How to Clean Marble Floors: A Step-by-Step Process
The history of marble being cut into square tiles for flooring purposes goes back to the days before the magnificent Parthenon in Greece, which means it hasn’t gone out of style in more than 2,500 years. During this time, marble extraction, finishing, installation, and cleaning techniques have greatly advanced and improved. Marble flooring requires a certain degree of care and maintenance that ancient masonry workers didn’t become aware of until many centuries later. For this reason, some of the floors they originally installed only lasted a few decades or became heavily stained to the point of requiring extensive restoration. With great aesthetics comes great responsibility. Homeowners whose floors are lined with marble need to make a commitment to keep their tiles clean, and the best way to handle this important housekeeping task is to follow a step-by-step process. If you’re learning how to clean marble floors, our guide will make it a breeze.
Establish a Reasonable Cleaning Frequency
Cleaning marble is similar to cleaning other types of natural stone like granite. If you’re not sure how to clean granite and natural stone, floor cleaning is something that must be done at least once a month, but you may need to do it more frequently depending on how often you use the floors. Dusting should take place at least once a week in a household of two adults, twice a week for families with a child or a pet, and at least three times in homes with heavier foot traffic. Weekly applications of natural-stone cleaner are essential, but they can be increased if grime builds up after a few days.
Sweep and Dust
Unless your marble floor tiles have been finished by means of sandblasting for a very coarse texture, you shouldn’t use brooms. Instead, choose wool sweepers and soft dust mops, preferably made with light-colored materials so you can determine when all dust has been picked up. When it's time for deep cleaning, remove furniture in the room, which can be done section by section.
Wipe and Mop Using Natural-Stone Cleaner
Forget about common household cleaners and homemade organic solutions. You must only use specially formulated marble and granite squeeze and mop floor cleaner on your marble flooring. The choice of mopping or wiping is yours. If you’re able to get down on your knees to manually wipe after spraying, you’ll notice that tiles with a polished finish look brighter because the pressure you apply has a buffing effect. Make a point to not leave any wet spots since they can result in streaking.
Don't Forget About Sealing
You should include a sealant application in your maintenance schedule, and this should take place right after cleaning. Frequent sealing is the key to keeping marble protected and looking sharp. Marble and granite sealer is easy to use, but you need to let it dry and sit overnight before resuming foot traffic. Don’t worry about how to polish marble floors because you don't need to polish flooring after sealing like you would with other stone surfaces in the home, as it can make the floors dangerously slippery. Did you learn how to clean marble floors or learn some new tips to maintain and polish marble? If so, share this post on social media to let us know how we did.
If you have any additional questions about caring for flooring made of marble, granite, slate, or another type of natural stone, reach out to the Stone Care Experts at Granite Gold® today. One of our knowledgeable representatives would be happy to take your call at 1-800-475-STONE (7866). Make sure to like our Facebook page as well to ensure you receive plenty of amazing tips on caring for the natural stone and quartz in your home.