You’ve just updated your kitchen and you can’t stop admiring your beautiful new granite countertops. Or maybe you’re dreaming of a kitchen renovation, taking a gander at samples and wondering how granite would work in your home. In either case, you’ll need to know how to care for your new counters.
Seal Your Counters
Before you put anything on your counters, including any sort of cleaning agent, the first thing you need to do is seal them. Granite is a natural stone and so has pores that can absorb everything from food spills to cleaning chemicals. This can stain and damage your granite permanently, and there’s little you can do to fix it.
Never Use Harsh Cleaners
While you’re cleaning your granite, there are a couple of key rules you need to observe each time. First of all, you should never use harsh cleaners, especially bleaching agents, on your granite. Because it is a porous natural stone, these cleaners can damage the surface, in any event, stripping through the sealant you put on to draw the stone.
Proper Tools
Just as harsh chemicals can damage your granite, harsh cleaning tools can, too. While your sealant is designed to safeguard against daily wear and tear, that doesn’t mean it’s untouchable. You can scrub it off and, assuming that you continue scrubbing with the wrong thing, scratch the surface of your granite itself.
Daily Cleaning
While you’re going through your kitchen schedule consistently, make sure the last thing you do before you wrap up is wipe down your counters. The more often you clean your counters, the less reason you’ll be to experience tough messes and stains. Start by clearing your counters off or moving items out of your way as you clean so you can get any crumbs or spills hiding behind canisters.
Disinfecting Granite
In the last year, we’ve all turned significantly more aware of the germs prowling in nooks and crannies around us. While keeping your home clean is important, your daily wipe-down should be sufficient to keep your countertops sanitized. However, there are ways to disinfect your granite now and again if you’re concerned about viruses and bacteria becoming on the surface.
Removing Stubborn Stains
We hear some of you out there saying, “That’s great, yet a delicate fabric, soap, and water won’t remove some of the stains on my granite.” We realize tough messes can be a headache, and the inclination to take out the bleach can be. In any case, there are better ways to handle these messes without endangering your beautiful countertop