Professional Services

V. Replacing and fixing epoxy seams on marble and granite countertops
VI. Removing lippage on a stone floor
VII. WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT YOUR STONE RESTORATION JOB

Should be done once every two years to protect against staining, to strengthen the stone and to create easier clean up when items are spilled.

Floor will be honed to remove scratches and then polished to a highly reflective shine.

Soap scum, mold, and mildew will be removed, and grout will be cleaned. Marble tiles will be polished to a highly reflective shine to help with daily clean up of the shower. Sealing of marble showers is strongly recommended to reduce soap scum build-up and to extend the life of the stone.

Marble vanities will be restored to near-original condition. A top grade impregnating sealer will be applied to help prevent against staining.

Old and damaged epoxy will be removed. New color matched epoxy will be reapplied.

If a stone floor has tiles that are uneven (lippage), this process will create an entirely flat surface. There will be no lippage after this process is completed. A flat floor is easier to maintain because there are no lips where dirt can accumulate. A completely flat floor eliminates all unevenness thus creating a safer floor and giving the floor the illusion of being monolithic.

RESTORATION: Simple restoration (refinishing) of stone (also known as the two-step procedure ), involves the process of honing its surface (as a first step) by using abrasive means. The very top of the stone surface will be “tiled” away, thus eliminating all etchings and almost all scratches. The process, however, does not go very deep, therefore deeper scratches and nicks will not be eliminated. Further, due to circumstances beyond our control, a few scratches may be generated during the honing process and will not show until the job is finished. This will not detract in any way from the overall quality and look of the finished job.

If the installation contractor used sanded grout to originally set the floor, it is advisable to have the grout removed and replaced with the sandless type.

POLISHING: The second and final phase of the two-step procedure is called polishing, and it is meant to produce a high gloss on the stone surface. Polishing already installed stone (after being honed), whether on a floor, wall, shower enclosure, vanity or kitchen counter top, etc., involves the use of equipment and techniques quite different from that used in the stone processing plants. Consequently, the original finish cannot be exactly duplicated, but in several instances, can be even better than the original one.

When polishing marble, travertine, limestone or any other calcite-based stone, IMG WILL NOT use any acidic polishing liquid. We use a polishing powder. The main components of every polishing powder or compound used by IMG to polish all calcite-based stones are metal oxides and contain no acid, or only a percentage of the few acids that have been proven to be safe over generations of stone refinishers all over the world. Such powders, in fact, have pH factors ranging from 4.5 to 7. This can be verified from the MSDS, which will be made available to the client upon request.

GRINDING (for floors only) The grinding of a stone floor is the first phase of the so-called three-step procedure and will be followed by honing and, optionally, polishing. It is a once in a lifetime of the floor process to be implemented at the time of the first restoration intervention after installation. It could represent an option (if done for cosmetic and easier maintenance reasons), but it could become necessary if the circumstances grant it (excessive “lippage”, green marble floors, granite floors, etc.). The grinding step is a procedure designed to level all components of the floor (stone tiles, or cut-to-size slabs) to be flush with one another. All “lips”, nicks, and deep scratches will be eliminated.