How to Clean Marble Floors
Marble flooring is an easy way to instantly add elegance and style to your home. It has been used for thousands of years in only the finest sculptures and monuments. Today, marble flooring has become more accessible and is a popular choice for natural stone floors. Marble has unique properties, so special care and attention are needed to properly maintain it to look its best. Here are some things to consider when learning how to clean marble floors.
Properties of Marble
Marble is a natural stone and, like many other natural stones, is porous. This means that liquids can be absorbed into marble floors or countertops. While marble and other natural stone are considered hard, marble is a soft stone compared to other materials like granite and quartzite. Marble is durable enough for everyday use, but it can be scratched more easily than other natural stone.
How to Clean Marble Floors
Even though cleaning marble floors might be a little different than cleaning hardwood, that doesn’t mean that the process is hard. With the right tools and cleaners for the job, you wouldn’t notice a big difference between cleaning marble and other hard surface floors. Here are some things to consider when learning how to clean marble floors.
Practice Basic Floor Maintenance
All hard surface floors can benefit from the same maintenance routine. The only difference for marble flooring is the addition of using a sealer. Pair this routine with area rugs and entrance mats to add more protection for your floors.
- Daily: Sweep/dry mop floors. Spot clean spills and stains immediately.
- Weekly: Mop with appropriate floor cleaner and microfiber mop.
- Monthly: Deep clean/polish/seal
Avoid Acidity
Marble has a negative reaction to acids, leading to what is called etching. Etching is a chemical change, not a physical change like a scratch, that has a dulling effect on marble. When choosing the right floor cleaner, avoid ingredients that have vinegar, ammonia or citrus. Find a pH neutral cleaner for best results. Spills from acidic foods like vinegar, orange/lemon juice or tomato sauce should be cleaned immediately.
Be Gentle/Avoid Abrasives
Along with avoiding cleaners that have acidic ingredients, physical abrasives like scrubbing brushes and scouring pads should be avoided as well to prevent scratches. When dry mopping your floor, use a soft dusting pad instead of a vacuum. If you prefer using a vacuum, make sure the vacuum is designed to be used for hard surface floors and avoid using a vacuum’s powered brush to clean marble floors.
Speed Up Drying Time
After the weekly maintenance is finished and you’ve mopped your floor, it’s best to avoid letting marble floors air dry. Dry your floors with a clean, untreated microfiber pad. Because marble is porous, air drying gives time for your cleaners to get absorbed into the marble. This can lead to potential stains and etching.
Use a Sealer for Added Protection
Natural stone floors like marble benefit greatly from the use of a sealer every 3-6 months. A sealer helps fill in the natural pores in marble, protecting it from stains and other substances from penetrating the surface.
For beautifully protected marble floors, clean with the Bona Hard Surface Floor Cleaner. Its gentle formula is perfect for cleaning sealed natural stone floors, tile, laminate and luxury vinyl. To add more protection, use Bona Stone, Tile and Laminate Floor Polish. For the right tools, use Bona Mops to clean smarter and faster for all your floor care needs.