Most weeks I receive calls from people asking how to remove a sealer residue. Sealer residues occur when an impregnating sealer is incorrectly applied. Impregnating sealers (or penetrating sealers as they are sometimes known) are intended to be in or below the surface of the stone rather than ‘on’ it. So, the correct application involves applying the sealer to the surface, allowing a short time for penetration (this might be around 5 minutes, depending on both the sealer being used and the material being sealed) then any surplus sealer, remaining on the surface should be removed with something absorbent, ideally a white paper or cotton towel.All too often though, for various reasons this cleaning away of surplus, whilst still wet, does not take place. Reasons include not reading the instructions and my favourite: “I’ve been using sealers for years, always done it like this and never had a problem.”
A sealer residue can appear in a number of ways: as a dry, white powdery deposit; streaky marks or shiny spots; with some sealers, the residue can take the form of a wet or greasy coating. There are a number of ways in which the problem might be rectified, depending on the circumstances.
For example, if a solvent sealer was used, it is sometimes possible to use a little more of the actual sealer, the solvent carrier-fluid it contains can sometimes re-dissolve the residue allowing it to be wiped away with an absorbent cloth.
For other residues, we would recommend the use of a micro-abrasive cleaner like Microscrub. First apply a little water to the affected area, and then add a little Microscrub and scrub. Rinse well and dry down with paper towels. For really stubborn or thick residues that have been left for some time, a stripper may be required. In such situations, we would recommend a solvent based sealer stripper or remover, such as Strip_it applied neat and left on for a minimum of 30 minutes before scrubbing with a white nylon pad.
Apart from the last remedy (using a stripper) the others should not result in the need to re-apply more sealer afterwards. So, it need not be the end of the world if a sealer residue is left on the surface, but it is of course better to avoid the problem altogether, by applying the sealer correctly in the first place.
Copyright Ian Taylor and The Tile and Stone Blog.co.uk, 2013. See copyright notice above.
During recent bathroom renovation my tile guys failed to remove all of the grout and adhesive marks from my beautiful cream-colored limestone tile floor before applying two coats of sealer to the floor. For a few months I’ve been trying to get the guys who laid the tiles to come back to remove the sealer and the grout/adhesive. They have tried everything they could think of: acetone, paint & varnish stripper (“Rock Miracle”), cleaners like Pine Sol & Spic & Span, but nothing has succeeded in removing the sealer or the grout/adhesive residue. It seems that nothing has been able to penetrate the limestone! Do you have any suggestions for what can be done to remove what is trapped beneath the sealer? In daytime light you can really see the grout/adhesive residue on the stone. It is, needless to say, most unsightly!
Desperately hoping you can help me with this!
Thanks,
Yvonne Hicks
omg…me too…i have tired everything to remove the grout sealer and nothing i mean nothing works if you find a solution please let me know
I have blue stone tile around my pool. After reading your blog I realize that the application of the sealer was wrong. I now can see leftover residue all around. How do I strip the sealer from my blue stone? Can I do it by pressure washing??
Hi Theresa,
As you are stateside, I think you are referring to a kind of sandstone (in the UK bluestone means something else) either way, I am not sure what type of sealer you used, but as coating sealers are intended to be left on the surface, I am assuming you have used some kind of impregnating sealer.
Your success is going to depend on whit type of sealer, how much residue you have, and how long it has been down for). As with everything, I always try the least aggressive way first. I would try a dilute alkaline cleaner, left on to dwell for about 15 minutes, keeping it wet with fresh solution as you go. Then scrub with a scrubbing brush or a rotary machine, wet vac the solution then rinse with water. Let it dry and see how it looks.
If no success, try adding a safe cream cleaner like Nanoscrub by Aqua Mix (you can still get that in the US) add this to the detergent on the floor just before you scrub. You will have more rinsing to do as a result.
If none of this works you are going to have to resort to a solvent type stripper – there are plenty of sealant strippers available- follow the on bottle instructions. Yo will need to check the integrity of the sealer when you are done, and maybe reapply, or at least top it up.
Hope this helps
Ian
hi hope you can give me some advice. we have a slate tiled floor in the bathroom which has been sealed but water marks have appeared on the floor by the basin. the water marks are very noticable and have a white rim to them, i have tried to clean them off but once the floor is dry they appear again. how can i get rid of these marks?
do i need to strip the sealent and if so how?
thanks
Hi Bethan,
I cannot be 100% sure but this sounds like surface deposits to me; the sealer has kept the water drops at the surface, the water then sits there, and slowly evaporates. The problem is that most water is not 100% pure, there are usually some trace minerals in it (water treatment chemicals and other impurities) if you hapen to live in a hard-water area then the water will be loaded with soluble caclium (limescale).
So, somthing in the water that is splashed ontot he floor, is left behind as a residue once the water has gone. I would try a mild cream cleaner, something like nanoscrub woulbe be great if you can get it. It is my opinion that whatever it is, is on top of the sealer and sould come off with the right approach.. Try the cream cleaner, if you have no luck, try a slightly acidic cleaner, (not a strong brick acid) this should not damage most sealers. Rinse and then dry withg a towel.
Best of luck
Ian
I recently resealed mt slate tiles and applied it wrong. Now the floors are sticky, can I use a sealer remover and will this harm the slate?
Thanks,
Candace
Hi Candace,
A good sealer remove should not danage the slate, suggest you call whichever brand of sealer you used for their advice on the removal
Hope this helps
Ian
Hi! We just had this beautiful white/ light grey natural stone backsplash installed in our kitchen. I put on a sealant(quite a few coats) and overtime it has left what looks like a cement residue on the tile plus it has actually left a yellowish cast on my tile. I am actually sick to my stomache over this considering the cost of this tile and the fact the stone runs the entire wall up to my ceiling. Please tell me if there is a solution other than tearing my once beautiful tile down.Thank you!
Hi Heather,
not 100% certain what yo have done as you do not gie details on the actual sealer, but, it sounds like you have over-applied an impregnating sealer, left residue on the tile surface. Most sealers of this type are intended to be applied by allowuing them to soak in, but have and surplus removed and rubbed dry within a few minutes of application – so they end up ‘inside’ the stone, not ‘on top’ of it. THis residue couls also cast a yellowish hue.
OR, it is a coating sealer that is not so good, and again has been possibly over applied and yellowed in UV light.
Either way you will need to get a proprietary sealer remover/stripper and take it off. This should be straight-forward and not damage the tile
Hope this helps
Ian
My company had been asked to remove a sealer on a natural bluestone floor in a local bank that had been flooded recently. The product that was recomended was Sealer & Coating Remover. The fumes were very bad….. I was wondering what you would recommend. IS there any such thing as a Circular Mineral Disk.
Thanks,
Karen
Hi Karen,
I know that product quite well, and yes it does have a smell. However, I have to say that to my knowlege it is one of the least smelly strippers out there. If you need a good sealer removing stripper, then I think you will be hard pressed to find one that is not in fact even worse in terms of fumes and odour, plus many are not so nice to use as they contain methyl chloride and other harmful ingredients.
As to whether you can mechanically remove the sealer, this may be possible it depends; of the sealer is thick it may just get chewed up and clogg any abrasive disc you use, or if the bluestone is soft then you might damage it through abrasion.
You could try an abrasive cream cleaner like Microscrub, btu this will only help on very thin coatings
Hope this helps
Ian
Hello
I just finished doing a stone fireplace wall with amazing oxford ledgestone and loved it . I was not sure if I should use an impregnator (colour enhancer) , tried a piece and thought it was okay. I loved the natural stone look, now with the colour enhancer it looks too uniform . I feel that the enhancer took away the subtlety of the different earthy tones. I am so upset about this. Can I get rid of this impregnating colour enhancer? Is there a stripper that will get rid of the colour enhancer? I read that Drano may work.
Please help
Hi Kim,
OK, you don’t mention which brand of enhancer, but you should know that some are incredibly difficult to remove. There is one popular brand that needs an industrial stregnth solvent to stand any chance of removal, and in all honsety it is not always 100% successful
My best advice is to contact the manufacturer of the particular enhancer you applied and ask their tech services, they may have a recommended stripper that they ahve found successful.
Be prepared though you may not get it all out. It is possible that you could significantly reduce reduce it’s colour enhancing effect, and so greatly subdue the effect and this may be acceptable – good luck
Hope this helps
Ian
Hi , I wonder if you could help me , I recently laid an Indian sandstone patio, and I sealed it with Thompson patio seal , after applying the seal it has left marks on the seal on the stone looks like “slug trails ” , any advice would be appreciated to remove the marks on the stone .
Many thanks
Hi Dan,
This sounds like a simple case of over-application; leaving too much of the product on the surface and allowing it to dry. It is meant to go inside the stone, not lie on top of it, where it can collect in pools/concentrations and dry as a noticible streaky mark.
First thing I would try is some more of the same product, (you may think that bizarre given that I just said you have applied too much, but it is that you ‘left’ too much that is the issue). So, apply some more product, you are aiming to make use of the solvent that the product is based on to break down the sealer on the top. Leave it for a couple of minutes but do not let it dry. Give it a bit of a scrub them wipe up the liquid – polish/rub it dry with a towel, leave no trace of moisture.
Hopefully that will do it. If not you may need an abrasive cleaner like Microscrub or failing that, a solvent stripper. If you have to use a stripper you may want to top up the sealer afterwards.
Hope this helps
Ian
hi I have recently used a penetrating sealer on some bluestone around a fireplace harth that i just installed. I applied it by brush and once it dried it left white streaks, does this need to be stripped back or should I just reapply a small amount and rub it back?
Hi Gavin, clearly you have let it dry on the surface, it is designed to soak ‘into’ the stone and you must remove any remaining wet suprlus from the stone with an absorbent towel/cloth BEFORE it dries. What has happend is that you have left actual sealer on the top of the stone.
You could try just rubbing it off with a whilte nylon scrub pad and a bit of water. If that does not work, and you used a solvent based sealer, then sure, try a bit more sealer on a cloth, rub it gently then polish dry – You are using the solvent to try to break it down, as there is also sealer in it, you will not be strippiong the selaer back from the stone.
if it was a water based one, this may not work. Next I would try a safe abrasive cleaner nanoscrub.
Failing that yes, woul will have to get a sealer estriper, strip back and start again.
Hope this helps
Ian
We had a floor to ceiling limestone tile installed in master bath including full tile shower. Installers used aqua mix stone enhancer but failed to wipe excess. Let it set for 4 weeks, applied one of the caustic sealers but didn’t let it work in for the 15-30 minutes recommended and this did nothing. Next they attempted to use aqua mix tile and grout cleaner. They attempted to buff it by hand and applied another coating of sealant. This has puddled and ran down side walls twice and is quite sticky. NOW they are going to bring in someone else and he purposes using Stone Tec tile and grout cleaner. I have been told this probably won’t work as well. HELP….do we have to remove all tile and start over? I certainly am not a fan of any of that methyl chloride as it almost drove us from our home for 3 days. HELP, HELP, HELP
Thanks, Illa
Hi Illa,
Wow, sounds awful. OK, first thing I would say is that Aqua Mix make their own sealer and Coating remover but it needs to be left on for about an hour. Most of these products do need a long dwell time, less than 15 minutes is certainly not enough.
However, given that it was left for 4 weeks to cure, that is going to make it much much harder to remove. I certainly do not think another regular tile and grout cleaner is going to do a thing. At this point, if I were you I would call the Tech Services department at Aqua Mix (Now part of Custom Building Products) and tell them the whole story, they will probably recommend a very powerful solvent, and yes it will most likely smell bad, but at this stage I think it will be your last chance before resorting to removal of the the stone.
Hope this helps
Ian
Hi
We had limestone tiles fitted in our bathroom about 20 months ago and there were streaky marks all over which I assume are badly applied sealant. I thought I could live with it but I’m just noticing more spots so I feel I need to do something. Is it too late or can I remove the sealant and start again?
Ian,
I recently applied a stone sealer to a customers bathroom floor… (even though it was a matt finished ceramic or porcelain tile). She’s now complaining about hairs or microfibers in certain areas. Is it necessary to use a sealant remover (because there’s very little ventilation) or is it possible to use a 200+ (maybe 300-400) grit sand paper in these small areas… then re-seal? I’m assuming the sealant didn’t penetrate the already finished tile.
hi
i have concrete printing and its starting to go
white in a lot of places
i have bought bloom remover but has done nothing
can you recommend anything
regards
liam magee
Hi Anne,
Usually the streaks are just surplus sealer left on and allowed to dry. With most sealers it can often be removed with a white nylon pad and a cream cleaner – like Microscrub which you could obtain from Tilinglogistics on 0121 701 5333. Occasionally, streaks from some solvent based sealers can be removed by rubbing over with a bit more sealer (the solvent breaking down the streak) and then rubbing it dry with a towel or cloth. Neither of the above should necessitate re sealing.
Hope this helps
Ian
Hi Dave,
yes I would be surprised if the sealer penetrated. I would not recommend sand paper if the tiles are glazed or polished they will quite likely be scratched if you do. Instead get a white nylon emulsifying pad, some water and a cream cleaner (like aqua mix nanoscrub or similar). This should do it without the need for a solvent stripper, and without damaging the tile, given that the sealer is just on the top.
Hope this helps
Ian
Hi Liam,
I am not a concrete expert but two things spring to mind, efflorescence and colour bleaching.
Concrete can be subject to efflorescence – (soluble salts/minerals being brought to the surface) sometimes this can be cured by using a remove but most of these are acid based and whilst removing the bloom it would also damage the rest of the concrete and strip the colour anyway – maybe this happened with your bloom remover?
Sometimes this problem can just go away of it’s own accord
As hinted at above sometimes the colour can come out either by reaction with something acidic, or it it is not completely colorfast, by something alkaline and caustic. Or, i am afraid to say, perhaps just from UV light causing it to fade
I think yours sounds more like Efflorescence though, can you send some pictures?
Hope this helps
Ian
We recently had polished marble tile installed on our bathroom floor. I do not believe that the marble was sealed before it was grouted therefore when unsanded grout was applied possibly it was scratched. Could be wrong, however, there is a haze which I don’t think was removed before it was sealed with Aqua Mix Ultra-Solv Premium solvent-based sealer. Used Superior Natural Stone Deep Clean according to stripper directions (leave on between 5 to 10 minutes)to remove haze, scrub and rinse. Didn’t work. Any ideas??
I had travertine sealed two days ago with Aqua mix sealer and enhancer. The guy who applied it must have let the excess dry on the surface and now very streaky. I called the company and they suggested heavy duty stripper and cleaner. I tried using this product last night and it did not do the job. I have read online you can use paint thinner? Do you have any advice on this? I’m very upset and want to try and fix this asap. Please help.
Hi Julie,
It sounds like you are trying to use an alkaline cleaner to remove a grout haze – if so I am not surprised it did not work. Normally we would would use BUT NOT HERE an acidic cleaner to remove the grout haze but, obviously we cannot do that on a marble.
My next test would be to try some Aqua Mix Nanoscrub or similar – it is an abrasive cleaner that is derived from calcite – so it will not scratch the marble. pre wet the surface, shake the bottle, apply some cleaner to the floor and use a WHITE nylon scrub pad/emulsifier to scrub the residue away – this may work equally well for both fine grout haze and any sealer residue that may be there.
If the grout haze is very think then you ma have to resort to a re-polishing paste or diamonds – which could be much more involved
Good luck
Ian
Hi Tammy,
It is one of those products that the sooner you respond to it the easier it is to remove – if it had been next day you may have got it off with just a small amount of water.
If it is a few days now and a stripper did not work – then I am a b it stuck – was it the aqua mix stripper you used? – because if it was, after only two days that should have sorted it with ease, provided you left it on long enough, (up to an hour) the scrubbed, and rinsed it really well – if it was just an alkaline cleaner then maybe not.
If it is now completely set you may need a more industrial strength solvent stripper -call Aqua Mix’s technical helpline for a suggested product.
Hope this helps
Ian
Ian,
I recently applied a water based sealer on honed granite flooring inside my home. I now realize after reading your blog that I over applied the product failing to wipe the excess and now the product sits on top of the granite and looks wet,greasy and streaky. I gather that it will not be useful to spray the same product and try to wipe.
I live in South America and unfortunately we do not have any of the products before mentioned. Could you recommend some type of stripper in a simpler form? I may be able to get one of the products that is part of the composition of a packaged stripper.
Thank you!
Hi Adriana,
OK, yes using more water based sealer to remove it wont help as the sealer is now dry.
Try one of these three things:
1) an alkaline de-greaser – this may work well but it may mean to have to re apply the sealer properly afterwards
2) a cream cleaner with some abrasive this my be just enough remove the residue without removing the sealer from the stone itself. This type of product is often sold for bath tubs and ceramic cooker hobs – just make sure that there is no acid in it or that your granite stone is not sensitive to acids (some will etch)
3) a solvent – like a paint stripper – try a small amount on a cloth and rub it over the affected area – this should work, but again it will mean re sealing after.
Hope this helps
Ian
Hi,
I just had a polished white marble floor installed. When they applied the sealer, they did not remove all the grout dust/hase. I am sick about this. There are spots, streaks all over. Please help?
Hi I have just sealed newly grouted tiles with crackle glaze protector it is an impregnating sealer , it stated to cover the grout with the sealer but now it had dried leaving like grease marks over the grout what should I do
Hi Karen,
it should not really leave greasy marks? – I am guessing it is a solvent based sealer and as such it could have a mild oily nature. Some sealers like this can darken the grout a touch, however it might be a residue. Impregnating sealers must be wiped off the surface before they dry otherwise they can leave residues.
One thing you could try is to re apply some of the sealer, using it’s own solvent to break down the residue. wipe it on to the affected area then scrub it with a white nylon pad, then wipe it dry with an absorbant cotton cloth or paper towel. See if that disperses or removes the problem, and you will not have affected the sealer it self.
Failing that try a microscrub clean. If this does not work then you may need a sealer stripper.
Hope this helps
Ian
Hi – I hope you can offer some advice.
I have just moved into a rustic farmhouse in Spain. It is beautiful but the entire house has a porous stone floor which has been sealed but it has been sealed on top of dirt and paint splashes.
I was told the tiles were sealed so I thought a good scrub would bring them clean but I now realise the dirt is below the surface which is a sort of glossy coating.
If I remove the sealant I may discover that the dirt and paint splashes have already ingrained into the natural stone .
Is a big rug the best bet?
Thanks
Hi Chris, a rug would be admitting defeat, or acknowledging that you don’t have the time or inclination to put any effort into the floor – nothing wrong with that of course, but, being a stone man, I would at least want to explore what is possible.
So, yes you will most likely have to strip the sealer, there are proprietary sealer strippers for this, most are solvents of course so can be fun to use. However you will find that what strips sealers, invariably strips paint too – so it will quite likely remove you paint splashes in the same operation (plus any stain from any adjacent painted surfaces like skirting boards for example, so be careful and mask up).
Other dirt could be ingrained, grime, or even cement type dirt (if any building work had been going on prior to sealing)
You would have to asses this after the stripping, most likely need an alkaline clean after to remove ingrained dirt.
After this, when the floor has been rinsed and allowed to dry, look at sealing it again
Hope this helps
Ian
Hi Ian
Thanks for a great reply.
The house we are in is rented and it seems the previous tenants did this to the stone. Unfortunately the owners don’t want to spend any money cleaning the tiles as they hope to sell the house and leave that to the new owners.
Had i known the stone had been lacquered with the dirt underneath I don’t think I’d have taken the house on.
I thought it would be a matter of a bit of elbow grease and a scrubbing brush.
If i were buying this house I would put every energy into the stone floor.
I’ve decided to try your solution on part of the stone that can’t be covered by a rug.
If I get good result here i’ll persevere. We are here only for one year but if I can get the improvement I’m looking for at a reasonable cost we will probably extend our stay so it will be worth it.
Thanks for your help.
Regards
Christine
Put up tile backsplash that had a very rough textured surface. When we grouted it alot of the grout went into the pores of the tile and looks like paint spots..is there anyway to remove the grout…Thanks
Hi Sharon,
OK, first you don’t say if it is a regular ceramic tile, a porcelain, or a stone> if it it not an acid-sensitive material, and has some porosity you may need to use a proprietary acid based cleaner – one based on a mild sulfamic or phosphoric type acid.
If you cannot use an acid based cleaner then you may have to use an abrasive clream cleaner
either way you are going to have to use a strong scrubbing brush and take several passes at it. IF the tile is hard enough maybe you gould use a tinex type brush on a hand machine
it will all depend on how much of the this grout haze you have got to get through
Hope this helps
Ian
Hello Ian,
I had my contractor install white polished porcelain floor tiles. We asked him how to best seal the grouts and said he had something that will not leave any marks on the tile. After he was done, the polished tiles were sticky and left haze all over my brand new floors. I tried to remove it by steam mopping it to no avail. How can we remove the sticky haze without removing the original gloss of the tile? Your recommendations would be appreciated.
Michelle
Hi Michelle,
OK, without knowing what sealer was used I can only guess but, this should be ok.
Most grout sealers will come off porcelain without too much fuss, and the polish or shine that your porcelain has is physical (it was ground by abrasives, it is not a chemically applied shine that can be stripped off)
start with least aggressive method
personally I would try to get hold of a mild abrasive cream cleaner designed for the job, in your part of the world you should be able to get a product called Nanoscrub by Aqua Mix (there are other brands too) – a bit of this with some water and a white emulsifying pad and it should rub off.
If it is more stubborn, try an alkaline floor cleaner. If that does not work, then you may need to resort to a sealer stripper.
The only issue is that an alkaline or stripper, whilst they won’t harm the tile, they could strip some wax (which may be there but is not supposed to be there, but if there is and you remove a bit of it, it can make the floor look patchy) or if there is any kind of factory applied sealer on the tile, it may strip that – so test a small area first to make sure it does not alter the look of the tile.
Hope this helps
Ian
My husband applied two very thin coats of an acrylic-based sealing compound (glossy) to my travertine kitchen floor. It was a mistake. Upon application the sealer seemed to puddle, but his second coat looked better. Now the finish is flaking off. I’d like to take the sealer all off, but do not know what product and method to best use. What would you advise?
Hi Virginia,
OK, well most travertine is pretty dense,and usually honed to a fine smooth flat finish, some is even semi polished. All of which means that the acrylic coating sealer will not have got too much of a hold. Most acrylic coatings can be fairly easily removed just with a high alkaline cleaner and a little hot water.
I suggest you go the the same place that sold the sealer as they are likely to have a high alkaline heavy duty tile cleaner . Mix this in accordance with the instructions on the bottle.
In some cases the coating is resistant to alkalines and a sealer stripper may be required.
Hope this helps
Ian
I recently did a DIY backsplash in my kitchen with polished marble. I was happy with the results except that I used a sanded grout which left some marks on the tile only noticeable by me. Overall it had turned out very well. Where I really got into problems is when I went into the local box home improvement store looking for advice on a proper sealer for marble. They provided me with a Dupont semi-gloss sealer and finish. The result was horrible. Streaks in the tile and just overall bad appearance. I was told to try some Dupont heavy duty coating stripper as the gel would help it adhere to the vertical surface. Problem is I cant find any close to where I live. What are your thoughts on using a gelled paint and varnish remover? I’m very nervous about ruining the stone and or grout. Any thoughts, comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Hi Carl,
OK, you have a coating sealer on a stone that is not really suited to it.
I do not know the Du Pont product so I do not know if a solvent stripper is needed or not. Many coating sealers can be removed with a high alkaline cleaner so you could try that first – should be easy to get hold of. You can also try a micro abrasive cleaner – there are several now and they tend to be made from calcium based minerals so will not scratch the stone.
If you have to go to a stripper (and again there are several on the market) then first check that it is ok on polished marble, some (not all) can dull the surface)
You appear to be in Toronto, I have a couple of contacts who may be able to help – contact me via the contact us form if you would like me to pass on their details.
Hope this helps
Ian
Hi Ian,
I have just had a new red and charcoal stone patio installed, and sealed it myself with Thompson’s one coat sealer. I waited until slabs were all dry, but I think the red ones still had moisture below surface, and many if them are now all stained white. I have only used water and detergent so far to remove the staining with no joy. I was going to try a reseal, but not sure if this will work without fully removing the white. Also, as I used a one coat sealer, would I be over applying if re-sealed?
Thanks in advance
Joe
Hi Joe,
I am not completely familiar with this product but it would appear to be an acrylic coating sealer. This type of sealer can turn white when exposed to moisture, in fact it is quite common. So, it is not stains caused by water, rather water has permanently altered (you could say damaged) the sealer in those spots. It would be impractical to try to remove only those spots. So, I fear you will have to remove all of the sealer and start again.
There are a number of products on the market that should remove this (I have been told that Wexa by Lithofin does a good job on this, you can get it here http://www.extensive.co.uk/product.php/114/wexa-1l).
Once it is removed, rinse thoroughly, then let the stone dry completely before sealing again. Regarding the once coat, I suspect that the idea is that in most cases one coat is enough, however I would imagine that additional coats will be possible. It would be easy to test on an off-cut though, if the second coat beads up and wont lie flat (says in globules) then one coat has achieved 100% seal and it is pointless to try to add another, it sill only dry streaky and maybe even sticky. If however, the second coat seems to lie flat, and dries nicely then no problem – but the manufacturer should be able to advise on that. If you stone is a sandstone then i would be surprised if one coat of any sealer is going to be all that it will take.
Hope this helps
Ian
A company sealed the stone around our pool. It is a natural stone Tennessee stacking stone. Many stones have white spots on them. How do we get rid of them. The sealer used was Old Castle concrete paver sealer.
They have tried reselling and that did not work. Any help you can give would be appreciated!
Hi mark,
I am in the UK so I am not familiar with this stone or the sealer but, from the very quick bit of research I did, it looks like a sandstone and the sealer looks like a solvent based coating sealer.
Often, this type of sealer can be quite susceptible to moisture during application and curing. Some can have moisture related issues even after they have cured.
If there was any excess of moisture while the product was trying to cure, then it may have cured with these white spots. Normally this means the the actual sealer has become opaque/white this is ‘damage’ to the sealer, it has become permanently altered, adding more sealer will do nothing, it will just sit on top of the damaged layer, if it sticks at all. I suspect that the only action you can take is to remove the damaged sealer – would suggest you contact the sealer manufacturer for their removal recommendations, and start again.
Hope this helps
Ian