White Dirt = Etches – White spots, rings spill marks

Generally when you see a white smudge, ring, spill mark, spot or dirt on marble, limestone, travertine, concrete or terrazzo it is either hard water or an etch. If it is smooth it is an etch. If it is crusty and above the surface it is hard water, but if it is crusty and below the surface it is a bad etch. These are very different issues, neither of which can be addressed with a cleaner, and both require professional service. No cleaner is going to restore a smooth, appropriate colored, mark-free surface – the GOOD NEWS is MARBLELIFE can restore your surface to like new

ROOT CAUSE: An acid has come in contact with your acid-sensitive hard surface and dissolved a mark into your surface. No cleaner can remove this mark. It must be professional corrected.

Marble, limestone, travertine, the marble chips in terrazzo are all made of Calcium Carbonate. Calcium Carbonate is acid sensitive. Acids will react with CaCO3 to form a salt and CO2, and that salt is water soluble, meaning that this by-product to acid attack is washed away by water or a cleaner.

Generally, acid is introduced in one of the following manners:

1. Cleaning with vinegar
2. Spritzing lemon or lime making a drink
3. Cutting lemon, lime or tomatoes directly on this surface
4. Spilling salad dressing or spaghetti sauce on this surface
5. Spilling pickle juice on this surface
6. Or CLEANING WITH A CLEANER THAT CONTAINS ACID/
7. Mistaking an etch for a hard water deposit and using a hard water deposit remover (strong acidic) to remove it, making it substantially whiter (worse).

ANSWER: Etches can be corrected. This requires the damaged area to be re-honed smooth and then re-polished and re-sealed.

This is NOT something you want to do yourself, as additional damage can be done during the honing and during the polishing stage if not done correctly, if one does not understand that processes and the reason they are being used.

If you have ever cleaned this surface, only to see the marks come back later, this is another symptom of an etch. This is the result of the fact that etch is no a low spot in your surface that collects and pools cleaner. When the surface begins to evaporate the shallower depth of cleaner on the unmarred surface evaporates away before the deeper portion filling in your etch. Light can bounce true off the surface of the liquid in the etch giving it the appearance of having disappeared, but once the evaporation process is complete the etch returns as the light can no long bounce true.

SOLUTION: The good news is that etch damage can be 100% repaired. The surface needs to be re-leveled and then re-polished to restore a surface that is so smooth that light can bounce off it true (to restore your gloss appearance), and the white salts and crushed stone has been removed.

You will need a professional craftsman to restore this damage. CALL MARBLELIFE, to discuss your situation, secure an estimate, restore your finish, and learn how to avoid and care for this surface without creating additional damage/

Products
No cleaner will resolve this problem, BUT once restored you will want to be sure to utilize a product that contains no waxes, oils or acids, else you will risk re-creating the problem.

MARBLELIFE’s cleaners are formulated with our restoration root cause knowledge in mind. MARBLELIFE MARBLE & TRAVERTINE cleaner will provide an exceptional acid-free cleaner capable of quickly providing a clean, streak-free, oil-grease and fat-free surface.

Speak to an expert (844) 848-0032