How best to clean sandstone?

First identify your sandstone. For starters, is it really sandstone?

Jeyes fluid is excellent, but it's really only needed when you;'re dealing with organic grot on floors. Hearths are a different problem.

Using the right scrubbing brush is crucial. Make sure those bristles are stiff enough and not going to wilt either. Polypropylene won't do it - you probably need to find an old ironmonger's and get one with bassine bristles (brown woody stuff). You'll want a big sponge for mopping too and if it's a typical hearth with corners you can't reach, a wet vacuum cleaner sucks the dirty water out better than a cloth.

As to the goop, then Mr Muscle kitchen is powerful stuff and good on sandstone. However it will cheerfully eat holes in anything calcareous, such as limestone. Check it first on a tiny spot!

|Our home-made fireplace is constructed from un-treated bare sandstone=20 |and is in need of a clean. We've got the carpeting up, so now would be=20 |the best time. |A stone-mason suggested Jeyes Fluid, but this stuff stinks and would=20 |stink the house out. | |I was thinking of using Flash, a scrubbing brush and some elbow grease,=20 |but wondered if there's anything to make the job easier. Any = suggestions? |Cheers.

Can you sand blast it? That is the common method for complete York Stone houses around here. The sand gets everywhere :-(

--=20 Dave Fawthrop

Interior sandblasting? Eek! I don't think so.

Ok, I'll try the Flash and scrubbing. It can't do any harm.

To seal the stone afterwards, I was thinking I might coat it with some clear sealant or matt varnish of some sort. Do you know what I might use? Thanks :)

Why not? It's not unusual.

If it's the green or blue liquid I'm thinking of, I could imagine it leaving a stain of that colour, and the scent behind.

I don't really have any suggestions, other than to avoid things with dies and scents.

There are special sealant/polishs for unglazed tiles & stone, we used the Plasplug version (B&Q) on a fireplace and it came up reet lovely.

Can you be a bit more specific about the stone? Is it at all friable? Is it "sandy", or "vitreous" in appearance? Is it cut and faced, or just irregular blocks?

Friable?

It was cut with a saw and is quite smooth. It's the stuff that stone-masons make some headstones from.

Flash is your fallback if you have something limey like Bath or Cotswold stone that Mr Muscle would roughen the surface of. However it's nothing like as powerful - especially on greasy handprints from people leaning on the mantelpiece to get warm.

Lithofin (sp ?) which is usually sold for use when sealing york stone flags or slate floors.

Hard wax polishes are good too, but these need to be _hard_ polishes, as sold specifically for stone. You can google up my recipes page and use my beeswax / carnuaba recipe, but with 30% carnauba in it. If the hearth is likely to get particularly hot (i.e. it's an open hearth, not a closed rayburn) then use a microcrystalline wax instead.

You could try an abrasive, such as another flat piece of sandstone. Do a little somewhere it doesn't too much show first, of course!

I Googled for Lithofin and found they make stone cleaning products too :)

I already have some Deck Seal (wooden decking sealant) that a decorator told me was the same stuff they use to seal printed concrete driveways. Do you know if he's right? I could try it where it wouldn't show too much I suppose.

Thanks!

The fact that someone uses it doesn't mean that they ought to.

Wood finishes are designed for brownish materials that are non-alkaline and aren't heated. If you use most of the oils in wood finishes you'll find that they're visibly yellow, don't like heat, and don't like alkalis. You might get away with it on sandstone, but have terrible results on some concretes.

The only thing I've ever sealed concrete with is plain old waterglass (sodium silicate) or else factory floor paints. If I had a drive I wanted to seal then I wouldn't start by looking at my wood finishing products, even though I have a fair selection of those on hand.

I use my own formula beeswax polish with10% carnauba but I finish it with a brush rther than a cloth, it works very well. We only have a gas fire but it can get hot on occasions.

No, and having looked up what Andy suggested and found it was the right product why not use that?

He's usually right.

Mary

It depends on what sort of shine you want. I've got some very old Goddards' polish here which make a lovely shine on slate and analysis (HPLC) suggests it's about 30% carnauba / candelilla (I can't distinguish these) in a hard high m.p. paraffin wax. It was originally made for ornaments and particularly indoor church memorials, rather than house fixtures.

The softer waxes will certainly work, but you won't get such a shine on them. No problem on a hearth though.

Other alternatives would be to abrasively clean it with some Bath brick, as used for centuries for stoning front steps (now where does one buy Bath brick these days ?) or even to use the old Yorkshire technique of darkening it by polishing with milk, then rubbing swirly designs into it with chalk or soft sandstone

Oh sodding hell. use brick acid and a soft wire brush - suede brush is good

- and then wash thoroughly ands use lithofin color enhancer and so on to seal it to prevent more gunk getting in

If its gotten grease in it, scrub with bleach or caustic .

Usual nanny state precautions when using casutic of course. Basically keep it out of your eyes, or apply for position of home secretary...;-)

Then I hope there's no lime in that stone.

Tends to be unlikley in sandstone. Its made of - er - sand?

I've used acid to cleasn it up on the patio. Comes up well.