Cleaning your marble shower is important to preserve the polished look and to prevent hard water stains from etching your marble tiles.

 

Marble showers can look extremely beautiful.  There is a vast selection of marble tiles on the market that can create a beautiful and unique looking shower.  No other stone can match the vibrant colors and unique look like marble can.  Marble showers do require regular cleaning and maintenance to keep the original polished finish and texture of the marble tiles intact.

While marble is a beautiful stone it is also one of the softer and more chemically sensitive stones on the market today.  Marble is extremely sensitive to acidic products and acidic cleaning supplies.  Many consumer level shower cleaning products may be ok for cleaning ceramic or porcelain showers but they can etch marble shower tiles.  You should avoid using consumer level products on a marble shower and only use professional stone cleaning products.

If a marble shower is not properly cleaned and maintained then the daily shower water can cause the marble finish to wear away over time. The hard water can also start to eat away at the calcium of the marble and cause the marble tiles to actually break down.   Over time the polished marble surface can look dull and lifeless and then only a stone restoration professional can bring back the original polished look of the marble shower.

The main issue with cleaning and maintaining marble showers is how to clean up the soap scum.  Soap scum can build up in the marble shower and can be difficult to remove without damaging the marble shower tiles polished finish.  If the soap scum is allowed to build up over time then hard water deposits can start to build up along with the soap scum.  The hard water deposits can actually start to eat away at the calcium in the soft marble tile surface and start to break down the marble shower tiles.  It is extremely important to regularly clean up the soap scum in the marble shower and keep it from building up on the marble shower tiles.

Cleaning up soap scum in a marble shower presents a bit of a dilemma for most DIY homeowners.  Most of the consumer level soap scum removers are acidic products that will damage the marble shower tiles finish and actually etch the tiles.  You should never use any type of consumer level soap scum removers as they can ruin the finish of your marble shower.   Also using aggressive scrub brushes or scrub pads can scratch the marble tile surface and also ruin the polished finish of the marble shower.

There is one product that tile and stone cleaning and restoration professionals have been using for years for cleaning soap scum in marble showers and that is MB-3.  MB-3 is a professional level soap scum remover that is also safe for all stone as well as ceramic tiles and grout.  You can use the MB-3 and a soft scrub pad to clean up the soap scum in your marble shower without damaging or etching the polished finish of your marble shower.

 

 

You should mix the MB-3 in a ration of one part MB-3 and two parts water to get the optimum soap scum cleaning results.  Use a spray bottle and spray the MB-3 liberally on the marble shower and allow it to dwell on the marble shower tiles.  Do not let the MB-3 dry on the tiles so keep applying the MB-3 to keep the marble tile saturated with the MB-3 soap scum remover solution.   MB-3 also works great for removing the soap scum from your glass shower enclosure and your shower knobs and fixtures.

 

 

While the MB-3 is dwelling on the marble shower tiles then you can start to agitate the marble tile surfaces with a soft scrub pad to scrub away the soap scum.  The MB-3 will loosen up the soap scum from the marble shower tiles but you still need to scrub it away with a soft scrub pad.  You can also use a soft scrub pad with a sponge attached to rinse away the excess soap scum remover after you have cleaned up the soap scum from the marble tile surfaces.

 

 

You can also use the soft scrub pad to scrub away the soap scum from your shower glass doors and enclosures.  Just ensure that you do not allow the MB-3 soap scum remover to dry on the shower glass doors or glass enclosures. 

 

 

After you have cleaned the marble shower and removed all the soap scum then you should rinse away all the excess soap scum remover from the marble shower tiles.  The soft sponge can be used to thoroughly rinse away any remaining soap scum and also rinse away any excess MB-3 soap scum remover from the marble tiles and grout.   You will probably have to rinse the marble shower a few times to ensure that the marble shower is thoroughly rinsed clean of the soap scum and the excess soap scum remover.  

After you rinse the shower then you should look at the marble shower from all different angles and light sources to ensure that you have removed all of the soap scum.  Many marble showers that have been neglected can have a lot of soap scum buildup that requires a second or even third cleaning to totally remove all of the soap scum from the marble shower tiles.   It is best to not allow large damaging layers of soap scum to build up on your marble shower tiles.  If you use the MB-3 regularly every month or two then cleaning up the soap scum will be much easier and the soap scum will not be allowed to build up and damage the marble showers polished finish. 

After you are sure that all of the soap scum has been removed and the shower has been thoroughly rinsed then you should dry your marble shower with a soft cotton towel to ensure any last remaining soap scum or MB-3 has been removed from the marble shower surface.  Drying the shower glass doors and glass enclosures will also give your shower a clean looking look without any water spots on your shower glass surfaces.

 

 

After you have cleaned your marble shower and removed all of the soap scum then you may notice that your marble shower has lost its polished appearance and become dull and lifeless.  In many cases a professional stone restoration company may be needed to polish your marble shower to bring back the shine to your marble tiles.   You can read more information about polishing marble here.

You can also read some valuable information and tips on how to hire a tile, grout and stone cleaning and restoration contractor on our contractor information page here.  Marble Restoration Contractor.