Restoring marble, granite and other flooring varieties can be a multi-faceted, multi-step process.

Grinding – Grinding removes a very thin layer from the stone’s surface to eliminate deep scratches, lippage and other imperfections.

Honing – Honing involves the removal of more minor, superficial scratches and flaws from foot traffic.

Polishing – We use state-of-the-art stone polishing equipment and techniques to achieve a satin, semi-gloss, or high gloss finish.

Sealing – The stone flooring is sealed, protecting it from water and oil-based stains

Foot traffic, along with everyday wear and tear can result in scratches, scuffs and other flaws that dull the shine of your marble floors.

Grinding used to be a very dusty and messy procedure for natural stone, including marble, travertine, limestone, and terrazzo. Over the years there have been many improvements in these processes, namely dust-free methods. We utilize water to lubricate the surface we are refinishing with grinding tools – therefore keeping all of the marble shavings trapped in the liquid and eventually vacuumed up. This is especially favorable inside of residences, public buildings, hotels..

Diamond Grinding – This procedure is fairly common in any home and property that contains natural stone and terrazzo. It is needed when there is significant wear-and-tear and visible signs of excessive dulling and abrasions. Full restoration utilizes diamond grinding prior to honing or polishing.

Sanding – Sanding is usually only needed when there are extremely deep scratches in a stone surface that needs isolated attention. It is also used when filling holes and making repairs.

Marble Honing your stone has the ability to create an array of sheens for your marble, travertine, limestone, and granite. A beautiful aspect of having natural stone in your home or property is that it can be visibly changed to meet your needs or style and décor.

Many people like shiny marble. It is reflective and helps to create a very bright and open atmosphere. Although it really emphasizes the effect of having a hard and solid surface, it also may also tend to show “wear-and-tear” at an accelerated rate compared to a stone surface with a duller shine.

Another popular finish is commonly referred to as a “Honed” finish, which is really a matte’ or satin-finish. This sheen has zero to very little reflectivity and maintains a very earthy and natural-look. It is a popular contemporary look, and is actually more suitable for homes with an active and busy lifestyle without the time for contact up-keep.

A honed finish on stone flooring creates a stunning satin finish that is smooth to the touch and creates a rustic appearance. Honed flooring is more scratch resistant than a polished stone flooring so it is particularly popular for high traffic areas.

Using state-of-the-art marble polishing equipment, technology, and technicians with only the best cleaning materials, Love Marble Stone Care is sure to bring the life back to your marble floors. Marble polishing can be one of the projects that seems to be easy on the surface, but one look at the thorough marble polishing process by Love Marble Stone Care you’ll see that it’s anything but that. Utilizing a  step-by-step process, we  pride ourselves on being the best marble polishing company in the area.

So, if you’re looking for the top marble polishing company, call us today! We’d be happy to explain our marble polishing process, as well as talk to you about all of our marble restoration services. We look forward to hearing from you.

Powder Polishing – This is performed by chemical means with the use of dry minerals and organic acids combined with water to create different degrees of shine.

Diamond Polishing (sometimes called “diamond honing”) – This form of polishing is a mechanical method. We use diamond abrasive tools with our machinery that works by creating various amounts of friction to naturally produce a sheen.

A Lippage is a difference in elevation between the edges of stone tiling often giving the flooring an uneven appearance. Stone floor lippage can be caused by natural settling of the flooring or poor installation.

This process will bring down the height of an entire surface and eliminate the presence of un-level tiles that are higher and lower than their neighboring tiles. This can be performed either after a new installation – or any time thereafter.

Sealing your natural stone and terrazzo will help to prevent staining and discolorations from becoming a permanent part of your stone surface.

The first rule in sealing your natural stone is “never use a topical sealer.” This is a common mistake that we see DIY (do it yourself) homeowners make.

A lot of the sealers sold in these environments and scenarios are designed for tile and non-porous materials. They contain topical epoxies, acrylics, and waxes which are all very harmful for natural stone.

Natural Stone, which includes marble, travertine, limestone, granite, onyx, quartzite, and is even part of some terrazzo contain pores. These pores are the openings in the stone that allow it to “breathe” and release moisture and gas. If your natural stone does not breathe it will eventually deteriorate and stain. Topical Sealers do not allow natural stone to “breathe.”

Impregnating Sealers are specifically designed for Natural Stone. These types of products will absorb into the stone and not clog the pores. They do not reside on the surface and do not absorb contaminants like some topicals do, mainly waxes. When the stone’s pores are coated with an impregnating sealer they make the stone resistant to oil and water-based stains. This allows you to wipe and clean certain liquids from the surface of the stone without leaving behind discolorations. However, certain liquids such as alcohol and citrus fruit juices contact acids that will create “etch” marks, regardless of the best impregnating sealer on the market. Etch marks do not have color, but are chemical burns on the surface of the stone that appear as “dull spots” and may even be rough to-the-touch sometimes. In most cases, etch marks can be removed by honing or even just by polishing the stone.

Stains and etching can be prevented simply by sealing your marble after is honed. However a honed marble surface can be less resilient against preventing acid or oils spills from being absorbed by the stone. The reason is because to obtain a honed finish from marble the surface of the stone must be diamond sanded, this diamond sanding process causes the pores on the surface of the marble to slightly open. once this pore open up the surface becomes more vulnerable to etching and stains.

Typical Stains:

ORGANIC:  Coffee, tea, tobacco, food, cosmetics, plant, food.

INORGANIC: Rust, iron, bronze, steel, metal.

BIOLOGICAL: Mildew, mold, fungus and algae.

ETCH MARKS: Etch Marks are caused by acids left on the surface of the stone

OIL BASE: Grease, cooking oil, food stains, tar, body oil

INK: Ball Point Pen or Magic Marker.

Natural stone is porous by nature and will stain. Because stone is porous you can sometimes remove the stain by reversing the staining process. If you re-absorb the stain into a medium, you can remove it from the stone. The typical medium is called a poul- tice.

Stains should be treated as soon as possible. As time goes by it becomes increasingly difficult to remove the stain. Attempts to remove stains should not precede stain determination.

Using the appropriate removal technique is important to achieve desired results.

Some chemicals necessary for stain removal will remove the finish on polished marble, limestone, terrazzo and travertine. As a result, repolishing with abrasives or polishing compounds may be necessary.