How to perfectly clean a granite sink

Granite has recently been a very popular choice when choosing a kitchen sink. Its main advantage is appearance and durability. Granite sinks are most often made of a mixture of quartz and granite, to which a binder with a dye is added. The resulting surface resembles natural stone .

Sink manufacturers often use other names for granite surfaces, which may differ by the specific composition of the mixture. These are, for example, Silgranit and Silgranit II (Blanco), Fragranit Durakleen Plus + Sanitized (Franke), Crystallite and Cristadur (Schock), Tegranit (Teka), Metaltek and Granitek (Elleci) and many others.

Despite the high resistance to scratches, however, the surface may "fall off" over time, especially in the case of white and light shades. This is most often caused by dirty dishes remaining in the sink for a long time (overnight). The worst stain makers are coffee, tea and red wine. Therefore, it is very important to at least rinse the surface of the sink with water , so that unwanted liquids flow into the waste and do not leave a stain.

In the event that a stain appears or you just want to return the sink to its original shine, we bring you instructions and a procedure on how to do it. Unfortunately, you cannot do without special cleaning products .

This is what the sink looked like before we started cleaning. As you can see, the surface is dark, weathered and definitely does not look like new. The Blanco sink in the photo is approximately one year old.

Step #1: Wash with regular kitchen cleaner

First, wash the sink with a regular kitchen cleaner that you have at home. In most cases, it is enough to spray it on a dry surface, leave it on for a few minutes, then wipe it off and rinse it off.

As you can see in the photo, after using the product, the surface looks the same . But it is important to degrease it and get rid of any larger impurities (food residues) so that they do not get into the special sponge that we will use in the next step.

Step #2: Using a special cleaning paste

Most manufacturers of granite sinks also offer means for their cleaning. We used the Franke Twister cleaning paste , which will cost you just 169 CZK and will really last for several years.

The paste is applied to a special sponge that is part of the package and applied to the surface of the sink with circular movements. Don't be afraid to press down, you won't scratch the granite surface, but be careful of the stainless steel outlet , try to avoid it. For easier application, we recommend slightly moistening the sponge.

The sink looks a lot better now, but on closer inspection you can see that it's still not perfectly clean (white). Especially around the outlet.

Step #3: Use an active cleanser

The last step is to use a special active cleaner. In our case, we used Blanco Activ Pulver at a price of around 150 CZK and contains 3 bags. This preparation is great, but unfortunately its sale has probably ended and it is not possible to get it even in Germany.

As an alternative, you can use a cleaner with active oxygen, we found, for example, Heitmann bleach with active oxygen in powder or this package for cleaning a white granite sink . However, we haven't tried them yet.

The active cleaner works as a powder that is poured into hot (+60 °C) of water and leave to act for at least two hours. After using it, the surface is really white and even the stains around the outlet have disappeared.

What unfortunately did not disappear are the "dots" in the lower left corner of the sink. These are caused by the chipping of the granite, which was probably caused by a sharp object (knife).

Final advice

As you can see, the sink can really be perfectly cleaned and returned to its original color. Of course, dark sinks are more suitable for maintenance, on which small flaws are not visible.

Finally, remember these tips:

• Always flush spilled tea, coffee or wine in the sink with at least water and don't leave it on overnight
• Do not throw the dishes into the sink, but put them down. Granite lasts a long time and does not scratch, but it is possible to "chip" it
• Use the cleaning agents recommended by the manufacturer of your sink, as granite is not the same as granite and individual mixes may vary. Do not use lye or waste cleaner, they are so aggressive that they can damage the granite surface itself