Taking care of my new Granite - need advice

mystiky

My new kitchen is almost finally done. Yesterday, my new GRANITE countertop was installed. We ended up using a stone called "Dejavu".


Since having real granite is new to me, I want to make sure that I take care of it correctly. So, I would like to ask a few questions here to get some feedback. The stonemaster of course sealed the stone before leaving.


1) The stonemaster that did the cutting & installation advised me, since we plan to do a lot of cooking at home, to seal the granite twice a year to be on the safer side.
When I asked him for a good quality sealer, he recommended one made by FILA. What are your opinions on this brand and is there an alternative one I should consider?

2) When I asked him besdies "water + soap", is there any other good way of cleaning the stone - without causing it any damage - I was shocked when he said that I could use Windex. Is this true? Isn't that a chemical? He swore to me that it would not cause any damage no matter how often I use it.

3) For some simple hand dishwashing (that would not require a machine), we put in a soap dispenser near our sink. We will be using Palmolive "original" hand liquid. Now, if some of that stuff gets on the counter (while being dispenesed), is it dangerous for the counter to let it sit there?

4) If No. 3 is really indeed safe for the granite, then might I then use Palolive as "soap & water" cleaning option?

I really don't want to become overly fanatic with this new & beautiful granite but at the same time, I really don't want to damage it out of my own carelessness.
I welcome any & all comments!

Daniel Holzman

I looked at the photo, and that certainly does not look like granite. The word "granite" is misused all the time in the industry. Granite is a technical geological term that is usually defined like this:

"a very hard natural igneous rock formation of visibly crystalline texture formed essentially of quartz and orthoclase or microcline and used especially for building and for monuments"

from Miriam Webster.

The description on the web site for the material you purchased states:

"Deja Vu is a beige, brown, and grey stone made up of a rocky terrain."

I have no idea what a rocky terrain is supposed to mean, but the minerals in your rock do not appear to be quartz, feldspar and biotite, which are the normal minerals in granite. Not that your stone is inferior, it looks really good, the point is that true granite likely has very different properties than the stone you purchased. I have a "granite" countertop which is not granite either, and most of the "granite" countertops I have seen are anything from quartzite to schist, which are not granites. The reason companies call the stone "granite" is that nobody has every heard of quartzite, schist, gneiss or any of the other types of stone, so it would be hard to sell them to the public, so everyone asks for "granite" and as long as the company says its granite, no one is the wiser. Unless you happen to have geology training.

All that said, true granite is highly resistant to heat, alcohol, ammonia, mild acid, and staining. True granite does not need to be treated with toxic sealers, and in fact we did not treat our "granite" at all, we have had it for four years, no stains, no problems, and we clean it with Windex all the time. However, I don't think you have granite, so you may want to take the advice of the installer, who may know what type of stone it is, and also probably knows quite well how to clean it and manage it. If you plan to prepare food on it, as we do, you may want to discuss using a sealer, every sealer I have ever looked at contains highly toxic chemicals that I would not want on my food preparation surface.

Two Knots

I use Windex with vinegar every day on my granite. It's going on five
years and it looks like the day it was installed.

I also use ( about every two weeks) a spray sealer/cleaner I bought in
Home Depot...it's called Dr RX...it's about 7.00 a can...just spray it
on and wipe off with a paper towel.
good luck with your granite.