Travertine Floor Wailea, Maui Hawaii

Travertine Floor Clean and Seal by EUROTECH Maui 808.877.0222

 

Travertine Floors are beautiful.  Natural stone's porosity can lead to discoloration over time.  This floor was well cared for, but dusty red dirt conditions in Maui tend to cause an orange tint to floors.  After a deep cleaning, the floor was sealed with an impregnator to effectively reduce the amount of liquid that the tile and grout will absorb.  By sealing up the porosity of the stone, it slows future discoloration down, and preserves the natural color of the stone.

Why Seal Natural Stone?

For Service, Call

808.877.0222







Contact Us - Articles - Services - Reviews - Gallery

Pool Deck Stain Removal

Eurotech AFTER Cleaning

Eurotech BEFORE Cleaning

This pool deck had been cleaned by a professional company and pressure washed by the Owner without success at removing the hardwater stains.  The after photo shows how EUROTECH was able to remove the deep staining and deposits from the quartzite and restore the pool deck to a fresh clean look.

Call EUROTECH Maui for your Natural Stone, Grout, Tile and Glass Care Needs

808.877.0222

Stone Restoration - Marble, Travertine, Granite, Slate, Limestone

Choosing a stone professional to care for and maintain your natural stone is a worthy investment.

All natural stone, whether marble, granite, travertine, slate, or one of the many other types of stone need ongoing care. The National Home Builders Association asserts that you can get a lifetime of beauty and reliability out of stone that is properly cared for.

Proper care includes sealing stone regularly. Proper preparation and choosing and applying the right professional sealer takes time and experience. Learning to perfect an even finish and remove damage takes even more experience.

Waxing and coating natural stone can be a costly endeavor. Those types of finish wear faster and more obviously than a professional polishing. Smearing, smudging, or ugly traffic patterns are more likely with waxes or coatings. Those types of quick fixes may also trap moisture within the stone and compromise the integrity of the stone in the long run.

Maintaining natural stone showers, floors and countertops properly will prevent damage and prolong their life and beauty.

CONTACT US

FOR PROFESSIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS CALL808.877.0222

Search our articles by subject above

Floor Care Tip - Cleaning Products for Stone, Tile and Grout

When stone and tile floors are sticky after mopping, or if carpets get dirty in the areas where you spot treated, it might be a product problem.

Using a residue free cleaner and proper rinsing may be the solution for stone, tile and carpeted floors.

Turn up your volume and Click Play.

Why Seal and Maintain Natural Stone and Marble?

Natural stone including marble, travertine, and even granite are extremely porous. This natural porosity can be addressed simply by regularly maintaining and resealing the flooring, countertop or shower surfaces.

What does resealing do? The goal of sealing stone is to prevent liquids from penetrating and soaking into the stone. The recommended method for resealing natural stone is to "impregnate" the material with a high grade sealer, meaning it works from within the stone, not at the surface. The stone finish is unchanged and the seal within the stone is "invisible." Properly sealing requires the time for proper penetration and saturation.

How do I know if my stone needs sealing? Recently I spoke with a customer whose granite counters would darken whenever they put wet dishes on the counter. That is an extreme case of sealer wear. It is highly recommended that resealing is done well before signs of the surface taking on water appear. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. As a general rule, you'll want to service all your stone between every one to three years.

What about daily cleaning? A residue free neutral stone cleaner is recommended. Using anything that is too soapy on a porous surface, like grout or stone, can act like a dirt magnet. So going residue free is your best option.

What about polishing? The surface of the stone must not be overpolished, and must not be waxed. Overpolish is most often caused by lack of experience or technique. Using waxes can result in unattractive wear patterns and can also act like the dirt magnet discussed above.

What about maintenance cleanings? Your surface may require a semi-annual or annual inspection. Between sealings, a professional cleaning can go a long way to keeping natural stone looking its best. Its more extensive than daily cleaning, and less extensive than service cleaning and resealing. Maintenance cleanings are part of an ongoing care program to keep stone and grout in great condition.

This photo demonstrates a floor which had discoloration and deposits worked into the pores of the stone. The floor was service level deep cleaned and resealed and is ready for a maintenance care program.

Marble Granite Travertine Tile Grout - Cleaning Polishing and Sealing by EUROTECH

*Special thanks to Sean Jones at AUTO TRIM HAWAII for the new Van Signs http://www.autotrimhawaii.com/contactus.htm

Professional Stone Care

Tile & Grout Cleaning

• Cleaning



• Sealing



• Polishing



• Restoration and Resurfacing

Inspections - Maintenance Programs - Consultations

Marble and Natural Stone require ongoing specialized care to protect and preserve its beauty and lifespan. Stone Care professionals are trained in the best methods and stay on top of the latest products and technology to promote natural stone service life.

Call (808) 877-0222 for Service

CONTACT US

Stone Care and Tile Cleaning

This is some recent stone care and tile cleaning work in Lahaina and Kihei, Maui. Both floors were well taken care of, but a service level clean and seal definitely brought them up a notch.

Floors, Showers and Counters can all benefit from a Maintenance Program. Regular cleaning and service resealing protects and beautifies stone, tile and grout.

For a consultation, call 808.877.0222

Travertine Floor Clean Reseal Lahaina Maui

This jewelry store in Lahaina, Maui, Hawaii had a beautiful floor hidden beneath buildup and dirt deposits. You can see in the photo above that the cleaning made a drastic difference in the appearance of the floor. That dark area in the far top of the picture isn't shadow - you can see the cleaning line midway through the floor.



Travertine flooring deserves maintenance cleanings and service reseals. Visit our article Why Use a Professional?



Call 877-0222 if you have travertine tiles that need care.

Why Use a Pro?

When it comes to resealing your natural stone surfaces and grout (for tile), getting professional results will go a long way in protecting your investment. The National Home Builders Association says granite and marble floors can last a lifetime, with proper care and maintenance.

Proper care and maintenance includes regular resealing (service level clean and seal) and maintenance cleanings (surface level cleanings) for upkeep. See our article on Maintenance Programs here.

1. Professionals understand the make up of the type of stone you are sealing. Professional stone care experts get extensive training in the different types of natural stone and how to take care of them.

2. The surface is properly prepared. Eurotech thinks this quote is true, even in the area of stone care “Success depends upon previous preparation, and without such preparation there is sure to be failure.”

3. Choose the right sealer. When it comes to sealers, you get what you pay for. Professionals have access to sealers that are professional grade. It takes training and experience to know which top of the line sealer will work best on which material on which type of surface. Some sealers are rated for 3-5 years and some are rated for more than 10 years.

4. Proper saturation. Wiping or spraying a sealer on a surface may not effectively protect a surface. Professionals will use techniques to ensure full saturation and maximum protection.

5. Excess. One problem caused by 'quickie' resealing jobs is residue that causes a buildup pattern. Professionals are trained to address the problem of excess sealer residue and won't cause them when they do your initial application or a routine resealing.

In summary, your stone care professional has spent numerous hours getting extensive training and expertise in cleaning, polishing, and maintenance of natural stone. At Eurotech, we follow our industry closely to stay on top of the best methods and the best products available. The experience in working with many types of natural stone in many applications cannot be replaced by guesswork.

Protecting the investment that was made in installing your natural stone or tile is certainly worth taking the time to consult with an expert. To reach a Maui stone care expert from Eurotech for a free consultation call 808-877-0222.

Professional Tile and Stone Care - An Investment that pays

Why is Professionally Maintaining your Natural Stone and Tile Cost Effective?

1. Preserves and Extends the lifespan of the material

• Proper preparation and sealing will prevent staining

2. Prevents future costly repairs and restorations

• Much like auto maintenance, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Regular cleanings and sealings are like doing your oil changes. Maybe you can get away with skipping it, but that may cost much more in the long run.
• Trained tile and stone professionals will use the correct agents, sealers, and process. For example, marble, ceramic tile, and granite have differing limits for withstanding pressure cleaning. To much pressure can cause damage. Porcelain tile, marble and granite would require different products and methods. The wrong cleaner may not clean or could cause damage. Use a stone and tile professional.
• Using too much pressure on unsanded grout can cause grout erosion.

3. Saves time and labor - makes cleaning easier

• Unsealed surfaces hold deposits differently than properly sealed surfaces. Treated stone and grout makes daily cleaning quicker and easier.

4. Prevents purchasing unnecessary cleaning products


5. Makes your rental property more desirable and may have tax benefits (see below).*

• May Provide Tax Benefits: "A repair keeps your rental property in good condition and is a deductible expense in the year that you pay for it. Repairs include painting, fixing a broken toilet and replacing a faulty light switch. Improvements on the other hand, add value to your property and are not deductible when you pay for them. You must recover the cost of improvements by depreciating the expense over your property's life expectancy. Therefore, from a tax standpoint, you should make repairs as the problems arise instead of waiting until they multiply and require renovations."* See FULL article by George D. Lambert at http://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/06/rentalowner.asp *We do not provide tax advice. Ask your accountant about qualifying repairs and tax benefits.

Floor Cleaning - To Bleach or Not to Bleach

The question of what to clean floors with comes up on almost every floor service we do. Whether or not to use bleach is another FAQ. Here are some basic guidelines to keeping stone and tile floors clean:

Keep doormats inside and outside of doorways if possible to trap dirt.

Daily Cleaning
Sweep and vacuum a lot more often than mopping.

If and when you mop, keep a bucket of clean rinse water and use a clean mop head. Dirty mops and dirty mopwater are the leading culprit of dirty grout and stone.

Use the right floor cleaning products: When you are doing daily cleaning, bleach is NOT recommended. Whether it is natural stone or ceramic tile, you'll want to avoid bleach and bleach based products. The constant exposure to bleach will damage stone and break down grout over time. Bleach also destroys most penetrating sealers that are used on grout and stone. We recommend using a neutral stone and tile cleaner for daily cleaning. We like Rinseless Cleaner because it doesn't leave behind a soapy residue. Residue buildup can make the floors look worse over time than they should.

Deep Cleaning and Stain Removal
NEVER use bleach on natural stone as it could leave a permanent mark that needs professional restoration. When you have a one time stain removal, bleach is okay for ceramic tile. But, be sure the material is really ceramic tile and not a natural stone. If you are going to use bleach on ceramic tile and grout, we strongly recommend triple rinsing the bleach to prevent any damage and to preserve the sealer as much as possible. Bead test the grout after cleaning to see if the sealer is still in tact. If water quickly soaks into the grout, we recommend a professional sealing. On natural stone, you should always contact a professional to address stains. The risk of damaging natural stone with do it yourself stain removal is too high to make it worthwhile.

So, use a non-residue stone and tile cleaning product for daily cleaning. And get professional recommendations when you're dealing with stain removal and setting up a floor maintenance program. We want to help you make your floor lifespan and clean appearance last as long as possible.

CONTACT US