Care and Cleaning of Acrylic and Cultured Marble Products

The question I get most often, and probably the best one for my first post, is about cleaning and maintaining acrylic and cultured marble products. The best answer is, of course, the simplest. Plain old spray Lysol and a soft sponge or washcloth. However, for those of you that want a more detailed answer, I will list more options and techniques. Please remember, all these products are for acrylic and cultured marble products. I do not know how they will perform on glass, porcelain, tile and grout, etc.

The product I go to more often than anything is the disinfecting wipes. They are easy to use and they disinfect. If I am having company then I will probably follow up with a glass wipe for shine. Nothing makes acrylic or cultured marble bath products shine like a glass cleaner. Of course, this is for people that don’t have any water issues like too much calcium.

Those of you, like myself, that have deposits in your water that builds up in your sinks, tubs, or showers need a little more help. You have to find a product that removes the buildup before you can disinfect. I have well water that leaves a nice layer of calcium on anything it touches. To get the calcium off I use CLR. Put some on a sponge and spread the CLR over the trouble area. Let it sit for several minutes then use your sponge to wipe the calcium off. You may have to work it a little to get all the calcium off. Then rinse and clean the area.

If you have a small amount of paint or a sticky substance on the product then you can put some acetone on a soft cloth and wipe the paint or stickiness off. Then rinse and clean the area. Goo Gone also works. Please don’t pour acetone on the trouble spot and let it sit and never use paint thinner on the acrylic or cultured marble surface. I don’t know how many people have called us because paint thinner ate a hole in their tub.

Lastly, cleaning a whirlpool system is probably the easiest of all. Fill your tub with hot water to 1” above the highest jet. Add 1 cup of bleach or drop in a tablet of dishwasher detergent. Do not use the liquid dish soap like Joy, Palmolive, Dawn, etc. This will cause a mountain of bubbles and a huge mess. Only use the dishwasher detergent like Cascade, Finish, etc. Then turn on your whirlpool system and run for about 15 minutes. If it has been a long time since the whirlpool system was cleaned then feel free to drain the water, fill it back up and run it a second time with more cleaner. After you have run the cleaner through drain the tub and fill with cold, clean water to 1” above the highest jet and run for a couple of minutes. Your whirlpool system is now clean. You should do this about once a month with normal use. You can clean the system more often if you would prefer. It won’t hurt the whirlpool system.

Remember, ask questions if you have them. I will be more than happy to research something if I dont have a ready answer.