What Causes Etching On Polished Granite Countertops

If you re researching marble for your kitchen countertop you might be wondering how strong the acid needs to be.

What causes etching on polished granite countertops.

Honed countertops have already been dulled either by a machine or an acid bath. Once it s smoothed out the granite can be buffed polished or honed and then sealed for protection. A polished finish is the shiny high gloss type of finish with the deepest color saturation commonly seen on marble and granite countertops. Since etching can remove the polish or sealant from marble the stone can become more vulnerable to scratching as well.

What causes etching on granite countertops. Common causes of etching. But substances like cooking oils that don t evaporate can cause permanent stains if they re allowed to soak into the stone. Granite resists most household acids except for hydroflouric acid found at trace levels in.

Most professionals choose a penetrating sealer because they. Once you ve put a fresh polish on your granite surfaces they need to be sealed. Acidic foods such as lemons or tomato sauce can discolor a granite counter top and mar its beauty. However as noted above marble or nearly any stone can have a number of different finish types.

When water seeps into your granite countertop it leaves a dark spot that evaporates in a few minutes and returns to normal. If your granite countertop s dullness is due to light surface etching granite polishing powder may be able to remove it. This duller more matte stone is more casual and easy to live with in my opinion since it naturally shows etches dull spots. This will maintain the gleam while protecting the porous stone from stains.

Because a polished shiny finish is so common many people believe that all marble is supposed to be polished or shiny. While severe damage may require professional repair homeowners can fix most mildly etched granite surfaces themselves. Common household cleaning products can be a detriment to the professional finish atop granite countertops as can fruit and acidic juices vinegar wine coffee soda bleach and ammonia. Etching is commonly caused by liquids that are acidic in nature.

Etching is part of the reason i chose honed instead of polished countertops. They are matte and soft compared to shiny polished stone. The best thing to do to protect your granite countertops from stains is to clean up spills as. The powder is slightly abrasive so it removes shallow scratches stains.

What specifically causes etching on marble countertops. To remove etching from a granite countertop the stone must be sanded or ground to level the surface. Granite and quartzite are also great alternatives.