How To Clean Marble Floors – Tips For Homeowners

Marble is definitely an easy way to add an aesthetic element to any home. I personally used marble all over the floor area of our dining and living room. And it really does its job in making the space look extra special. The tricky part is that: although marble floors can instantly make any room more dazzling, it loses its appeal if not cleaned and maintained properly. Now, how to clean marble floors thoroughly without a glitch?

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In this article, I am going to lay out a thorough step-by-step guide to help you keep your treasured marble floors bright and shining. I hope the cleaning tips laid out here will help you as much as they helped me. Here are 4 different methods in cleaning and polishing your cherished marble floors:


The thing about marble is that no matter what its finish is, it’s bound to get etched. It can experience abrasion from dirt and can incur long-term damage from strong substances like vinegar, lemons, and limes (especially if not wiped up immediately). That is why when it comes to your marble floor, you should be extra careful when choosing the cleaning formula and the cleaning process. You can get started with the following:

Clean With Soap & Water


clean marble floors With Soap & Water

Usually, soap and water solution is enough to clean your marble floor well, especially if there’s no stubborn stain to deal with. You can make your own DIY marble cleaner with the materials and steps below:

What You Will Need

Before you can proceed, you should have the following things:

  • 2 cups water - Water is a great solution for cleaning. That’s why it’s present in all cleaning solution.
  • Microfiber cloth - The good thing about using microfiber cloth is that it does not damage the surface of the floor.
  • 1 teaspoon castile soap - Castile soap is an all-natural soap that is great for cleaning the house without damaging any material.
  • Spray bottle - If you want to store your cleaning solution, the best bottle you can use is the spray bottle. It makes application of the solution easier.​

Step-By-Step Instructions

Once you have all the things you need, you can start cleaning your floor.

​Step 1: Create the mixture

Mix 2 cups of (warm) water and a teaspoon of castile soap. Castile soap is a fine, hard mottled or white soap that contains sodium hydroxide and olive oil. After mixing the 2 main ingredients, store the mixture in your spray bottle.

Step 2: Using

Apply the formula on your marble floor and immediately follow with your microfiber cloth (damp) to get rid of the soap residue.

Step 3: Storing

Store the remaining mixture in a safe place for future use.

Clean With Baking Soda & Water


Clean Marble Floors With Baking Soda & Water

Marble floors are porous. Once stained, it can be tricky to clean them. What you should do first it to try the first method instructed above. However, if Method 1 fails to completely remove the stain, then you can go to Method 2.

Method 2 requires the application of baking soda and water directly on the stain. Let me show you how to clean marble floor with baking soda:

What You Will Need

Prepare the following before you proceed to cleaning up your floor:

  • Baking soda - Baking soda is another common cleaning ingredient. It’s great in removing stains.
  • Water - Again, you can’t miss water when you are creating a solution.
  • Plastic wrap and Tape - The plastic wrap and tape will be used in sealing an area in your floor so that the solution can seep in better.
  • Cloth or Sponge - After every application of a solution, you need to wipe it dry and clean with a clean cloth or sponge.​

Step-By-Step Instructions

If you are ready, follow the steps below:

Step 1: Recreate the formula in Method 1

Try the formula above (method 1) first. If the discoloration persists, start making your baking soda cleaning paste. Just mix baking soda with water-- enough to form a paste .

Step 2: Apply it on the stain

Apply the paste on the problematic spot. Cover the area with your plastic wrap. To fully seal it, tape the edges down to keep it in place.

Step 3: Wipe the paste

After 24 hours, wipe the paste away using a warm and damp cloth or a sponge. You can finish it off with a mild cleaning spray, if you want.

Clean With Acetone


clean marble floors With Acetone

In relation to method 2, if your marble floor is darker in color (like black), you can use a simple trick to get rid of the stubborn stain. Introducing the quick and easy acetone solution.

What You Wi​​​​ll Need

Prepare the things below. They are easy to purchase and do not cost a lot.

  • Cotton ball - A cotton ball is very absorbent, so be careful when you’re using it. You don’t want it to be dripping wet, only damp.
  • Acetone - The acetone is usually used in removing nail polish. However, it can also be used in cleaning the most difficult stain from your marble floor.
  • Clean cloth - You need a clean cloth to wipe the acetone, if there are any excess or drops from the cotton ball.​

Step-By-Step Instructions

Follow the instructions below after you have all the things you need:

Step 1: Use the acetone

Dip your cotton ball in acetone. Make sure that the cotton is not dripping. You don’t want to make a puddle on the flooring.

Step 2: Apply

Apply it on the stained marble surface until the stain is erased. If you need to dip the cotton ball in acetone again, don’t hesitate to do so.

Step 3: Dry the surface

Wipe the area thoroughly with your clean and damp cloth. Make sure that you leave no spot behind.

Clean With White Chalk Powder & Chamois Cloth


clean marble floors With White Chalk Powder & Chamois Cloth

Chamois cloth is a soft and pliable leather from any skin dressed with oils like fish oil. It’s originally prepared using the skin of chamois. Because of its texture, it’s a perfect tool to make your marble floor shine and gleam. Another trick is using white chalk powder. Check out how they work:

What You Will Need

  • Chamois cloth - Chamois cloth is usually used to blend charcoal. However, in this case, you will be using it in the application of white chalk.
  • White chalk - Because it’s often used in painting or writing, few people know that white chalk can actually be used to make marble shine.
  • Cloth - Cloth is essential in getting chalk residues and wiping the marble squeaky clean.

Step-By-Step Instructions

Clean your marble flooring using the following steps:

Step 1: Remove dirt and dust

Clean your floor first like how you normally would.

Step 2: Add that extra shine

To make it shine, you can use chamois cloth to finish it off. To make it even shinier, you grind your white chalk till it turns to powder and then sprinkle it on your clean, dry floor. Buff this in circles using your chamois cloth.

Step 3: Remove chalk residue

Wipe the chalk powder residue using a soft, damp cloth. Make sure that nothing remains.

Step 4: Wipe the area

Lastly, wipe the whole thing dry with a dry cloth. Then, enjoy a marble floor that shows all the shine.

Helpful Tips


To help you make your marble floor shinier, here are more cleaning tips that you can use:

cleaning tips
  • It’s best to immediately wipe up the spills to avoid letting them harm your marble’s surface.
  • Daily cleaning is highly recommended.
  • Don’t use commercial general cleaners as well as homemade cleaning mixtures that use lemon juice or vinegar as they’re not suitable for marble’s finish.
  • If your cleaning spray has hydrogen peroxide, it’s okay to use it for stains on light-colored marble floors. However, don’t use this on the dark-colored ones.
  • Darker colored marbles have more density than the lighter ones and are more resistant to stain as well.
  • Use Acetone only if there’s stain and only if your marble floor is darker in tone.
  • If there’s no stain whatsoever, just use soap and water. That will just suffice

Conclusion


That’s it! Four quick and simple solutions on how to clean marble floors naturally. I hope this tutorial has been of help. I am personally very particular with the cleanliness and maintenance of the things I value. Marble flooring is just one of the many things that we would want to protect. And I’m sure this is as important to you as it is to me. After all, we homeowners just want nothing but the best for our humble abode.

Do you have other favorite tricks to keep your marble spick and span? Feel free to share your thoughts below. The rest of the home-loving bunch would love to hear your personal tips.

2 Comments
  1. I really appreciate your tip to try and use microfiber when you are cleaning your marble flooring since it doesn’t leave any damage. My wife and I have been thinking of getting our kitchen remodeled for her birthday, and we want to make sure that we get the marble flooring that she always wanted. I will be sure to tell my wife that we should try and clean it with a microfiber cloth!

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