What to do to clean fireplace stone
As a homeowner when you have made the right decision to enhance your home style with some stone veneer on your fireplace. Or you have decided to add stone to the exterior facade of your home or maybe various accent points to highlight some of your home’s unique features. Or your stone veneer is in your backyard patio where you chose to use it to help create your own oasis by adding an outdoor fireplace. Then again, your stone might be inside your home where it is adding beauty and value to your kitchen, bathroom, or wine cellar. Either way, inside or outside, a time will come when you are going to need to wash your stone veneer and today we will talk about the fireplaces enhanced with stone veneer. Despite the elegant beauty of how your stone appears, we are excited to tell you that cleaning your stone is far away from a complex process and it’s actually quite easy. Keep reading to learn more.
What you will need:
Mild dishwashing detergent: It’s very important to never use harsh cleaning materials or products that contain acid, ammonia, bleach or the like because those products containing ingredients that are way too harsh and it is possible to damage your stonework. Lastly, the concrete cleaner is also not recommended for stone veneer.
An important note on cleaning products containing acid: cleaning products containing acid should always be avoided as they can easily strip the color from your stone and make it look dull.
Cloth or sponge: Use what works best for you. Remember to use soft products as not to scratch your stone, we prefer the sponges.
Bucket: Fill your bucket up with water and use it to mix your soap solution and help rinse your sponge or cloth. Use another bucket with clean water when rinsing to make sure to eliminate all the soapy water.
Backyard hose: For your outdoor fireplace to keep your Outdoor fireplace stone veneer clean, you do not need to rely on a heavy-duty pressure washer; for your stone veneer a simple garden hose is all that is needed.
Soft bristled brush: Never use a scrub brush with metal bristles as this kind of brush can easily scratch and damage your beautiful stone and might deteriorate the limestone fillings. A soft-bristled, nylon brush will be the best. Also, remember to never apply hard pressure when using a brush for cleaning.
Ladder or step stool: For those hard to reach places
Rubber gloves: Recommended
What to do:
Read our instructions thoroughly before you wash your stonework.
1 Thoroughly mix approximately one cup of Laundry detergent into 3 gallons of hot water. Do not use detergents with bleach, any types of acid, or a pressure washer.
2 Rinse the stonework with some water to remove loose debris.
3 Try to use a circular motion scrub on the dirtiest areas first using a medium bristle brush.
4 After all, rinse the cleaned area thoroughly, by removing all detergent and suds.
5 Let dry, if you still see dirt and debris, repeat the cleaning process. Let it dry again.
Important – A note on how to clean stone fireplace: If your stone is newly installed and wet mortar or grout has gotten onto the face of the stone, let it dry to a point where you can easily scrape it off with a masonry brush. If you try to wipe off wet mortar or grout it will smear and will be extremely hard to remove completely. Do not use water. On the flip side, if you wait too long, you will not be able to remove the grout or mortar, so make sure to remove it the same day as the installation of the fireplace stone veneer.
How often do I need to clean my natural stone? As often as you feel cleaning is needed.
Clearly, the ease of cleaning stone veneer is just another reason why this highly versatile and customizable product is such an excellent option for improving the home.
But if you have manufactured stone, in that case, your some veneer doesn’t need a cleaning too often, if there is a little mud, muck or dust from flames, just rinse with a hose or water. Or, if you have accent stone veneer inside your home, just wipe it down with a damp cloth.
If you would like to move forward with your stone projects then give us a call and see why GTA has chosen us for their stone veneer needs. For more information contact us at info@chstonework.com for a free estimate on your new interior or exterior stone.
Follow us
Watch the Ch Stonework Toronto blog – next week we will discuss sealers and enhancers.