When we invest in things such as countertops, we want to be sure
we’re taking care of them as well as we can. This often times involves
cleaning them regularly when in use. While it’s always good to thoroughly
clean and disinfect your countertops to promote longevity, it’s also
important to know what disinfecting products could actually be harming your
counters. Be careful using these cleaning products on your
countertops:
Anything acid
based. This includes cleaners based in vinegar, lemon
juice, or ammonia. All of those can permanently damage your countertop as
well as strip the seal on it. Lemon in particular has calcite in it which is
harmful to the sealant so when dealing with lemons themselves, be sure to
clean up right away.
All
abrasives. Any scouring cleaning product in powder or
cream form can be extremely hurtful to your countertop. Outside of this, an
S.O.S. pad will also gradually deplete your sealant as well which will end up
leaving your counter unprotected.
Too
much soapy water. While this is a solid base level of
cleaning as well as the most widely used form because of how easy it is, you
have to be conscious of how you’re doing it. If you are leaving too much
soapy residue behind, over time the soap will begin to eat away at your table
or sealant as well.
The generic stuff.
As all-purpose as your cleaning product might claim to be, you more than
likely want to avoid using it on your countertop surface. Many of them
contain bleach, acids, alkalis, or other harsh chemicals that will wear your
sealant over time or destroy your counter as well. While it might help, you
cut cost in the short-term sense, you’ll have a nightmare on your hands when
you have to reseal or replace countertops later on.
