Natural Stone

Q. Spilled gun cleaner on my stone topped coffee table. It left a white stain. How can I remove this? A. Natural stone may not look porous, but it is. Liquids and chemicals can soak below the surface. Gun cleaners often contain strong solvents that... Read More

Q. A water stain was caused by a plant pot overflowing, and the overflow stood for 24 hours, leaving an outline. I tried to clean the outline with steel wool and made a worse mark. What can I do? I am not sure if the table is stone or slate. A. Just... Read More

Q. There are black mildew stains around the drain of my travertine sink. I was away when they appeared and had a house guest during that time using the bathroom. I don't know nor does she know how the stains got there. The sink was new. I did... Read More

Q. I very recently purchased a bluestone dining room table. There is now a white circle. I'm thinking that it came from a beer bottle that was placed on the table without a coaster. I tried a poultice of baking soda and water paste, but it did... Read More

Q. I hired a cleaner and she used a limescale remover with mold control. It appears to have left white stains on my bathroom stone tiles. These don’t wash away with water. What should I do? A. What you’re seeing is likely etching, not... Read More

Q. We had a beige sandstone countertop installed for an outdoor kitchen. It is sanded smooth and was sealed with three coats of sealer. I don’t know what kind—just said “sealer” on the can. Some was spilled on our manufactured patio... Read More

Q. How do I get a stain from furniture polish to come up? We used furniture polish and accidentally ended up with a ring on our limestone hearth. A. These type of stains can be difficult to remove. You will need to use a poultice with a strong... Read More

Q. I have an outdoor fireplace that has leuders stone for the bench in front of the fireplace. The stone is a light gray / off white color, and I recently spilled citronella oil on it. We had a mosquito candle on top of the fireplace, and it... Read More

Q. How do I get a motor oil stain out of my blue stone deck? A. Motor oil is resistant to water-based cleaning. It also has certain properties that make it highly adhesive to surfaces, and its amber/black color can easily transfer into porous... Read More

Q. My puppy pooped on our limestone hearth, and it left a stain. What should I use to remove the stain? A vinegar and peroxide solution? A. Vinegar might seem like a natural cleaner, but it’s actually one of the worst things to use on... Read More