Marble Dilemma 2nd Request

[Sue]

I posted the following last evening........and after that post I began to have trouble receiving messages. I never did know what happened but would like to try again. If you responded to the original post would you please respond again. Or tell me how I find and download my orginial post and any responses.

My master bathroom is finished with marble tiles. Sometime last year I believed my housekeeper had use some caustic cleaner that took the shine off the tiles and left a dull surface on the floor and the step down into the roman tub/shower, a bench in the shower area, and for about a foot up from the tubfloor along the wall opposite the step into the tub. At the time I assumed she had used Tilex to clean the grout. I had the tiles restored ($450.00) and took all the 'caustic' cleaners and put them in cabinets she would not access to. The only cleaners my housekeeper has had available to her since then were 'Method' products, Softscrub and Windex. Method is a brand name of a environmentally friendly line of household cleaners that clearly states they are safe for granite and marble. And which I have used in the master bathroom for years with great success. Several months have passed and the tiles have been damaged in the exact areas in the exact way they were previously. And I believe by something the housekeeper is using because I noticed it a day after she had last been here. It was not immediately visually noticeable -the damage is more noticeable when I squeegee the area after showering. The squeegee drags on the dull, damaged area where it glides over the shinny, polished, undamaged area. In an effort to determine what was going on I used an extra tile that I had and poured Tilex, chlorine bleach, Windex, Method Bathroom & Tile Cleaner, ammonia full strength onto the extra tile. And I left the agents on the tile far longer than my housekeeper would in the process of normal cleaning - the only agent that did damage was the Tilex (which remember she doesn't have access to) and it didn't leave a dull finish as I have described. It simply left the outline of the 'puddle' of the product that was placed on the tile. Any suggestions as to what is happening here?

[Bob F]

Go find it on Google.

Bob

[Joe]

Back to basic chemistry: Marble is crystallized limestone which is calcium carbonate. Any acidic compound will react and etch the marble. Therefore, your housekeeper has tried something you hadn't approved and hence the results described. What was used was not caustic, as that term technically refers to materials with a pH of over 7.0 (neutral). Something below pH 7, or acidic, was the culprit. Obviously, you could test the cleaners using pH test strip papers available at laboratory supply houses, for example. The damage you see could be removed by polishing it out. Or a protective coating could be applied that would be impervious to cleaners. Consulting a good tile store or a trade association relating to marble care could be enlightening. Our Government in Washington cares for many acres of marble in the nations buildings and monuments, so much information should be available. HTH

Joe

[Sue]

I appreciate the insight - but what household cleaners would be acidic? Any suggestions?

[SJF]

I have a bottle of toilet bowl cleaner that contains hydrochloric acid. Another jug of "tile cleaner" contains phosphoric acid. The instructions say it cleans "synthetic marble" among other surfaces but makes no warning about use on real marble which probably would be damaged.

SJF

[DanG]

Vinegar is quite acidic.

[Li]

May not be the chemical at all but the scrub pad. Marble is calcium carbonate and subject to etching by acidic materials but it can also be easily abraided by a scrub brush or pad or what have you that is sufficiently abrasive. Especially if the process is repetative. An abrasive scrub pad with an equivalent of 220 grit would be quite enough to cause damage to the marble.

[Jennifer]

Er... have you considered _asking_ your housekeeper what she's using?

-- Jennifer

[Bill]

A lot of bathroom surface cleaners are acidic. Check the list of ingredients for citric acid, phosphoric acid, oxalic acid, acetic acid (vinegar), etc. Sounds like you need a cleaner specifically approved for marble.

Note that the reason such cleaners are acidic is to aid in the removal of hard water stains. Those stains are largely calcium carbonate; exactly what your tiles are made of.

[mm]

Not a cleaner, usually, but what about coca cola, the other colas, and I think some other soft drinks.

Sue, did you tell the housekeeper not to use anything but what wouldn't hurt. Maybe you did this yourself and don't even realize it, drinking coke in the bathtub?

I used to blame my 3 roommates that there was never any ice in the ice cube trays. I figured they used it and didn't refill the trays fully. Eventually I stopped replacing the roommates when they moved out, and I found there was STILL no ice.

It was evaporating!

That stinks.