How To Clean Sandstone Tiles And Pavers

Sandstone Cleaning Tips

Sandstone is a popular building material for both interior and exterior applications. Sandstone is the one of the most porous types of natural stones that is used for buildings. Sandstone is also a popular stone used for pavers, tile floors, monuments, patio structures and outdoor fireplaces. Sandstone's porous nature ensures that all types of dirt, grease and contaminates can easily be absorbed by this stone.

Sandstone that is exposed to rain, wind, snow and other outdoor elements will inevitably become dirty and dingy looking over time. Sandstone that is exposed to the elements can easily grow mold, mildew fungi, algae and other outdoor biological substances in it. Outdoor sandstone that is protected from the elements will still darken and become dirty over time due to airborne dirt and contaminates being absorbed by the porous sandstone.

When sandstone is installed indoors all types of dirt, grease, spills and contaminates will stain the sandstone and cause unsightly stains in it. Since sandstone is such a porous stone sealing it is extremely difficult. Sandstone will soak up many applications of sealer before the sealer is sufficiently applied to provide any level of protection for the sandstone. Also since sandstone is so porous even multiple levels of a quality impregnating sealer will not sufficiently protect the sandstone from becoming stained. Trying to remove embedded stains from sealed sandstone is made more difficult due to the sealer trapping stains deep within the sandstone.

Sandstone can deteriorate over time making it fragile and difficult to clean. Sandstone can be damaged with harsh cleaners, aggressive scrub pads or high pressure steam cleaning machines. Carefully testing every type of cleaning product, scrub pad and cleaning procedure is essential before cleaning any type of sandstone. Older outdoor sandstone installations can have mineral deposits growing on them. In many cases these mineral deposits have combined with dirt and debris to give the sandstone a natural looking patina that provides an old world charm to the sandstone. Cleaning these mineral deposits and dirt can leave the sandstone looking splotchy and non uniform after cleaning. Also by removing these mineral deposits the underlying sandstone can be weak and fragile and can in many cases start to flake away while it is being cleaned. Outdoor sandstone installations can easily be gouged and disfigured with high pressure cleaning machines or pressure washers.

When cleaning sandstone you should always first test it to ensure that there are not any type of topical sealers applied. By first scrubbing away any surface dirt and grime you can inspect the sandstone for any topical sealer application. Topical sealers will not allow water to be absorbed by the sandstone. If you see that water can be absorbed or darken the color of the sandstone then there has not been a topical sealer applied to the sandstone. If a topical sealer is present then you can attempt to gently scrub the sandstone with a pH neutral cleaner designed for cleaning tile, grout and stone. A soft scrub pad or soft scrub brush is all that should be needed when combined with the Ph neutral tile cleaner. Gently scrubbing the topical sealer on the sandstone will cleaning the topical sealer without stripping away or damaging the topical sealer.

Stonetech's All Purpose Cleaner is an excellent pH neutral tile grout and stone cleaner. Only 2-4 ounces of the cleaner are needed per gallon of hot water.

In many cases after the topical sealer has been scrubbed clean the underlying sandstone with the topical sealer applied will have an acceptable appearance. In many cases dirt and debris has been embedded inside of the topical sealer and it is necessary to completely strip away the topical sealer to bring back the original appearance of the sandstone.

When cleaning outdoor sandstone you should first kill and remove all the organic substances growing in the sandstone. Many of these types of organisms can break apart and dissolve the sandstone while living inside of it. A solution or one part bleach and 3 parts hot water can be used on the sandstone to kill most types of fungi, bacteria, mold and mildew on outdoor sandstone. You should apply the solution and allow it to sit on the sandstone for about 30 minutes before rinsing the bleach solution off of the sandstone. Gentle scrubbing may be necessary when using the bleach solution to scrub away thick layers of organic materials. Bleach will not harm limestone but you must always take care to protect the surrounding structures and plants that might be harmed with the bleach based cleaning solution.

To clean the dirt, grease and grime off of sandstone an alkaline tile and stone cleaning solution should be used. The alkaline cleaning solution is designed to soften up and dissolve dirt, grease and other common contaminates off of natural stone tiles. Alkaline cleaning solutions designed for cleaning tile, grout and stone will not harm the sandstone. You should not attempt to use household cleaners on sandstone. These types of household cleaners will often etch and disfigure the sandstone. Also household cleaning supplies can be absorbed by the sandstone and cause the sandstone to be stained by these household cleaning supplies. Stonetech's Klenzall is an excellent alkaline tile cleaning solution that is safe to use on all types of tile, grout and stone.

Before applying any type of cleaning product to sandstone you should first wet the sandstone with hot water. It is never advisable to pour any type of cleaning solution directly on dry sandstone. By applying hot water to the sandstone first you are ensuring that the cleaning solution does not soak deeply into the stone tiles and become difficult to extract and rinse. You should the mix the alkaline cleaning solution with hot water according to the manufactures instructions. Then you can apply the hot cleaning solution to the sandstone and allow it to dwell on the sandstone for 20-30 minutes. This will allow enough time for the cleaning solution to dissolve the contaminates from the sandstone.

Light scrubbing of the sandstone may be necessary to help the cleaning solution react with all the dirt and grime on extremely dirty and soiled sandstone. Soft scrub brushes and scrub pads are all that should be used when scrubbing sandstone and you should always test your scrub pad first to ensure that it will not scratch the finish of the sandstone. While some polished sandstone can easily be scratched with aggressive scrub pads many outdoor sandstone pavers, fireplaces, and outdoor sandstone tile floors will not be as easily scratched with aggressive scrubbing procedures.

After the alkaline cleaning solution has been used to clean the dirt and grime from the sandstone then it is important to thoroughly rinse the sandstone. Rinsing sandstone tiles thoroughly is extremely important due to the sandstone's porous nature. You want to try to remove as much of the dirty cleaning solution from the sandstone so it does not become embedded deep within the sandstone. Also by thoroughly rinsing the sandstone you will help prevent salts and other mineral deposits from forming on the surface of the sandstone after it has dried. Professional tile cleaning contractors have steam cleaning and extraction machines that work well for rinsing the dirt and grime from the sandstone.

Do it yourself homeowners can use a shop vac to extract the dirty cleaning solution from the sandstone. Also a mop and bucket of hot clean water can be used to rinse away as much of the dirty cleaning solution as possible. Usually 2-3 passes are necessary when using a mop and hot water to rinse away the dirty cleaning solution. When mopping up sandstone tiles it is extremely important to wring the mop out often and change out the hot water as soon as it starts to get dirty.

Cleaning sandstone will not always remove all of the stains that have been absorbed by the sandstone. Using a poultice is the best way to draw out and remove stubborn stains that have been embedded in the limestone. The type of poultice used depends on the type of stain that has been absorbed by the sandstone. For removing grease, oil and dirt based stains an acetone based poultice should be used. An acetone based poultice can be made by mixing baby powder with acetone to make a thick peanut butter consistency type of poultice. The poultice should be applied to the stain and covered with plastic and allowed to sit on the stain for 24-48 hours. Then the poultice solution can be extracted and rinsed to see if the entire stain has been removed. It will sometimes require multiple applications of the poultice to totally remove stubborn stains in the sandstone.

For many types of organic stains like urine, mustard, ketchup and wine a hydrogen peroxide based poultice should be used. Industrial strength 30-40 percent hydrogen peroxide is needed to make this type of poultice. Usually beauty salons or janitorial supply stores are the best sources for this type of highly concentrated hydrogen peroxide solution. You should mix the hydrogen peroxide with baby powder to a peanut butter consistency and apply it to the organic stains on the sandstone. Cover the poultice with plastic and allow it to sit on the stain for 24-48 hours. Repeat the procedure until you have removed all of the organic stain from the sandstone.

In a lot of sandstone installations staining and patina patterns are just part of the nature of having sandstone installed. Many stains will be impossible to completely remove and trying to make the sandstone look perfectly clean and uniform can be extremely difficult. Sandstone is not a good choice for people who are constantly concerned about having a perfectly clean natural stone installation. The natural patina of an indoor sandstone installation or the old world charm of weathered sandstone is often the norm with sandstone.

In most cases a stone cleaning and restoration contractor will be able to clean and restore your sandstone much better than the average homeowner can. You may want to consider hiring a tile and stone restoration contractor to clean your sandstone for you to get the best possible cleaning and stain removal results on your sandstone installation.

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