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Granite Magic. There is a whole series of the Magic brands. Stainless Magic, Oven Magic, Wood Magic, Solid Surface Magic and of course the one I been recommending for 2 decades.....Cabinet Magic.
It's the best product on the market bar none. The caps are color coded. My Cabinet Magic is blue but I don't know what color Granite Magic is. They can be found in the big box stores as well as any woodworkers outlet. It's about $5 a can.
For cabinets I tell everyone to use a 100% cotton shirt and rub in the direction of the grain. For granite just follow the can directions.
In several posts that will follow you will see people recommend sealing your granite. I don't subscribe to this nonsense. You picked your granite for the color most likely. If you seal it then the color will change. And you have to do it every year and that stuff is expensive. As you know granite is NOT food safe. Sealing it only makes it partially safe. Just don't cut food on your granite and you'll be fine.
I just pour a few drops of dish soap in a bottle sprayer full of water and scrub it with a small clean towel. My ancestors grew up with granite floors, counters, and even slabs of granite in their ovens for cooking, and never died young. The youngest one died at the age of 87, but the rest were around the age of 90+ before they died of old age. One of my grandfathers remarried at the age of 70
Agreed. If you research it, you'll find the vast majority of granite does not require sealing.
We use all sorts of common household cleaners on our granite and have for many years. All work fine, as they do with any other surface.
You are correct, I should have also said that most anything works fine as you said. I just endorse the Magic products because they are great. You don't need to spend $5 on it, any cleaner will work well. Granite is virtually indestructible.
Off the subject a bit, products like Lemon Pledge and that new fad orange cleaner will destroy cabinets in very short order. Especially cherry wood.
I need clarification. Are you asking how to clean/shine Granite from day to day use? Or asking because your Granite is dingy and no longer as shiny as it use to be?
Cleaning day to day I would just use a few drops of soap and water or vinegar and water. Before everyone jumps up and starts yelling. There are penetrating sealers now that vinegar won't wear down. And even if not a mild vinegar and water mix was never strong enough to eat the old sealers anyway. Or atleast anymore than any other cleaning product.
If your problem is that the tops are old and dingy looking. It is most likely from sealer build up. Get a Granite sealer stripper and use that. Then clean them real good and reseal with a penetrating sealer like Senguard.
As far as not sealing your Granite. I wouldn't do it. I have been working with Granite counter tops for over 15 years. I have removed enough stains that I wouldn't risk it. Plus with the out break of 15yr penetrating sealers now it isn't that big a deal.
I bought a 2 or 3 bottle kit of what ever HD sells. It might have the world magic in the title, I don't recall. It was a seal and cleaner kit. Black bottles, and black and gold box and labels.
I have dark Uba Tuba granite, and in ten years have 'sealed' in once - at year 7. And that was only because for years, say 1998-2003 when I remodeled my kitchen, all I saw on HGTV was people saying granite comes with the "upkeep" of you have to seal it once a year. I never did. Year 1,2,3,4, 5,6,7 etc. then kept feeling guilty. And finally thought, "Let me break down and seal it ....just in case." That's going on four years ago. I might seal it again this year -- if I get to it. Basically if I wake up one day and say, "why don't I seal the granite this week." Then again, if not, it looks fine anyway. Anything could use a good cleaning and sealing every 5-10 years right?
Thanks everyone..
@Scott: my question was more day to day cleaning
looks like , I will try Weiman
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