Natural stone can last for ages, if you take care of it properly. The day to day care isn’t hard, but it’s important if you want to maintain that fine finish you remember the day you bought it. A quality natural stone tile is made to last, so make it last with astute care that keeps it looking as good for your grandchildren as it looked when it was freshly installed.

Give it a once over

Clear any abrasive dirt, sand and other particles from the surface of the stone daily. Use only dust mops and gentle bristle brooms. A good once over a day will keep the floor shining perfectly. Plus, if you keep up on cleaning, it’s easy each time, taking merely seconds every morning to keep the cleaned-grittiness of natural stone.

If you prefer to use a vacuum cleaner, avoid one with a beater bar. You should only use one that has suction only, as any other may damage your floor and leave abrasive marks.

Throw rugs in well traveled spaces

Entrance rugs at the entrance to well traveled areas help keep the dirt to a minimum. Place rugs in hall ways and the entrances of rooms. With the right rugs, the floor will look richer and warmer, giving the toes a soft graceful feeling if you like to pad around in your bare feet.

Control the slide

Stone floors are naturally slick. Use small furniture covers on the feet of all your furniture for safety. A cozy chair can easily go crashing in the event of wrestling children, which could result in accidents. Placing sticky edges on your furniture keeps it in place, as well as protects the surface of your floor.

Clean up spills quickly

It’s important to wipe spills up as soon as they happen, especially in the kitchen. This is especially true if the spill is acidic such as orange, tomato, or lime juice, which will tend to disrupt the surface of your floor for a short time after exposure. Stains that are left to fester gather up extra dirt which sticks to the surface and mars the floor. The longer stains are ignored, the more noticeable and permanent they can be.

It really doesn’t hurt to mop your floor regularly, even several times a day with a lightly wet mop. When you keep up on the floor cleanliness, you don’t have to break out a big bucket of sud water each time. Simply get the mop wet, and go over the surface. If you do this often enough, cleanliness is simple and easy. You hardly even realize you are doing it.

Keep it ecological

Always clean your floor with a biodegradable, non-toxic cleaning solution, especially if you have small children or pets. Babies get everywhere, and dogs will lick anything. You don’t want your child or your pets contaminated with toxic chemicals. A good vinegar and biodegradable dish soap solution will work, giving the floors a nice lemony, vinegar scent.

As a basic rule of thumb, you shouldn’t use any cleaning product from the grocery store on your stone, unless it is completely natural and biodegradable. Avoid chemical bubbles that claim to eat dirt. They may just eat the finish of your floor too.

A little bleach

Bleach works great at eradicating algae from pool and patio areas, but it’s important to rinse the areas well so the bleach isn’t left sitting in pools. It’s a great way to get rid of the dirt, but be sure you’ve also gotten rid of the bleach when you are done.

Get your floors professionally sealed

It’s also a good idea to have your floors sealed by a professional so they can keep their natural quality for years to come.

For more tips on maintaining your natural stone floors visit our floor care section.