Marble is a beautiful choice of stone for your kitchen worktop – there is no other stone which has the same classic appearance, and this in itself will give your kitchen a totally different feel to when you use another stone. There is a reason why the Ancient Greeks and Romans chose this opulent stone even back in the day!

Despite that, marble needs some careful looking after, in order to keep it in the best condition, and to avoid what is known as etching. Etches are dull spots which appear on the marble surface, and this is caused by acid eating away at the marble itself. We know that marble is made up of calcium carbonate, and this in itself is what reacts with acid – any type of acid, even lemon juice splashes. For that reason, avoid using anything acidic on your worktop, and if you must use, make sure you have a worktop saver, and you don’t let anything splash.

That aside, cleaning a marble kitchen worktop isn’t that difficult, provided you know what to do, and you have a few handy hints in the back of your mind. Here are five tips for cleaning your new, shiny marble kitchen worktop.

1. Use warm water and gentle soap – These two ingredients are all you need to clean your worktop in the most gentle of ways. Grab an old spray bottle, make sure it is well rinsed out and no remnants of its former contents will find their way into the liquid, and mix together warm water and gentle soap (no chemicals in it). Shake the mixture and spray onto the surface of your worktop – don’t overdo it, you don’t need too much.

2. Wipe and buff with a hot damp cloth, and a dry towel – You don’t need anything too fancy here, a simple soft cloth will do, soaked in hot water and squeezed until excess water comes out. Simply wipe away the cleaning solution we mentioned above. When you’ve done that, a soft towel is all you need to buff the surface.

3. Make sure you wipe up any spillages straight away – This is probably a no brainer, but never let any spillages sit on top of your worktop for any time at all, this includes simple water. Marble is porous, and that means it absorbs liquids. This will also cut down on the chances of staining.

4. Consider using a spray sealant on a monthly basis – You could use a dedicated marble sealant spray on a monthly basis. This gives you a barrier between the marble worktop and the rest of the world basically, and should cut down on the chances of any etching or staining. You should also have your marble worktop sealed professionally every year.

5. Avoid any harsh cleaning productive or abrasive cleaning sponges – Stick to warm water and soap, avoiding any products which contain chemicals such as bleach or ammonia. Scouring pads are a big no-no, as well as anything with even the slightest scratch surface.

Stick to these five tips and you should find that your beautiful marble kitchen worktop stays in the best condition possible for much longer. Of course, how often you need to clean depends on the colour you choose, because classic white will show up even the slightest splash, whereas black possibly won’t, but regardless of that, you should always attend to your marble regularly.