Every day we put our kitchens through having to withstand hot and heavy cooking utensils, moisture, humidity and sometimes acidic cooking ingredients that inevitably take their toll on the kitchen fittings. Caring for your luxury worktops isn’t hard work, but it’s a must in order to keep them sparkly all year round.
Our comprehensive guide is taking a look at how you can take care of your new worktops, providing you with a step-by-step cleaning routine that will avoid the day-to-day kitchen stains they could be subject to.
Granite worktops >
Care of granite worktops >
The best way to clean a granite worktop >
Quartz worktops >
Quartz worktop care >
The best way to clean a quartz worktop >
Granite worktops are an attractive addition to any kitchen. The luxury stone is heat resistant, scratch resistant, highly hygienic and, if cared for in the right way, extremely durable. It’s this ability to withstand tough environments that makes granite such a popular kitchen material.
Before we look at how to clean your granite worktops, we’re going to cover some simple tips on caring for them, so that you have a kitchen that keeps that fresh aesthetic for longer.
Effective care of your granite worktops starts with the simple things, like wiping up any spills on straight away to ensure no liquid is absorbed by the stone, subsequently staining the worktop. There’s nothing worse than noticing water stains on the granite, but by applying a sealant to the worktop you’ll avoid such marks by preventing absorbing any unwanted liquids.
Where possible, avoid placing hot saucepans or cooking equipment directly on to the worktop, as although the stone is naturally heat resistant, excessive heat could cause unnecessary damage. When it comes to hot and alcoholic drinks, it’s important to use coasters wherever possible – as the acidity from the alcohol can leave a dull finish to the stone, while a hot drink is adding unnecessary heat to the surface.
While it might seem obvious, don’t leave excessive weight on the edges of the worktop. It’s unlikely you’ll fracture the surface, however, to ensure its long-term durability it’s a good idea to avoid doing so where possible.
The best way to clean a granite worktop
To ensure the best finish to your granite worktop when it’s being cleaned, follow these simple steps:
1. Clear your worktops. Remove any unnecessary appliances and mess to give you an empty worktop.
2. Wet a soft cloth. Fill the sink or a bucket with warm water and a neutral detergent and fully soak the cloth in the liquid.
3. Clean the worktop. Use the soft cloth to wipe away any spills or crumbs left on your worktop.
4. Dry the surfaces. Take a dry microfiber or lint free cloth which will ensure a streak free, polished finish.
5. Mix a water and isopropyl alcohol solution. Not for every day care, but now and again for a deep clean, this is a good way to disinfect your worktops without damaging them. Mix together a solution of 50:50 water and isopropyl.
6. Disinfect. Spray the solution across the worktop and leave it to sit for a maximum of 5 minutes, rinse down with water and dry with a clean microfiber cloth.
When it comes to cleaning your granite countertops, steer clear of any cleaning liquids with a high alkaline PH level or any bleaches with high chlorine levels – use warm water or a neutral detergent as an alternative effective cleaning product. Harsh sponges could also remove the shine from the worktop, so always use a soft cloth and dry it with a microfiber/lint free cloth to ensure the removal of streaks and to keep its shiny finish.
Aside from the fact that quartz worktops use one of the hardest minerals found in the earth to ensure durability, they also boast an undeniable aesthetic. They are truly eye-catching once the small amounts of glass or metallic flecks have been added to create a variety of styles and designs, so they deserve your love and care.
Following the installation of a new kitchen, it’s important you know how to care for it. Before looking at how to clean a quartz worktop, we’re going to take you through some handy tips on caring for it.
While your worktop may have heat resistant elements, it’s not completely heat proof, so you want to make sure that you take steps to protect the countertop from excessive heat. It would be a good idea to get large coasters for hot saucepans to ensure the least amount of heat is touching the stone.
To save yourself from having to do a deep clean, make sure you clean up any spillages before they have the potential to become a stain. The stone will absorb certain liquids over time and once this starts to happen, you’ll have a hard job trying to remove them!
Avoid using any cleaning products which have acidic elements in like lemon, bleach and ammonia so they don’t remove the shine from the finish of the worktop. When you’re cooking, it’s also important to try and reduce the amount of time food with acidic properties (such as lemons and tomatoes) has contact with the countertops.
With any kitchen, it’s hard to find every little cooking mark to wipe down straight away. In the case of finding a sturdy stain, you might feel the need to be a little tougher with it. Avoid using a cloth that’s abrasive or adding cleaning liquids to remove stains – instead, take a cloth and hot water to soak them off, reducing the loss of shine on the worktop.
As the material is non-porous, you don’t need to worry about adding a sealant to the worktop as it’s harder to stain than a granite worktop. Plus, they tend to be sealed when they’re finished being produced.
The best way to clean a quartz worktop
While the brain is trained to clean, clean, clean, when it comes to the home, cleaning your quartz countertops is one of the most common ways to damage it, so it’s important to make sure you’re doing it correctly. One of the benefits of a quartz worktop is that its texture doesn’t allow for bacteria to grow on it and it can resist stains, so cleaning it can be made easy following the below steps:
1. Clear your worktops. To ensure you can get every little corner and under the toaster, remove any unnecessary appliances to give you an empty worktop.
2. Wet a soft cloth. Soak your cloth in warm water and a neutral detergent for the best results – it’s important you use a soft and gentle cloth.
3. Clean the worktop. Use the cloth to wipe down the worktops, removing any crumbs or spillages.
4. Dry the surfaces. If you want to ensure the worktop is left with a shiny finish, then take another soft cloth that’s dry to get a streak free finish.
5. Deep clean. When it comes to deep cleaning, purchase a non-abrasive surface cleaner for the best results without causing any damage or use hot water to get unwanted stains off.
Now you know the correct levels of care required for these stylish worktop materials, why not browse our selection of granite and quartz worktops.