Frequently Asked Questions
My marble is looking dull, will I need more than just a “clean-and-polish”?
Do you have visible scratches? If you do they will require a honing process to remove. Polishing a scratch makes it more noticeable. That said, polishing is sufficient to overcome minor dulling wear.
What is the difference between a “clean-and-polish” and a “hone-and-polish”?
Clean-and-Polish requires a surface to be re-polished but that does not generally mean that scratches are removed. If scratches exist, one could end up with shiny scratches which are more noticeable.
Hone-and-Polish seeks to first remove the scratches and the polish up the surface to restore a better-than-new surface.
How can we say that it is better-than-new? Because we will also seal the surface and then address any grout related issues. MARBLELIFE can restore a stain-free grout appearance, and can in fact even change grout colors from white-to-black, black-to-white or a change to what ever color you are seeking to accent with. This MARBLELIFE COLORSEAL grout line has acid-resistant surface allowing even the most damaging cleaners to be used without creating a problem. 25 % of MARBLELIFE’s residential restoration work is required due to the use of a damaging cleaner.
Can polishing remove spots and dull areas on my floor?
Absolutely
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Spots and dull areas are generally caused by either an acid having dissolved the marble stone surface, or wear and microscratches damaging the surface. Once a hole or scratch has been created the stone surface has to be lowered to the bottom of the deepest surface to restore a flat mirror reflective surface. The good news is that even the worst damage is generally not as deep as the width of a human hair so a tile can last more than 50 years even in service within a high wear hotel or convention center.
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Bring us your dull and damaged marble, granite and concrete and MARBLELIFE will restore a better-than-new polished surface.
What’s the difference between polishing, waxing and coating – don’t they all create “shine?”
When seeking to secure a shine on a surface how it is achieved will determine how long it lasts. The length of time is determined larger by the hardness of the finished surface and its ability to resist wear.
Wax is a non-reactive chemical that lays on the surface. Its surface is melted to form a mirror smooth surface, BUT it is very soft and will lose that mirror finish with minimal foot traffic. Wax does not breath. When applied to a ground floor surface this failure to breath can result in damage to the marble when water vapor pressure rises through the floor but cannot exit the stone. This pressure if consistent of time will find the weakest part of the stone which is the vein-to-background stone surface and push through. This is literally strong enough to push a the vein right out of the stone.
Coatings are reactive treatments that generally have greater wear resistance than wax. The issue is that once worn unless the coating can be repaired, which is rare, the entire coating must be removed and re-applied. Re-coating may be done if the coating is intact but only a limited time before it becomes to thick.
Polishing on the other hand works directly on the stone surface, which is much harder than a coating or wax, and therefore is more wear resistant. MARBLELIFE can further enhance this with our surface modifying hardness enhancing treatments. A polished surface is more cost effective but requires the attention of a grinding/polishing expert such as MARBLELIFES CRAFTSMAN.
What’s the difference between “shine” and “clarity”?
Shine suggests that you can see the reflection of a light source, even if it is hazy or fuzzy.
Clarity speaks to the sharpness of the image.
When MARBLELIFE hones and polishes your marble floor we can attain a surface flatness sufficient to deliver a mirror finish with clarity so fine you can read the label on your light bulbs in the reflection on your floor or counter.