Rough natural stone floors

How to maintain rough natural stone floors

The surface of this floor type has a rough finish: sandblasted, brushed, chipped, flamed or cracked. The stone pores are quite open in these treatments, making this surface prone to dirt and stain absorption.

FIRST TREATMENT

After installation, the floor should be thoroughly cleaned to remove all grout residue and construction dirt.

For acid-sensitive natural stone, (such as marble, limestone, travertine, bluestone,...) use Akemi Stone Cleaner.
For acid-resistant natural stone (such as granite, basalt and slate) use Akemi Acid Cleaner.

PROTECT

As this type of floor is sensitive to stains, an sealing treatment is highly recommended. This makes the floor easier to maintain and provides good protection against the penetration of dirt and stains. Using a product with oleophobic properties gives optimal protection of the stone, including against the penetration of oils and greases.

Suitable products for this purpose are Akemi Stain Repellent Nano (colourless) or Akemi Darkener Super (colour diluting).

The protection should only be applied after the floor is completely dry. For floors glued to a dry screed, this is after 6 to 8 weeks. If the floor has been installed on a sand bed with mortar, wait up to 6 months.

Check out our handy applicators for applying cleaning product as well as for homogeneous application and polishing of impregnating product.

CARE

For mop maintenance, we recommend Akemi Stone Soap. This natural, nourishing mopping soap cleans, conditions and protects. It makes the floor look fuller and warmer and supports existing impregnations. Be economical: dissolve 1 to 2 capfuls in a bucket of lukewarm to warm water.

Use a mop or microfibre mop suitable for rough floors.

CLEAN

By cleaning we mean the occasional removal of stubborn dirt and any maintenance layers (= stripping). Use Akemi Stone Cleaner for this purpose. Only use this powerful cleaner if standard maintenance products cannot remove the dirt.

PROTECT

Check with the supplier whether your floor has already received an initial sealing treatment. If not, you can still carry this out yourself. Repeating the sealing treatment is generally not necessary for floors.

TIPS

Always follow the instructions on the packaging of maintenance products.
Mop with a well wrung-out mop or mop. Too much water makes the joints dirty.
Do not use 'greasy' cleaning products such as linseed oil-based products or brown soap that coat your floor and consequently make footsteps visible.
Would you like to have your floor professionally treated and/or polished? Then feel free to call on our Akemi Home Service. Also for damage repair.