Office buildings have many types of flooring and
growing in popularity are stone floors. Stone floors give buildings a
classic and upscale image. Popular choices in flooring these days are
natural surfaces including marble, slate, granite, and terrazzo. As
more and more buildings are installing stone floors there is a growing
need for cleaning contractors who have the experience and knowledge to
take care of these valued surfaces properly. Learning the tricks of
stone floor care can lead to extra income and profit for your cleaning
company.
Before expanding into the area of stone floor care
make sure that you understand the differences in the types of flooring
and how to design a maintenance program to keep stone floors looking
their best. It helps to develop a relationship with a distributor that
has quality products and can help you with technical support.
The first step in any floor maintenance program is
finding out what type of stone you're dealing with. Stone floors are
broken down into one of two categories: stone that contains calcium and
those that do not contain calcium. It is important to note that acids
will attack and etch stone that contains calcium.
If the floor is not coated on the surface, a
simple test can determine what type of stone you are dealing with.
Place a drop of hydrochloric acid in an inconspicuous area and watch
the reaction. If the acid fizzes the stone contains calcium. If there
is no reaction, the stone is most likely granite, slate, sandstone or
some type of ceramic that has been designed to look like natural stone.
Your second step is to decide what type of results
you want with your floor program. Do you want a polished surface, a
slip resistant floor or a floor program that is easy to manage? Any
stone floor program should also take into account the type of surface -
polished, honed or textured. Also, remember that stone is a product of
nature and should be admired for its inconsistencies. The imperfections
of stone create random patterns, which is what makes natural stone so
desirable.
When looking at how you should maintain stone
floors, both calcium containing and non-calcium containing stone floors
should be maintained in identical ways except when it comes to
re-polishing. A marble floor develops wear patterns faster as marble is
a softer stone. You can polish marble, limestone and terrazzo
effectively with superfine abrasives you mix with potassium oxalate or
oxalic acid. These are typical compounds available in various ready to
use formulas.
Granite floors, on the other hand, are acid
resistant requiring granite to be polished mechanically using superfine
abrasives. The re-polishing of granite is a slow process as compared to
re-polishing a marble floor.
At times the floor will have been so neglected it
may need restoration. A properly restored stone floor will have no
lippage (where one edge of a stone is higher than adjacent edges,
giving the stone a ragged appearance), will look better and be easier
to clean. The restoration process is best handled by professionals.
Improved technology has made the restoration process faster and with
restored floor maintenance costs will go down while the overall
appearance of the floor will go up.
Stone itself has a porosity factor (materials can
pass through it) and some stones absorb stains faster than other types
of stone. A high quality impregnator can help prevent stains from
passing through and being absorbed into the stone. Impregnators can be
water resistant, or water, grease and oil resistant. The specific
impregnator to use will depend on your specific situation.
The most important part of your stone floor care
program will be the use of a quality stone soap. A high quality soap
will clean and enrich the stone, which will make it more soil and stain
resistant. This is not an area to be cutting costs!
Quarterly cleaning is recommended for commercial
stone floors. This will not only remove any built in soil, but will
also remove stone soap build-up. This is an important step as most
stone soaps are non-rinse. Because of this dirt can build up in the
grout lines, even when you are following a floor maintenance program.
An intensive cleaning should also be used if you have an extremely
dirty floor.
Other stone surfaces that may need extra care are
countertops, vanities and vertical surfaces, such as pillars. A good
relationship with a distributor of quality products will help you in
deciding which chemicals you'll need to use to clean these surfaces.
If you have buildings with stone floors, your
first step is to develop a quality stone floor care program. Spending a
little time and effort before beginning your stone floor program will
save you headaches and keeps the floor looking its best. Your customer
will be happy and your bank account will grow! 
