Marble Cleaning: Plumber's Putty Stain

by Robin
(Watertown, Ma.)

QUESTIONS:

What to do....Plumber used "plumbers putty" now the fixtures are all growing stains around them. Is there a way to to stop the stain from growing and get the darken circles around the fixtures cleaned up?

QUESTIONS:

Yes, plumber's putty will cause a marble stain and should not be used.

You'll need to remove the faucets and remove the plumber's putty.

Once removed, clean the surface in the area. And just FYI... you should use only products safe for cleaning marble or you'll end up with another problem called "etching" that is caused by nearly all common and brand-name household cleaners.

After cleaning the surface, you'll notice that regular cleaning methods do not work. That's because the stain is in the stone below the surface where marble cleaners can't reach.

Fortunately, most stains can be easily removed from marble and all other stones, but it requires a special process dictated by what type of substance stained the marble.

Now you can find lots of well-intentioned advice online about cleaning marble stains, but much of it is misguided and plain wrong. Sometimes wrong enough to cause further damage to the marble.

However, you will find complete step-by-step instructions for all correct and proven methods for cleaning marble stains of all types in the Removing Granite & Marble Stains e-book.

Once you have the stains removed, re-fit the faucets using 100% silicone caulk.