Marble is a soft natural stone. It is a form of limestone that has been transformed by pressure, heat and time. It is a very porous stone, and is notorious for its ability to become stained easily. However it has become a very important part of modern architecture.
There have been many different guides on how to polish marble on the internet. We compile a list of them from around the wide wide web, highlighting the positives of each method.
In this wikihow article on how to polish marble, the method detailed to get rid of stains using poultice, though time consuming, is very effective. The article also gives you a hack by using baking soda and water to polish the surface of the marble. The article also shares some very useful tips and precautions to avoid staining on marble surfaces. It is also possible to polish large expanses of marble flooring, or dull flooring can be restored using floor polishing pads.
This article from countertopspeciality.com offers detailed insights into what is marble, what the different types of finished surfaces, and how to restore marble, especially etch marks created by glasses containing liquids. They also have an e-book on offer which explains in detail DIY procedure of polishing marble.
Also worth noting in their article is the fact that honed marble can not be restored. We would like to add that the only way to remove staining from honed granite is to grind the surface to the extent of stain penetration, and use a series of abrasive grits to achieve the honed finish again. However, depending on the depth of the stain, a substantial portion of the surface may have to be ground.
This Washington Post article give you step by step instructions to polish granite using abrasives. The article, interestingly discussed both dry and wet polishing techniques, and advises silicon carbide abrasive paper for the dry method. We would like to add to this article. It is possible to use silicon carbide abrasives, however diamond is a better abrasive material and a tool like diamond stone polishing pads would be ideal for the job. You would require a variable speed angle grinder, or a normal drill with a compatible backing pad to mount the diamond pads using hook and loop fastener.
To sum it all up, it is possible to polish marble as a do-it-yourself project. One should avoid rushing into the process and spend time understanding the nature of the job at hand, and then progress to the actual process of polishing. Also there is a certain level of skill required to polish marble using diamond abrasives. Applying too much pressure, and working at very high RPM will lead to the burning of the surface. While applying too little pressure won’t do much to improve the state of the marble. That said, it should be an interesting DIY project for a sunday afternoon, which can restore stained marble surfaces to their glory over a couple of hours of work.
