Seacoast Stone Blog

This Portsmouth, NH customer just scored a kitchen remodel for the ages. This gorgeous “all white” kitchen was outfitted with new flooring, new custom cabinets, all new stainless steel appliances (including that double oven, I want that), built-in stove top with custom backsplash and all new lighting.

The new layout includes an L-shaped countertop with available seating along the outer perimeter and a spacious kitchen island with an interior sink. The Qstone quartz countertops in Venice add the clean and elegant beauty that homeowners yearn for. Don’t you just want to glide through this kitchen with an espresso martini in hand? Oh yes.

Later winter last year, our neighbors in Hampton, NH suffered a devastating fire that ravaged three quarters of their home. It took many months of demolition and reconstruction to rebuild the main structure which included the kitchen, first floor living areas, master bedrooms and bathrooms.

Because the interior design could be started from scratch, the homeowners opted to alter the main kitchen and living areas to create a much larger, open area for family visits and entertaining.

The kitchen now serves as the central hub of the home hosting a large kitchen island which includes a sink and prep area along with a wrap around bar height counter all in Summerhill quartz by Cambria.

Just look at these photos after installation and after the rebuild was complete. Gorgeous. Home sweet home.

Do you have annoying hard water stains on your beautiful marble and granite surfaces that are marring its magnificence? Luckily, these types of imperfections can be easily remedied.

What’s a hard water stain?

First of all, let’s identify what a hard water stain is, and what it’s not. It’s important to know the difference so you don’t use the wrong method to correct your stain, causing the surface additional damage.

A hard water stain is a buildup of mineral deposits on your kitchen countertops. It looks dull and feels slightly raised to the touch.

A hard water stain is not an etch mark, which can often be confused with each other. An etch mark is caused when an acidic agent (certain foods, citrus-based cleaning sprays, etc.) chemically reacts with the marble or granite and literally eats away the surface, causing a slight indentation that feels rough.

What causes hard water stains?

Hard water stains on your marble countertops are caused from hard water (water containing minerals including calcium and magnesium) being allowed to dry on the marble surface—as the water evaporates, the minerals are left behind. Once the minerals have adhered to the marble or granite surface, it becomes easier for more and more buildup to occur causing those tell-tale dull spots.

How can you remove water stains?

To remove hard water stains, try using cleaner specifically made for marble or granite countertops (not an all-purpose surface cleaner) and scrub with a dry towel. Ask your granite or marble provider which brands they recommend.

You may also try using a fine steel wool grade #0000 by wetting the stain and lightly rubbing the steel wool in a circular motion over the stain until you are able to buff out the dullness.

Another common remedy is to create a thick paste using water and baking soda. Rub the mixture onto the stain and rinse away with water. Dry with a clean, soft towel.

How can you prevent hard water stains?

Preventing hard water stains is easy, you just need to be conscientious about keeping your marble or granite countertops dry and clean.

The most obvious areas to have a buildup of hard water stains are around your sink where water is constantly splashing onto the sides and backsplash of your granite or marble countertops. Be sure to dry those areas completely with a dry towel following sink use. Similarly, don’t leave water to dry naturally anywhere on your countertops—even thin, wet smears will eventually start to dull your surfaces.

Is the stain still there?

If you have tried the various methods above to remove your hard water stains, it’s possible you have misidentified the stain and it is, in fact, an etch mark. But don’t worry, etch marks can also be removed. See our article on removing etch marks and you’ll be on your way to gorgeous countertops once again.

Marble countertops are absolutely gorgeous and anyone who has spent the money on marble countertops wants to keep them looking gorgeous. Forever.

Impossible? No!

You simply need to be aware of 1) what kinds of stains can occur, 2) how to prevent them, and 3) how to fix them if you have them.

Marble Stains

There are two types of marble “stains”. One is true stain which occurs when a substance is absorbed into the pores of the marble leaving a dark or colored mark.

The other type of “stain” is called etching which is not an actual stain but rather damage to the stone’s surface that occurs when acid comes in contact with the marble and literally eats away at the stone. This creates dull spots that may look like scratches or rings—this is called etching.

True Stains

A true stain on your marble countertops will look like a dark spot (if stained by oil) or can take on the color of the spill (of something extremely pigmented in color like food coloring or cumin). Simple contact with these liquids will not result in a stain so if you clean up spills after they happen—even a little while after they happen—you will not see long-term stains. I’ve cleaned up pizza grease on my marble countertops the next day and it was fine.

Except for Easter egg coloring dye. I did not clean that up right away and it did leave a stain (which I was eventually able to remove).

Bottom line, clean up spills quickly and you won’t have a problem.

For more information on removing stains from your marble countertops, read our Stain Removal blog post.

Etching

Marble has had a bad reputation for “staining easily” but it’s actually not so. True stains happen rarely and usually can be removed. It’s the etching that people equate with stains that happen regularly and are nearly impossible to avoid over time.

Etching is corrosive action that occurs when calcite-based stones (like marble, limestone or travertine) comes in contact with an acidic substance—this can be anything from coffee, juice or soda to tomato sauce, salad dressing or vinegar. This contact creates a reaction where the marble’s surface layer is actually eaten away exposing the raw marble underneath.

So when you see water spots, glass rings or scratches, this is a result of etching and not actual stains.

Preventing Stains and Etching

The only way to avoid staining and etching in your marble countertops is to not cook, eat or even enter your kitchen.

Impossible, right? Obviously.

Marble stains are actually easy to prevent and easy to remove (usually, anyways). Etching, on the other hand, is nearly impossible to avoid no matter how much of a neat freak you are. Many people who choose marble countertops for their kitchen opt for the honed finish (the matte, unpolished finish) because this hides and masks etching much better than its polished counterpart. Many people even like the etching that takes place over time as part of the marble’s natural patina—they have a story to tell of the life that’s been lived in your kitchen.

As a point of reference: We are a family of four and not one of us is even close to a neat freak. We’ve had our white marble countertops (honed) for nearly 5 years now and have zero stains and only a few etching marks. If we can keep it clean looking, so can you.

Removing Stains

Any stain I’ve ever had on my marble countertops was easily removed with this method: Lay a paper towel over the stain. Pour hydrogen peroxide onto the paper towel to saturate. Leave overnight and the stain should be gone. If the stain has not been completely removed, repeat the steps and leave on for another twelve hours.

For tougher stains and alternative methods of removing stains from your marble countertops, read our Stain Removal blog post.