The process of stone sanding
Sanding is one of the most common treatments performed on natural stone. It allows to obtain a circular texture with regular grooves. It often precedes impregnation, that allows for deepening of the natural tone of the material or for producing “wet stone” effect. The whole process consists of three stages, which are described in the further part of the article.
The process of stone sanding:
Stage 1: Consists of scuffing of the top layer with diamond grinding wheels with different grits. This smoothes out the surface and removes any carvings and scratches that emerge during the production and cutting of the slabs, and wearing off on the wire saw. This treatment allows us to get rid of textures that were applied earlier, and to remove discolorations and streaks resulting from the contact of material that hasn’t been impregnated with harmful substance (this is often the case with marbles). It is worth adding, that scuffing is used for renovation of historic elements that have been covered with tarnish or were subjected to weathering with time.
Stage 2: Consists of coating of the surface with epoxy and polyester resins. Of course, before the substances are applied, the surface is being cleaned. The dust is wiped with a soft brush, then washed with water and left to dry. In order to make sure the surface has dried and there is no moisture left, it is heated with a gas burner. Leaving the surface moist could lead to chipping of the resin. When the stone surface is completely clean, appropriate substances are applied. The substance must dry on its own, therefore the slab is left to dry for several hours.
Stage 3: The surface is sanded again, this time with diamond grinding machines. We start with lowest grits, slowly moving on to higher grits in order to remove all roughness and obtain a uniform texture. Most often, the treatment is applied repeatedly, until the desired effect is achieved.
