White River Rock

  All of us know how bad red dirt on maui can look and how much maintenance it can be on property. This deck was done on the west side of maui with years of red dirt build up. We specialize in cleaning and sealing all types of stone both exterior and interior. 

If you need a free consultation call 808.877.0222

2015 is here and it's starting off with a bang!

Goodbye 2014 and Hello 2015!  We are here and thriving - last year we had the privilege of working with a lot of new clients and were happy to reconnect with familiar home owners we enjoy as well! 

We were sad to say goodbye to one of our favorite techs who left the island, but happy to welcome some new team mates who are doing an awesome job making our clients rave.  We're so fortunate to have techs who care and who have developed the skill to make our work shine, and the eye to keep our results at such a high levels.  We get frequent feedback from our clients who love our guys and their work.

Our favorite part of this business is still capturing the before and afters that make our customers happy.  Although Lisa has had her hands too full lately to blog example projects, we're starting to get a stock pile of pictures just waiting to be shared.

If we've worked with you in the past, we'd love your reviews and comments..  

 

CALL FOR SERVICE or recommend us

808.877.0222

 

Travertine Before



Travertine After

Travertine Before

Travertine After

7 Tips to Prevent Stains - Tile and Grout Care

Tile and grout, whether floors, counters or showers are exposed to dirt that can build up, liquids that can stain, and elements that may harm them. These are our top recommendations for caring for tile and grout.

1. Mop with a rinse bucket. Always use a bucket to keep mop heads clean. It reduces the amount of dirty water the floor is exposed to and helps prevent residual films that attract dirt from forming.

2. Squeegee showers and flooring. Keeping water off your tile surfaces prevents waterspotting and hard waterstain buildup.

3. Redirect irrigation away from exterior flooring. In Hawaii, standing water will leave behind a heavy brown or reddish layer anywhere water has puddled and dried repeatedly. Reducing the amount of standing water by redirecting irrigation and sweeping standing water away reduces the staining effect on the tiles.

4. Apply a suitable mildewcide in showers at servicing. Tile professionals may treat shower grout with a product like MicroBan or the green version, Benefect is a good way to prevent and reduce, or at best stop, mold growth.

5. Service Level Cleanings Have regular professional maintenance done regularly, especially on exterior and shower tile. Know the difference between a maintenance cleaning (extraction style which may or may not remove all the deposits) and a service level cleaning which deeply cleans to prepare for resealing.

6. Regular sealing of grout - On a porcelain or ceramic tile, the glaze protects the tile itself, so sealing is really to protect the grout from water or oil based staining. We recommend impregnating sealers or penetrating sealers.

Sealing does not prevent dirt from accumulating in the grout joints, but it does prevent water from dissolving the dirt and penetrating it deep into the grout. It prevents the deep stains that permanently discolor grout.

7. Consult a Professional - Preventing damage to tile glaze is also important. The older the tile is, the more fragile the glaze or protective finish on the tile becomes. Once the glaze is compromised, the tile is on its way to being in need of replacement. Be sure to advise your professional about the age of tile and any patches that seem rough or don't match the original finish of the tile. This damage may not be apparent prior to cleaning if deposits are heavy.

Your shower, floor or counter top tile and grout will look better and last longer with these care tips.

Written by Lance Racoma

http://ezinearticles.com/?Tile-and-Grout-Care---7-Tips-to-Prevent-Stains&id=7014685

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.

Quartzite Pool Deck Clean and Seal Wailea, Maui, Hawaii

This quartzite pool deck is about two years old. It had been pressure washed every six months and looked like it was in good shape when we started. But, it looked amazing after a deep clean and reseal. We didn't take before pictures, because it didn't seem like it would be a dramatic difference but it was. The quartzite is now in excellent shape. For all your exterior and interior Natural Stone and Tile Care needs, call Eurotech at 808.877.0222.

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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.

Waterspot and Hard Water Stain Removal

Hard Water Stain - Waterspot Removal - Glass and Fixtures by EUROTECH Maui 808.877.0222

Maui water is very  hard and often causes problems with calcium buildup.  Using abrasive methods to remove it can compromise the surface and cause faster buildup over time. 

The processes for removing calcium buildup, hard water stains, water lines and waterspots are determined by what kind of material it is:  glass, glass blocks, tile, or natural stone and where the surface is located: window, shower, pool, floor, or counter.   The method chosen can vary from media blasting, diamond sanding, to machine polishing.   Ask a professional for recommendations.

Glass         
Pool and Tile

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This outdoor shower head located at a luxury vacation rental in Wailea, Maui, Hawaii had excessive hard water stains and deposits on it. It appeared to have been scrubbed or abraded in the past so we weren't sure what kind of results we'd be able to get. The areas that still have discoloration are actually areas where the finish was compromised and had started to deteriorate away. With professional water spot removal, there will be no damage to the fixtures, surfaces or finish. It was a pleasant surprise to see a major improvement to the fixture and handles appearance as pictured above.

Tip: Abrasives can cause damage to areas with tough deposits.

Call 808.877.0222 to schedule Waterspot and Hard Water Stain Removal in Maui, Hawaii.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Marble - Granite - Travertine - Tile and Grout 2011

So the big question is....

What can EUROTECH do for you in 2011?

We have some exciting developments and we're looking forward to finding out how we can help you in 2011.

First, we're constantly improving our natural stone care and tile and grout service methods. We have been restoring and cleaning and sealing and polishing marble, stone, tile and grout all over Maui and plan to continue doing the same in 2011.

Secondly, we're working alongside one of the top Porcelain Refinshing Companies from Honolulu and bringing their excellent methods and work to the Island of Maui. So, if you have fiberglass shower stalls or porcelain bath tubs that need improvement, we can do the consultation and schedule the work.

Lastly, 2011 will bring faster glass restoration. We trained with a leading expert in Oakland and are bringing the latest technology in glass restoration to Maui. In the past, glass restoration has been tedious and slow, but now whether its a scuff, scratch or simply swirl marks on your window or glass, we can clarify it quickly and thoroughly.

Eurotech's Mission is to provide restoration answers that are more cost effective and environmentally friendlier than replacement.

Give us a call and let us know what your needs in 2011 will be and we'll put together a plan that fits your needs and budget.

Should I put a topical sealer on my stone or tile?

The short answer is: It depends.

There are, of course, certain applications where you'd want a total protective layer that a topical coating style sealer provide. We've seen many jobs that wear great and hold up all the way through that 5 year + mark.

When weighing out the pros and cons though, keep these guidelines in mind:

Natural stone needs to breathe. If moisture gets trapped within natural stone, it can cause spalling and issues that are serious problems.

Coatings may wear unevenly in traffic areas.

Coatings must be stripped the next time you reseal, so be sure to count that cost into your budget when you put the initial coating on. Choosing a topical style sealer on will require an ongoing maintenance program that includes stripping or removal. Stripping requires expensive chemicals and expertise to complete properly, and generally doubles the time that a job would take with a penetrating sealer. Failing to properly remove and prepare the surface of any existing sealers will cause flaking and peeling of your new coating. Proper preparation is key in the maintenance resealings.

If you're planning on doing a stripping and resealing job yourself, your most difficult task will be getting the sealer out of the porous grout lines. If you don't get it all the way out prior to resealing, it will be a nightmare later.

That being said, ask your professional if a penetrating or a topical sealer is best in your situation.

Penetrating sealers make use of chemicals whose molecular structure is much smaller than acrylics and epoxies. Their smaller size allows them to penetrate the surface. They are also more sophisticated in their design as they contain fusion forming particulates that seek out compatible molecules in the material they are applied to. Like magnets sticking together, these compatible molecules fill in the microscopic capillaries of the material they are applied to, forming an impenetrable barrier. Most penetrating sealers do not enhance color. They also do not appear glossy and typically do not increase the slip factor. Penetrating sealers are not known to peel or flake. Because they fuse with the material below the surface, penetrating sealers last longer than film forming sealers."

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.

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