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Donna asked: How do I remove grease from backsplash stone tiles? Behind my stove, I have a stone backsplash, and I noticed grease stains dripping down a couple of them. I tried to clean it, but the grease is not budging.
If routine care doesn’t remove cooking grease from your stone backsplash, try this popular product for safe, effective cleaning of kitchen stone.
You Will Need:
- Akemi Oil and Grease Remover Paste
- Baking soda
- Brush or spatula
- Your regular stone cleaning product
- Paper towels
Steps to Remove the Grease Build-Up:
- First, clean the area with your regular stone cleaner. This will remove any surface dirt or dust as well as some of the top layer of the grease. Ensure that it is completely dry before continuing.
- Apply the paste in a thin (1-2 mm) layer over the stained area with a brush or spatula. For a natural alternative to the Akemi paste, you can try making your own by mixing baking soda with a small amount of water.
- Allow it to sit on the stains for 30-60 minutes, until the paste has had time to dry.
- Brush the dried residue away with a brush or cloth.
- Repeat the process as needed until the grease is removed.
- Finish by cleaning the surface again with your regular stone care product. This will remove any remaining residue from the cleaning product.
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Additional Tips and Advice
- AKEMI works like a poultice, but the creamy form is lighter and thinner and requires less drying time. This makes it a more practical solution for application over vertical surfaces and in high use areas such as behind the cooktop.
- Use between 41 and 77 degrees Fahrenheit for best results.
I have a spot on recently installed stone tile, backsplash, which my wife says is from butter. The spot is about the size of a fingernail and she said the only way to remove it is by using cat litter. True or is their another remedy that I should use?
B.,
Your wife is both right and wrong. The kitty litter method is basically the best way to remove oil from almost anything. However, the method is usually adapted into a poultice for stone tile. The principle of the method is to use an oil-absorbing powder to soak up the oil. Hence, the above article recommends the Akemi paste; it is basically a ready-made poultice. In place of kitty litter, you can use baking soda, cornstarch or flour and mix the powder with either water or hydrogen peroxide to make a paste.
If the oil cannot be soaked out of the tile with a poultice, you will next want to try a chemical cleaner to break down the oil. There are many recommended methods; mineral spirits, ammonia, bleach or pure acetone. Dish soap and water also might do the trick.
Source: Stone Tile Liquidators – Removing Stains From Natural Stones
Source: eHow – Poultice for Stain Removal on Stone Floors
Source: The Granite City – Stone Care
Source: HowToCleanStuff.net – How to Remove Stains from Granite Countertops
Will this work for granite? I have an extremely greasy granite backsplash. Not sure if what you mean by stone would include granite.
Thank you.
Laura,
Yes, the Akemi paste can be used on granite, but you should always test a new product in a small hidden area first to be sure it’s safe for your specific stone.
Source: Akemi – Stone Care