What is Natural Stone?
Understanding
a little about the nature of marbles and granites will help you
to appreciate the importance of a specialised cleaning and maintenance
program.
Dimensional natural stone is quarried from massive deposits or
formations, many millions of years old. The resulting blocks are
cut to required thickness, and usually have one surface honed
or polished. Tiles and panels are mostly cut to size in the originating
factory, and then packed for further shipment. Items such as table
and bench tops, vanity tops and furniture are generally made to
your specific requirements from polished random slabs. All of
these finishers have something in common: each surface is essentially
a cross section of the material - as it originally appeared in
the massive deposit. A processed surface reveals the unmistakeable
character of that piece of natural stone.
A honed or polished surface is achieved by grinding the cut face
with successively finer grades of abrasive. A honed finish stops
short of a full polish, and is a viable surface treatment for
flooring. Less "compact" materials such as sandstones and some
limestones cannot always be polished and routinely are offered
in a honed finish. Other marbles and harder limestones that can
be easily polished are sometimes honed to take advantage of the
simple fact that minor wear and tear is not obvious on a surface
that has an overall "sheen" rather than a "mirror finish" polish
A polished surface, however, is the only way to fully appreciate
the colour and pattern of natural stone, and is far more popular.
When a surface "closes" over and a polish is achieved the true
colours of the natural stone can be fully appreciated, along with
the intricacies of the pattern or veining. A polished surface
is not an applied finish, and cannot easily be replicated, but
it has the advantage that it is relatively impervious to minor
soiling by denying dirt particles a rough surface to adhere to.
Accordingly, a polished stone surface can be very easy to maintain,
in addition to looking great.
A polished surface doesn't change the nature of the stone, and
cannot by itself protect the material from all the influences
that may be encountered in daily use over the years. Remember
that we are dealing with a cross section of the stone. That cross
section can unlock the secret of the stone's hidden colours and
patterns, but in doing so it can expose the stone to elements
for which no natural protection is afforded.
