Never use acids, furniture polish, vinegar, oil-based products or bleach/chlorine to clean your stone. Household cleaners should be 'pH neutral' (pH 7) products that contain no abrasives or harsh cleansers with ammonia, bleach, or products designed to remove lime or calcium as they may damage the stone.
While furniture polish helps your countertops look shiny and more appealing, it can damage the surface. If you want to maintain the shine of your granite countertop, think about choosing furniture polishes with low-gloss and semi-gloss formulas.
Pledge is known for its lemon scent, and this lemon scent is what causes big problems for granite countertops. The citric acid in this cleaner can damage the sealer on your countertops, which opens the stone up for damage.
Granite Polishing Powder: (also called stone polishing compound) offers a quick and easy way to put a fresh gleam on granite while removing minor scratches and stains. If using it dry, choose a buff polishing pad to work the polish over the surface of the granite in a steady, circular pattern.
If after a few minutes the water has soaked into the granite, then it's time to reseal the stone. DON'T: Use harsh or abrasive cleaners and sponges. Windex; acidic cleaners, like vinegar, lemon, lime; or anything with ammonia or bleach should be avoided.
For regular granite cleaning, the best cleaner is nothing more sophisticated than mild dish soap diluted with water. (You can also make a homemade granite cleaner made with a base of rubbing alcohol.) Wet a sponge with water from the tap and squirt dish soap into its center. Bear in mind that granite scratches easily.
Buff the granite with cooking oil to provide shine and stain resistance. Apply cooking oil to a clean cloth, then make circular motions across the surface of the countertop. Use gentle pressure as you buff the surface.
To put a shine on your granite, pour a little cooking oil on a soft cleaning cloth and wipe it across the countertop. Buff it gently. This makes the counter a little bit stain-resistant and gives it a glossy shine.
As good as a cleaner for windows and other glass surfaces, Windex has some elements on its compositions that can permanently damage granite when used for a long time. For that reason, you should never use Windex on granite.
Granite is a composite of magma and different kinds of minerals such as quartz, feldspar, amphiboles, and mica. The mineral mica is found in a lot of granite, and it is one of the things that gives granite a shimmery shine in certain places.
Daily granite countertop care is as easy as cleaning with a gentle cleanser like Murphy's Oil Soap or mild dishwashing liquid. If needed you can use a synthetic scrubbing pad to clean your granite counter. With the proper maintenance, granite countertops stay new-looking for a long time.
Clorox and Lysol sprays and wipes are convenient, but they are not safe for granite countertops. They rarely contain bleach, but they do generally contain citric acid to help remove soap scum. Avoid using bleach as well.
Granite polishing powder: Also called stone polishing compound, powder offers a quick and easy way to put a fresh gleam on granite while removing minor scratches and stains. If using it dry, choose a buff polishing pad to work the polish over the surface of the granite in a steady, circular pattern.
Luckily, everything you'll need to clean your hard surfaces can already be found in your home: Concentrated dish soap that's tough on stains and grease while staying gentle on stainless steel, granite, and glassware, like Dawn® Platinum Powerwash Dish Spray. Soft cloth and sponge.
Top Tip: if you find your granite worktops are a little dull, that the sheen has been worn away try pouring a little cooking oil on a soft cloth polish the worktop. Gently buff it and you'll see the granite reinvigorated. Better still, cooking oil makes the counter more stain resistant and gives it a glossy finish!
Watch out for red wine rings if you leave your glass on the countertop, or a leaking carton of fresh blueberries. Some other culprits include coffee, tomato juice, grape juice, mustard, citrus products, toothpaste, and anything with chemicals.
Is a Rough Granite Countertop Surface Normal? If grit is present on your granite countertop, it is likely due to poor quality granite – an issue which cannot be solved readily without countertop replacement. In some instances, grout particles may flake off from newly grouted backsplash, although this is less common.
Baking soda
It's versatile and incredibly effective. For this, make a mixture of three parts baking soda with one part warm water – combining them until smooth. Then, apply a thin layer of this paste to your granite surface and buff it with a clean cloth. With a damp cloth, you may wipe away any residue afterwards.
Mix one part water and one part rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle. Spray it on the countertop and let the disinfectant sit for five minutes. Rinse with a damp cloth and buff the granite with a dry microfiber cloth to restore the shine.
If the cloudiness is due to a filmy build-up of oil or hard water, simple deep clean with an appropriate granite cleanser. Cloudiness may also mean it's time to reseal your countertops but make sure to do so carefully and follow all instructions.
Granite is a stone that's strong enough to support the weight of small appliances and cutting boards. However, it's prone to damage from sharp objects like knives. Avoid using your granite surface as a cutting board. This can cause chips, scratches, dings, and other damage.
Don't pour soap directly on granite countertops. Stone is porous, and full strength soap can seep into pores causing tough to remove stains. Always dilute your soap with water before cleaning. Don't use an abrasive scrubber.