TYPES OF FINSHES FOUND ON STONE

Aqua Power: This finish is brought about by a pressurized flow of water that enhances the color of the stone.
Bush Hammered: A pounding action thatdecelops a textured surface.
Flammed: A rough surface that is developed through heat. During fabrication, the stone is heated up and the crystal begin to pop, thus formimg a textured surface.
Honed: Provides a flat to low sheen gloss. The finish is very smooth, but often very porous.Honed stone color are not as vibrant as a polished stone. This finish is often used for high traffic buildings.
Polished: A glossy surface that wear away with time due to heavy foot and the usage of improper maintenance procedures. This finish is very smooth and not very porous. The shine comes from the natural refletion is the stone’s crystals. Polishing bricks and powers used duting fabrication help draw out the natural reflection of the stone’s crystals[prism] to create vibrant colors and grains of natural stone. Therefor, the shine is not provided by a coating.
Sand Blasted: This finish is the result of a pressurized flow of sand and water that provides a texture surface with matte gloss.
Sawn: A process perfomed by using a gang saw.
Tumbled:A slightly rough texture that is achieved by tumbling small piece of marble,limestone, and sometimes granite to achieve an archaic/worn appearance.
The vast majority of granite countertops are made using slabs that have the Polished finish on them as they are clearly the best suited for kitchen and bath applications.How are edge of the granite finished? Using the specific diamond router bit, the edge are cut.The edge are then polished using eight diffrent diamond poloshing discs.Edge Treatment A variety of edge treatments are available, including Straight, Bullnose, Half-Bullnose, Demi are just to name a few.

GENERAL CLEANING AND CARE OF STONE
WHEN A SPILL OCCURS: A quick response and the right solutions keep spills from damaging your stone or sealer. Use cleaning products recommended for your specific stone type for lifetime beauty of the stone. The wrong cleaner may etch away the polish, discolor the surface, scratch or degrade the sealer.

Daily: Hot water and a sponge is good to wipe up spills and debris and keep your countertops clean daily. At the end of the day, a quick spray and wipe over the most heavily used areas with a stone cleaner will clean, disinffect and protect your countertops.
Dishsoap is also commonly recommended for stone and granite counter top care as a daily cleaner because it will not damage your stone or sealant if it’s a mild, plain soap like ivory. Soap scum will build up over time, dulling the surface and requiring a thorough cleaning with special products to restore the original luster.

Weekly: Use the stone cleaner over the entire surface. Recommended as a general cleaner over soap. but ONLY on granite, quartz or solid surface(not on marble,travertine or limestone) and it isn’t needed more than once a day. If using Simple Green, Regular cleaning with a specially formulated stone cleaner/sealer should also be performed on weekly basis.

Quarterly: Polishes, revitalizers and color-enhancers can also be used periodically for the ultimate n your natural stone and gtanite counter top maintenance.

Yearly: Annual re-sealing is a good idea although the frequency for proper granite countertop care really depends on the type of stone (porous or dense) and the quality of the sealant. It’s a very easy job and unless you have a stone that really shouldn’t be sealed(i.e some black granite), then re-sealing every year will only ensure that your countertops are well protected against staining. It’s a must for marble,travertine and limestone.

DOS AND DONT’S
Do use coasters under glasses, especially if they contain alcohol or citrus juices. Do use trivets or mats under hot dishes or coolware.
Do use place mars under china, ceramics, silver or other objects that may scratch your stone’s surface.
Do place a small rug or mat at entryways to trap dirt and sand from normal foot traffic.
Do dust countertops, islands, vanities and floors frequently.
Do blot up spills immediately to minimize permanent damage to the stone.

Don’t use vnegar, bleach, ammonia or other general-purpose cleaners.
Don’t use cleaners that containt acid sich as bathroom cleaners, grout cleaners or tub and tile cleaners.
Don’t use abrasive cleaner such as dry cleaners or soft cleaners.
Don’t use alkaline cleaners, not specifically formulated for natural stone.

Etch Marks- Substances that are highly acidic, such as orange juice, coffee, vinegar, wine, tomato products, mustard and many soft drinks, will “etch” most marble, limestone and traverting-wheather the stone is sealed or unsealed. Although sealing always you time to wike up a spill,it cannot stop the chemical reaction that stain using a poultice.

Oily Spills/ Stains-Clean up quickly with dry clean cloth. If you identify the stain as having an oil base(from foods like salad and cooking oils,butter, or some cosmeetic) you may be able to remove the stain using a poultice.

TRUTH ABOUT SEALER:
Sealer give you extra time to get a spill cleaned up and less time for rhe spill to possibly stain the granite, marble, quartz or natural type stone.This is not meant to scare you into thinking that granite would be hard to maintain, in fact, it’s quite the opposite. Use this care guide as an example to follow. Using any harsh or abrasive cleaners for clean up will break down your sealer over a period of time a lot fster than if you had not used.MIA Statement of Position On Sealing Natural Stone Contertops  http://www.marble.com/consumers/sealing-stone/

Other MIA Links
http://www.marble-institute.com/consumers/care/
http://www.marble-institute.com/consumers/stains/
http://www.marble-institute.com/consumers/radon/