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Expert Answers
How can I prevent my marble from staining?
QUESTION
How can I prevent my marble from staining? - I am the Chief Stewardess on a Luxury Motor Yacht. I found your email address while searching for the marble specialists online. We have a serious issue with our marble on board (we have large marble areas – floors, sink tops, walls) with a great marble quality. We have one company on board nearly 6 months ago that treated marble (as the annual marble cleaning process). After that treatment we found marble absorbing water and other products and we have many areas stained at the moment. We can’t remove the stains at all.There was two other companies on board helping us to solve the problems, but with no luck. They treated the marble with the special seal and the marble should not be absorbing any product after that.
Unfortunately that did not work as well.
We have had many specialist looking and treating our marble but now during season and while we have guests on board I see that nothing really worked and marble is sensitive as it was before or even more.
What would you suggest me to do? I am very much hoping for your answer and help.
ANSWER
ANSWER - I am responding to your email below regarding the serious issues you have with your marble on board your yacht that include large areas of floors, sink tops, and walls. You indicate that the problems are that the marble is absorbing water and other products and you have many areas of the marble that are stained that can’t be removed.We are independent investigators/expert witness/consultants company who specializes in natural stone, ceramic tile, glass tile, brick, terrazzo, and other related construction products with inspectors located in or near most major markets around the country.
I assume you have different types of marble installed on your yacht. Some people will refer to all types of stone as marble, but I will assume that the marble you are referring to is a stone whose geological classification is a true marble. There are some limestones that are commercially sold as a marble because it can take a polish like a marble. The price of marble generally is higher for marbles that are more rare or that are more difficult to process due to them being more fragile, and doesn't have anything to do with the physical properties of the stone that determine how well the stone performs under various conditions.
Since stone is a natural product produced over millions of years, not only does the physical properties of one type of stone vary from another, but it will vary within the same gemological classification depending on which quarry it is extracted from or which part of the quarry it is extracted from, and it will vary within the same block or shipment of material.
Marble is a calcium carbonate based material and contains minerals and other deposits as well. According to ASTM C503 standards a true marble is a minimum 0.2% absorption which technically is impervious. Other stones sold as marbles might have higher absorption rates. Marble can be moisture sensitive and develop an orange/yellow rust staining from the pyrite minerals in the stone or if it is in contact with metal. Sometimes these stains can be removed, but if the underlying problem of moisture or the metal isn't removed then they can reoccur.
Marble being a calcium carbonate based material is sensitive to acidic materials such as various types of foods, drinks, and cleaners and can etch the surface that can only be removed by refinishing the stone surface.
Your problem could be caused, because the type of marble you are using isn't suitable for the intended use, and thus your type of use it is subjected to is an abuse to the stone, or it is possible that your marble wasn't installed correctly, which is causing it to be subjected to metal and moisture, which could have been avoided if they had been installed correctly.
Sealers provide temporary and limited protection to marble. It doesn't prevent a source of moisture from beneath the stone to inflict the stone, if the liquid or substance that sits on the stone isn't cleaned up promptly or properly (can't use water to clean grease, etc.) it can still migrate into the stone, and it will wear off sooner than later depending on what amount of use and cleaning it is subjected to.
We are certainly capable of investigating your marble problems to determine what is the cause of the problems you are having, and to prescribe remediation methods to attempt to fix problems and prevent future problems. We might conclude that the stone isn't suitable for the intended use or we may conclude that the stone wasn't installed correctly and as a result is being subjected to conditions that are causing the problem.
It may or may not be practical for you to utilize our services depending on your situation. Please visit our website for more information at www.CTaSC.com.
