thanks John.  Great advice.  I took a polishing class last year.  The emphasis was more on repairs (fixing cracks and chips, blending in) and we worked mostly with alpha pads but not much (can't really remember) with tin oxide, chrystallizers or compounds.
b

On Wed, Jun 3, 2009 at 1:37 PM, John Freitag <jfreitag@thestoneandtileschool.com> wrote:

Baird,

 

You need to stay away from any topical finishes on a granite counter top , if you’re going to use a impregnating sealer, or  impregnating enhancer that a different story. The problem with any topical seal is the stone cannot breath , ( not so important  on counter tops) but the real problem with coating is that the coating will wear, is softer then the stone, it will mark in the coating , it will show scratches from knifes etc.

 

I would recommend the following.

 

1.       Clean the surface with Stone Care Central Neutral cleaner

2.       Use the granite polishing powder from Stone Care Central ( light or dark depending upon the color of the granite.

3.       Take your hand grinder ( slow 700 rpm if possible ) and a back up pad with #1 or #0 steel wool

4.       Apply approximately 1 ounce of granite powder on the counter top.

5.       Wet the powder on the counter top with a crystallizer, so that you now have a wet paste ( I usually spread this combination around the top with the hand machine to mix the powder and the crystallizer together )

6.       Start polishing with your hand machine. Continue to polish until the polish start to dry, then spray some additional crystallizer to the area you  are polishing.

7.       Wipe off section polished if you achieve the finish you are looking for then move onto the next section.

8.       Work a section approximately 2’x2’ keep polishing until the counter is done.

9.       Take a clean steel wool pad and buff of the counter to remove any residue left behind.

10.   Do a final clean using you Stone Care Central Neutral cleaner and your done polishing and cleaning

11.   Apply your impregnating sealer

 

When you are done you will have an improved shine and luster to the counter top.

 

There are many thoughts on what it take to polish granite, granite honing and polishing is a simple process once you totally understand the scratch patterns in granite. In my granite class the first thing we teach you is to determine the scratches or damage in the stone. granite fools most people, they look at the scratch in granite the same way they look at scratches in marble and they are not the same. It’s a rare occasion if I’m working in granite I ever go below an 800  grit and most of the time can handle most problems  starting at a 1500 to 1800 grit.  The Stone and Tile Schools offers a counter top and wall class that covers marble and granite counter and a granite floor class chech it out on our website .

John E. Freitag

President/Director

The Stone and Tile School

Office 407-567-7652

Cell 407-615-0134

jfreitag@thestoneandtileschool.com

 

schoollogo

 

www.thestoneandtileschool.com

 

 

 

 

From: Baird Standish [mailto:bairdstandish@gmail.com]
Sent: Tuesday, June 02, 2009 8:28 PM
To: Restoration and Maintenance
Subject: [sccpartners] Granite Counter Polish

 

Hi,

Was wondering if anyone has favorite products for topical sealing of granite counters (or at least a more effortless way to bring back some shine).  I have a new customer who has a granite counter top that appears to have no real etching and the shine is still pretty good.  She would like to enhance it.  I gave her two quotes, one for powder polishing (which she rejected) and another for cleaning and a topical treatment).  That being said, she is not looking for a level of gloss and clarity that would come with real honing and polishing.  Any suggestions?

Thanks,

Baird


-- file:///Users/baird/Pictures/iPhoto%20Library/Modified/2009/May%2028,%202009/IMG_0435.JPG
________________________________________
>From the desk of
Baird Standish
Managing Partner
Facility Specialists, LLC
1616 Walnut St.
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Phone: 215-732-7505

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--
________________________________________
From the desk of
Baird Standish
Managing Partner
Facility Specialists, LLC
1616 Walnut St.
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Phone: 215-732-7505