• Spring cleaning, natures precious and valuable stone

• Restoring and enhancing colour

• Inhibiting dirt & Staining

For many of us homeowners, we spend a huge amount of money and time on the buying, building, laying or inheriting stone for in and outside the home. From Indian Sand Stone, York Stone and similar related surfaces, these are expensive and valuable assets as much as any other part of the home. Yet do we pay, recognise or give them the due care and attention natures’ precious, natural products offer us?

With that time of year having arrived, we start thinking primarily about Barbeques, outside entertaining and making sure the exterior looks and stays looking at its best as the sun shines with the odd downpour.

Many homes have Natural Indian Sandstone either as a patio and around a swimming pool or hot tub, which is an extremely porous surface, absorbing liquids like a sponge if not sealed. You will want to protect it from anything that can leave a stain such as drinks party spillages, cooking and food oils, whether from dropped sausages, flipped burgers, dripped mayonnaise any associated food stains such as squirted ketchup or indeed muddy feet or sun tan lotion. The list goes on.

The exterior is an important extension of our homes that reflects who we are as much as the interior and something we want to enjoy and share with others. Whether a patio, driveway, or any other brick surfaces it demands the same level of love, care and attention for maximum enjoyment that comes with the ‘spring clean’ of the home this time of year.

The fallacy for many of us is that by simply getting the jet wash out or a bucket of soapy water on stone surfaces, they will wash and clean away the winter grime, mould, lichen, dirt as well as the day-to-day food spoils. Unfortunately washing alone will not do the job nor protect our stone from either the summer patio antics, prepare it for the other seasons or keep inside stone looking beautiful. What we all want is to maintain and restore the original colours and ensure the surfaces are sealed for long-term protection and maximum beauty.

What is frequently overlooked by some builders, landscapers, interior designers or DIY’ers is the need from the outset to ensure any stone or brick surfaces, whether interior or exterior have first been thoroughly cleaned down and then immediately sealed for ultimate long-term protection. By doing both you will be bringing back their beautiful colours and retaining them. We spend hours choosing the right stone colours to match our surroundings and don’t want them to lose their lustre and vibrancy and end up looking tired.  

The thought of tackling such a job though can feel daunting, overwhelming, time intensive, and potentially unsafe with children and pets around, especially if handling a flammable product of which there are a few. Indeed for many it is believed that it is a job only a professional should undertake.

The interior stonewalls and surfaces are equally as important. Many homes have stone, forming beautiful feature pieces, from walls, flag stone floors to stone or brick hearths, sooted and needing safe cleaning and then sealing to protect. All homes experience ‘wear and tear’ from daily activity and if you have children and pets there is an extra level of heavy use.  From the wet and dirty animals shaking off their escapades, to little hands exploring all surfaces with anything from buttery fingers to ice cream and drawing or painting products. Indeed perhaps an overzealous teenager who has dropped body or sun cream and oily makeup.

The priority with any product of this nature has to be ease of application either with a brush or roller, the speed at which it dries, safe, and has the bonus of being able to re-use the tools, which are expensive, by being able to clean them with soap and water.  Ideal if you are cost conscious and keen to re-cycle, which many products do not cater for.

It is important in a cost conscious environment that a single product is able to perform a number of different tasks. As chemists for over 50 years, Wiseman Industries have kept the user at the heart of their product development. They recognise the unwillingness of today’s consumer to have to buy multiple products to do one job, which is hugely inefficient and ultimately costs more.

We see this with paint, where for the required finish you either buy a matt or gloss finish. Why can there not be a product that does both and depends upont the number of applications? What consumers are prepared to pay for are products that sit alongside one another to ensure maximum effect in the same way as shampoo and conditioner.

Considerable research and development time has been spent creating a product that achieves all of these things sealing, helping to protect and a choice of finishes for your   stonework. WISEMAN Indian Sandstone Sealer ‘ISS”, protects when applied and achieves the best results when its sister product cleaner ‘Brickie’ is used as the cleaner prior to sealing. Vital so as to ensure you do not seal in existing oil, grease, stains for other coatings. This will ensure you get the best possible outcome as either a matt or gloss finish.

Don’t be daunted by the thought of bringing your stone back to life to retain its beauty. An easy job, which will give huge enjoyment.