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As a homeowner, you want your house to look spotless. Every corner and surface has to be thoroughly cleaned and polished. However, there are stains and dirt that are just too difficult to remove. This can be extra frustrating if it is on a natural stone. Stone tiles, countertops, grout, and everything are so beautiful to look at, but maintaining that beauty is quite hard. Lucky for you because we are here to tell you what you can do to preserve that natural stone's beauty.

What You Should and Should Not Do 

First, you must figure out what type of stone and finish you are dealing with. Different stones need different maintenance, but here are general things you should know:

List of Do's

• Frequently dust and mop your floors
• Protect your floor surfaces with non-slip mats
• Cover your countertop surfaces with placements, trivets, or coasters.  Always use mild detergent or stone soap to clean your surfaces
• Make sure to thoroughly clean, rinse, and dry your surfaces
• Immediately wipe spillages

List of Don'ts

• Vinegar, lemon juice, and other acidic cleaning agents should not be used on marble, travertine, onyx, and limestone surfaces.
• Abrasive cleaners should not be used because they are prone to scratching surfaces.
• Never combine bleach and ammonia as a cleaning agent. This combination produces a lethal and toxic gas.
• Refrain from using old vacuum cleaners because the attachments may damage the stone's surface

Primary Battle: Cleaning Your Tiles and Grout 

Natural stone tiles (most especially marbled ones!) can make any home shine. On the other hand, it gets dirty quickly! More so on the tiny cracks in between tiles, and scrubbing at these small spaces is troublesome. More often than not, the dirt found here does not even come off!

However, we have compiled a list of methods to help you remove tough dirt away from grout!

Warm Water and Brush

You can first try scrubbing your dirty grout with warm water and a stiff-bristled brush. You can find heavy-duty brushes at home centers and hardware stores. This cleaning process only entails simply spraying the grout lines and scrubbing them in circular motions. After you are done, just let it dry.

Warm Water and Vinegar

Equal parts of vinegar and warm water are a good cleaning agent for heavy dirt and mild stains. You only have to leave the solution on the grout lines for five minutes, and then you scrub it in a circular motion with a stiff brush. However, you have to remember to be careful because vinegar has the potential to ruin your stone. 

Warm Water and Baking Soda

For a heavier cleaning duty, you may make a cleaning paste with baking soda and water. You will add this to the vinegar solution mentioned above. The mixture will lead to foaming, and once it stops, you may now proceed to scrub it. Ensure that you thoroughly rinse it afterward to prevent any damages from occurring.

Alkaline Cleaner

If you have tried enough home remedies and find that they do not work, it is best to use an alkaline cleaner.

The MB-2 Alkaline HD Heavy Duty Cleaner by MB Stone Professional is a powerful and effective cleaning agent for removing tough dirt on tiles, grout, and all-natural stone surfaces. It is a highly concentrated product that is designed to get rid of even the toughest soils from your surfaces. This type of product has better chances of achieving the finished look you want. In addition to that, alkaline cleaner generally takes less time and energy because it works faster than other methods.

Swiping Off (Bottom Line)

Natural stone surfaces need adequate cleaning to maintain their beauty. A few general things we should do are to ensure that we clean our stone surfaces every day to avoid dirt build-up and to avoid using harsh materials to prevent further damage. The most challenging stone to clean is the stone used on our tiles and grouts, but we can solve this using water, vinegar, baking soda, and alkaline cleaner. The first three mentioned are considered home remedies, so they do not always work. For a sure clean, alkaline cleaners are the best way to go.