How to clean & maintain marble countertops?

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Asides stone and other type of countertops such as granite, marble requires a little more attention being porous and more susceptible to scratches and stains. Gentle cleaners must be used to clean for acidic products are likely to damage the natural attributes of the stone. Marble is aesthetically appealing and adds functionality to your kitchen that’s one of the best features. If marble surface managed to accumulate stain that you leave unattended, they can sink deep down the pores that may slowly corrode marble. Therefore cleaning marble countertops and wiping off stains must be done regularly and with care to prevent scratch and damage.

Daily maintenance & cleaning

Liquid spills such as fruit juice, coffee, water and other must be absorbed quickly with a clean and dry cloth that mustn’t be abrasive at all. Remember, the longer the fluid sits over marble countertops, more likely they would result in deep and hard to clean stains. It’s better to blot the liquid rather than wiping or the mess is likely to spread. 

For larger spills, use a homemade cleaning solution created by few drops of mild dishwashing liquid to hot water. You can either allow it to sit for a few minutes or an hour for tough spots or simply wipe marble countertops with a neat and smooth cloth that must be pre-dipped with same solution. Rinse till the stone is completely clean and allow the area to air dry.

In-case soap mixture is leaving streaks on countertop, wipe with a moist towel dampened with warm water and let it air dry.
- Warning
Don’t ever clean marble surface with vinegar as the substance is highly acidic and can etch the stone from various spots. Since marble is a soft stone, you shouldn’t scrub the stain with pointy objects that ruins the stone; rather absorb the blots with kitchen cleaning foam or damp cloth.

Types of stains

• Oil-based
  Common oil stains are accumulated from cooking grease, certain cosmetics and dairy products that you can easily clean with mineral spirits or acetone application over a soft cloth.
• Vinegar, red-wine & water
  To clean surfaces off organic such as water rings, vinegar, tea/coffee or read wine; add a few drops of ammonia in a cup containing 12 percent hydrogen peroxide that’ll easily bleach out the marks. You can dunk a soft cloth with the liquid solution and dab at the soiled are till spots are completely removed. This is most recommended on light-shaded natural stones such as the white Carrara marble.
• Rust
  Rust stains are most annoying and often hard to get rid of. If your countertop managed to collect rust marks from metallic object, come up with a poultice by joining white absorbent material like kaolin or diatomaceous earth with excess dishwashing soap. It’ll form a paste with the same viscosity as of peanut butter. Spread the paste over the stain and wrap with the poultice; let it rest for a day or two. It’ll extract the stain out of marble like it wasn’t even there!

Polish the marble

Once you’re done with general cleaning, polish the marble surface with a soft chamois cloth. Buff the with industrial-standard car wax that’ll add a protected layer and brings back the original lustre! On the other hand, apply a penetrating sealer over stone countertop that’s an excellent stain repellent.


Never apply acidic cleaners to marble countertops. You may love lemon and lime fragrance but it’s detrimental to the porous material. Just plain, hot water with suggestions provided above would work miracles so do consider!