Is your once-beautiful marble shower now starting to look dull and dirty?
While marble is beautiful, it is also pretentious, so different rules apply when cleaning it.
We’ll walk you through the best way to clean a marble shower and the chemicals to avoid.
Key Takeaways
- Use mild dish detergent and warm water to clean marble showers, avoiding harsh chemicals and acidic solutions like vinegar or bleach.
- For daily maintenance, create a gentle cleaning solution with natural dish soap and warm water in a spray bottle.
- To remove stains, try using baking soda, hydrogen peroxide, or a special marble poultice, but avoid scrubbing and scratching the marble surface.
- Seal your marble shower at least once a year with a marble sealer to protect it from damage and maintain its shine.
Daily Shower Spray for Marble
The best way to maintain a marble shower is to perform routine cleaning to avoid soap scum, mildew, or hard water stains.
You can whip up a solution that’s safe to use on your marble daily with ingredients you already have around the house. Grab an empty, clean spray bottle and mix a quart of warm water with a tablespoon of natural dish soap. Shake and use as often as you like.
To clean marble naturally, you can also grate a couple of tablespoons of natural soap bars. Dissolve it in the same quantity of water. Spray this solution on the marble surface and wipe it clean using a soft cloth that doesn’t leave any lint.
Can You Use Bleach on a Marble Shower?
The best way to clean a marble shower is never with bleach. Bleach alone or products that contain bleach as an ingredient have a high pH and are very alkaline.
This means it’s not the best cleaner and not safe to use for cleaning a marble shower. Bleach can etch the marble, leading to light and dull spots on marble surfaces.
Since marble is made from calcium carbonate, it will react when it comes in contact with alkaline substances such as bleach. This reaction is very fast, and the corrosions happen almost instantly. This makes the marble lose its shiny surface.
The same rule goes for using abrasive cleaners on marble. That also includes any hard scrubbing brushes or anything that could scratch the surface and sheen of marble.
If you remove the top layer, the marble will be dull, porous, more difficult to clean, and more prone to further damage.
How to Clean a Marble Shower
It’s pretty easy; just follow these tips!
What You’ll Need
- Empty spray bottle.
- 1 tsp mild dish detergent (pH neutral).
- Cloth.
Simple Steps to Clean a Marble Shower Yourself
- Take a single teaspoon of mild dish detergent (Dawn works) into a clean and empty spray bottle.
- Then add warm water until it’s full.
- Spray your DIY solution over the surface of your marble shower, more so in stained areas.
- Take a clean and soft washcloth and wipe it down.
- Rinse and then let dry.
How to Remove Stains from Marble
Marble is a porous material, so it’s key to remove stains as soon as you can before they set in.
Mold and Mildew Cleaner
You have many options if you want to purchase a mold and mildew cleaning solution from the store. When you clean with such products, you always have to follow the instructions specified on the label.
Apply the solution to the mold and mildew stains. Allow them to sit for however long mentioned on the label, scrub, and rinse.
Baking Soda
Baking soda is a mild abrasive that also functions as a natural disinfectant.
Sprinkle a little baking soda on whatever marble surface you want to clean. Apply it by gently rubbing it in with a soft, damp cloth.
Rinse the surface using water and wipe it dry using a soft towel.
Use Caution
Scrubbing isn’t recommended as it can scratch marble surfaces. Make sure to remove all traces of baking soda from your marble surfaces so that it does not come into touch with them again.
Hydrogen Peroxide
Hydrogen peroxide can be used to clean marble surfaces that have been stained. Peroxide is a non-abrasive cleanser that won’t scratch marble surfaces.
To clean your marble surface with hydrogen peroxide, make use of a soft cloth to wipe down your marble surface to remove any potential dust or debris. Add half a cup of hydrogen peroxide with a gallon of warm water and let it sit for 10 minutes.
Using a delicate cloth, spread the solution evenly across the surface and gently rub the mixture into the marble surface.
If additional peroxide is required for stain removal, do so. Grab a soft cloth to dry the surface.
Superfine Steel Wool
If your marble has water stains, nicks, or light scratches, polishing it with dry #0000 steel wool may help to remove them. Any scratches that are deeper than the surface level will necessitate the assistance of an expert.
Corn Starch
If you notice a stain on a marble surface, spray some water on it and then generously sprinkle it with corn starch to make a thick coating.
Allow for a 20-minute resting period. Remove the stain with a wet towel. Corn starch is particularly effective at removing oil stains from clothing.
Marble Poultice
To make a marble poultice, you must combine a liquid solvent and white absorbent material. The liquid solvent is the active element, and it is responsible for penetrating the marble’s pores and drawing out the stain.
The white absorbent substance serves as the solid component of the combination. It aids in the stain’s removal and subsequent storage, while the solvent performs the bulk of the work.
You can make a poultice with ammonia, rust remover, hydrogen peroxide, baking soda/talc, and water. After making the poultice, spread it over stains on marble surfaces, let it dry out, and then wipe it using a wet rag.
Steam Cleaning
Set up the steam cleaner as specified in the product’s user manual.
Keep the end of the steam cleaner at an appropriate distance from the floor. Focus on the area with stubborn dirt and stains. If needed, use microfiber mops to remove excess dirt once the steam loosens it.
Soap Scum Removers
Showers are the likeliest place to discover nasty soap scum. Thankfully, getting rid of it is not complicated at all. It’s important to know that removing soap scum from marble requires a different formula compared to that used in other scummy situations.
You can purchase a special soap scum removing solution that’s safe for use on marble surfaces. These solutions can deal with both soap scum and hard water film.
Safety Tip
When using the solution, make sure to follow the instructions on the label. You typically have to spray it over the marble surface, allow it to sit for a few minutes, gently scrub, then rinse and dry.
How to Seal Marble Shower
Marble is soft and porous, so you need to apply a sealant at least once a year.
What You’ll Need
- Marble cleaning solution.
- Clean rags.
- Marble sealer.
1. Clean the Surface
The first part of the process is cleaning the marble walls and shower floor. Use a mixture of mild dish detergent and water in a spray bottle. Spray the solution on the marble surfaces and wipe them with a clean cloth.
2. Apply the Sealer
The following step will depend on what type of marble sealer you have. Some sealers are spray-on, some applied with a foam brush, while others must be rubbed in using a cloth.
Carefully read the label of the marble sealant you bought and follow the instructions to get the best possible results. When the sealer is dry, you might have to apply a second coat.
Marble Maintenance Tips
Follow any of these simple steps to prolong the life of your marble shower.
Consider Spot Treating
You can use poultice paste to get rid of stubborn stains. Put the paste on the stain, place some plastic wrap on top and seal it with painter’s tape. Let it dry for about 12 to 24 hours, and scrape off the paste using a damp cloth.
Use Gentle Soap
It’s very important to use mild cleaners for marble surfaces. Gentle soap combined with warm water is typically enough to give your marble shower a daily cleaning.
Get Rid of Stains ASAP
Stains are quite a common occurrence if we’re talking about marble countertops or marble showers. You want to deal with them immediately, especially if they are cooking oil stains. Hydrogen peroxide or ammonia are good cleaning products for such stains.
FAQs
Still unsure about what to do? These extra tips should help you out.
Are Marble Showers Hard to Clean?
Mineral build-up is frequent in showers, particularly around the fixtures and on the walls. But these yellowish spots are fairly simple to remove with a few household cleaning solutions. Try to use cleaners that are safe for marble to avoid eroding the surface of your precious marble.
Can You Use Vinegar on a Marble Shower?
Due to its acidic nature, you don’t want to clean the shower with vinegar, lemon, and other citrus-based solutions that could damage the topcoat of the marble.
Is Bar Keepers Friend Safe for Marble?
Yes, Bar Keepers Friend Granite & Stone Cleaner & Polish can be used on different polished and smooth stone surfaces, including marble. It has a pH-balanced formula that you can use on stone finishes without scratching them.
What Cleans the Grout Between Marble Tiles?
The process involves scrubbing baking soda on the grout lines, but you want to avoid scrubbing it on the marble surface. So, you have to pay close attention when cleaning the grout between marble tiles.
Bottom Line
From Carrera to Calacatta, marble is a very elegant bathroom choice. Knowing how to clean a marble shower is important because many people make the mistake of using abrasive products on its surface, damaging and dulling its shine. Remember, the best way to clean a marble shower is by maintaining it each day with a simple spray and rinse.
