Granite Care Made Simple

Porous stones like limestone and granite have been used as a building material since the Egyptians. It's more than likely sooner but I can't think of a good example off of the top of my head here.

There's a lot of confusion over how to care for granite . The highly polished granite that you and I have in our kitchens and bathrooms has to be prepared and looked after. People often forget that it is still a stone and is porous. Bits of food and stain can get in those pores.

When granite gets a deep stain it can be nearly impossible to get out without calling a professional. Stay away from those tips and tricks you see on various websites. Attempting to use some sort of homemade concoction to get a stain out of your granite can do you more harm than good. Take it from someone who learned the hard way.

You probably will be pleased to know that cleaning and caring for granite is actually very easy with a little care and common sense. The first thing you should be aware of is the all important sealing your granite. Sealing granite is the most important thing you can do to prevent stains from settling in.

Remember those pores I was telling you about before. The sealer will fill up those pores and prevent food from getting in. Seal your granite early and often and it will reward you with decades of useful life. A new sealing every six months is more than enough and one every eighteen months is probably just a little too long between seals.

Cleaning your granite is simple too. Use soap and water with a sponge for general cleaning. Over time the soap will leave a film that will mostly be evident on darker colors so about once a week take everything off of the counter. Pull a cleaner specific for granite out from under your sink. You can get a good one at home depot. Quickly scrub down the counter to remove the film.

That's it. Just two things to really worry about. Cleaning and sealing. You can make caring for your granite pretty complicated if you want. In fact a lot of people do this and end up doing absolutely nothing because it just became too much work. Your granite care doesn't have to be perfect. It just has to be done. Five extra minutes a week and thirty minutes every twelve months is perfectly doable.