boy Sprout
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Feb 4, 2016
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Marty. What did you do, what did you do? Enquiring minds want to know. What would Jesus do? How did it turn out. Pics?
 

Stephen D. Gillett

Supportive Member
Joined
Oct 26, 2015
Messages
66
Location
Anaheim, CA
Name
Steve Gillett
Acid etches Marble, Travertine, Limestone and other calcium based stones. DO NOT use acid. If it is a polished (reflective) marble then EMP (STONE PRO's Easy Marble Polish) is a great solution. It is a polishing powder that will bring back some reflection and clean up grouts. You can use it with a Makita hand polisher (9237) or floor buffer (175 rpm) swing machine. Please let me know if you have questions. I'll walk ya through it and let you know where to get the items.
 

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