When polished properly and treated with an oliphobic impregnator granite will never loose its luster. Topical sealers are responsible for the bulk of misinformation related to sealing granite counters. The inherent difference between an impregnator and a sealer is that an impregnator absorbs into material and creates a permanent ionic bond with the quartz, whereas a topical sealer sits on top of the of material much like a clear coat on a piece of wood. Topical sealers are frowned upon in the countertop industry as a short cut used by manufacturers who want to save time by using them. When a slab of stone or quartz leaves the quarry they have already been polished on the face to the highest degree possible. Once a slab is cut into pieces the edges are exposed with unpolished “raw” material. As a fabricator it is our responsibility to polish the edges to the same degree or better that the pre-polished surface of the material. The polishing process for edges (much like sanding wood) starts at a low 50 grit diamond abrasive and typically ends with a buff pad, which is the equivalent of a 15000 grit diamond. It is very rare that a fabricator who is using grade A material will need to touch the surface of the stone other than to fill areas with epoxy which may have been missed by the quarry. When using a topical sealer it is possible to stop the polishing process after the basic shape of the profile has been formed (typically around 400 grit or step 4 of 14) and pour sealer on the surface and edges of the material to bring out an artificial shine. Think about how a piece of raw wood shows its grain more when it has been sprayed with a polyurethane, now think of how a well sanded piece of wood needs only to be protected against moisture by using something like a tung oil or mineral oil to treat it. Using topical sealers brings out an artificial shine which lasts about 6-12 months and then fades. The shine fades BECAUSE IT IS PLASTIC and can only be brought back by using more topical sealer. This ugly cycle perpetuates itself until the counter has so much sealer on the top that the surface is wavy and dull. Some people will find and use countertop polish at the grocery store or home improvement store. Countertop polish typically consists of either more polyurethane or organic waxes derived from bees wax or plant oils. Using these products will temporarily bring back the shine but will ultimately harm your countertop. So how do you bring the shine back? If you countertop has been treated with an impregnator you simply need to clean it with a Ph neutral soap and water. More often than not kitchen surfaces will develop a build up of grime from daily use. Using a micro fiber cloth will help pull this material off of you counter and should help speed up the process. If you counter has been impregnated this is the only thing you will need to do. Do not use “polish” from the store or any other product that claims to bring back the shine of the counter. What if my counter has been treated with a topical sealer? Unless you want to get into a habit of resealing every 6-12 months we typically recommend stripping off the topical sealer and treating your counter with an impregnator. The process costs around $400 but will save you untold hours of labor trying to clean your counter unsuccessfully. Once a counter has been stripped and impregnated no additional work needs to be done. There are good cleaning products on the market which will cut away the kitchen grime without compromising the countertop underneath. Stonetech makes a series of great products that were developed by the granite countertop industry specifically formulated to protect and clean natural stone. Information can be found here: http://www2.dupont.com/Stone_Tech_Professional/en_US/products/product_index.html
In closing I would like to say that there is a lot of bad information that has been floating around the internet and home magazines for years. We always try to educate our customers with information that is accurate and verifiable. Please visit the Marble Institute of America’s web site and read the article on sealing if you would like to further research this post at:
http://www.marble-institute.com/consumerresources/sealing_stone.cfm
Thanks
Austin
