Natural stone is in high demand due to its beauty and how it enhances the home. You can find natural stone all over the house. It is used for countertops, floors, and for interior siding. Even though natural stone is beautiful and strong in nature, it requires a lot of care and proper maintenance. One primary need for natural stone is maintaining the stone’s sealer. Most natural stone, and even concrete, will have a sealer that protects the surface and ensures the longevity of the stone. However, at times the homeowner fails to reseal their stone and damage, including erosion, will start to occur. To prevent damaging your natural stone, Steam Masters will share when natural stone should be resealed.

How Often Do You Have to Seal Natural Stone?

Resealing natural stone is a needed maintenance that helps to protect the stone from scratches, erosion, and even staining. Knowing how important the sealer is, many people ask how often does stone need to be resealed? This is a great question and one every homeowner should be asking themselves. However, the answer will vary due to a few different factors.

What is Natural Stone Used For?

One of the first factors to consider is the use. How often is the stone exposed to usage? For floors, foot traffic plays a major role. Countertops depend on how busy your household is and what exposure has the countertop endured? For higher used areas, you will need to reseal your stone more often than areas that are less active. For example, some people will have a formal sitting area that is just not used very often. There may be stone in a little used guest bathroom. The sealer in less used areas will last longer and do not need to be sealed as often. The homeowner will need to evaluate honestly the exposure the natural stone endures and determine how often it will need to be resealed.

How Long Does Stone Sealer Last?

Another determining factor is the quality of the previous sealer. Not all sealers are made equal. Some sealers will last under heavy exposure about six months, while other sealers may last one to three years. It is important for the homeowner to know what type of sealer was used on their stone and when it will need to be resealed. When using professional resealing service, they can tell what type of sealer they used and when it will require another resealing. A professional natural stone cleaning and sealing service uses high grade sealers which should last longer than those you will find in the store.

How To Test the Stone Sealer?

For those who may not know how old the sealer is, or what type of sealer was used. You can perform a very basic test. To test the sealer you will need a quarter of a cup of water. Pour the water over the stone and leave it on the surface for 10 minutes. Wipe away the water and look at the spot. If the stone appears dark where the water was sitting, this mean water has soaked into the stone. If water has soaked into the stone it is time to reseal the stone.

Natural Stone Cleaning, Sealing, Stain Removal & More in Santa Ana, Irvine, Anaheim & Huntington Beach California

If your stone needs to be cleaned, polished, repaired or sealed, contact Steam Masters and schedule our services today.