Maintenance of floors

Cleaning after installation
Before starting, you must allow the freshly placed floor slab to dry. At least 3 to 6 months is essential to allow evaporation of water in the mortar and moisture in the tiles that are rarely dry at the time that they are placed.

As the amount of water for construction of the floor complex increases, the drying period will also increase. The only cleaning that you should do during this drying period is to use a mop dampened in clean water, to prevent efflorescence due to rising damp from accumulating and closing off material pores.

Routine cleaning
Routine cleaning consists in brushing or vacuuming dust and washing the tiles. Washing is done with a mop dampened in clean water. If a detergent is necessary (grease stains), use a neutral "Marseille soap" type of soap, in flakes diluted to 30 cm3 (one handful) for 10 liters of water. Excess soap will form an unattractive film on the floor surface. Machines with very low water output can also be used (for example single brushes). You can apply a white colored liquid wax polish to maintain a satin or gloss aspect from time to time, but do not apply too much.

Precaution
It is recommended that you should never use detergents containing free alkalis, products containing even diluted acids, chlorine, javel water, abrasive paste or liquid products, greasy, silicone products, varnish or solvents. They could cause irreversible deterioration to the stone and we cannot be held responsible if you use them even occasionally without our prior and formal agreement.

Surface treatment and anti-stain protection
A smoothed or polished stone floor finish subjected to progressive wear gradually loses its initial gloss. However, it acquires a patina instead.

Avoid the use of gravel, sand, earth and rough concrete around your home. Put doormats or scrapers in front of direct entrances from outside to prevent abrasive elements from entering your home and scratching your stone or making it dirty.
For floor finishes carrying heavy traffic or in which there is a risk of staining, you should apply an appropriate protection product and maintain it regularly.

The choice of the product is very important, once applied on the stone surface, it will determine some characteristics of the slab such as its appearance (mat, satin, gloss), its resistance to aggression and ease of maintenance. A preliminary test on a small surface is essential.

In all cases, the application must be made on a perfectly dry floor free from any rising damp. Otherwise, humidity will stagnate under the protective film and cause known pathologies on some types of stone (scaling, staining, efflorescences, etc.).

Important comment
This surface treatment and protection work requires good knowledge of the nature of the stone, materials to be used and products to be applied. It must be done by a professional and must be repeated regularly.