Cleaning Quartz corner

boardtc

I have quartz counter meeting a quartz upstand. Behind the sink after 3 years the join has got very dirty:


Does anyone have experience restoring this to former glory?

I was not sure what forum was best for this. Please let me know if there's a better one and I can move.

Thanks!

Sleeper12

There should be clear silicone between the two so you don't want to go picking at it with a pin or something.

It's most likely a bit of mould & spray bleach would remove that. Spray & leave for a half hour. Wipe away. Repeat if necessary

Payton

Sleeper12 wrote: »

There should be clear silicone between the two so you don't want to go picking at it with a pin or something.

It's most likely a bit of mould & spray bleach would remove that. Spray & leave for a half hour. Wipe away. Repeat if necessary

Use a toothbrush for stubborn parts.

Glass fused light

As above and lay a vinegar soked cloth against it to breakdown lime scale and use a toothbrush to give it a gentle scrub (dotto for the tap)

k123456

I would be careful, of leaving bleach on expensive quartz, may stain it.
Same for acid ,ie vinegar

boardtc

Thanks for the advice. I used the mildew remover, sprayed and left for 45 min:


I then used a soft toothbrush. Nothing budged :-(

Next I got an old wrag and soaked it with white vinegar, I left it length ways against the stain for 30min, again I went at it with the toothbrush. No chnage whatsoever :mad:

Glass fused light

Did you do around the tap with the same result?
Can you see the silicone and is it discoloured

boardtc

I need to double was not too concerned about the tap as I have a cleaner that normally works on it but this silicone discolouration is different. The picture looks the same as posted after doing the suggestions, if that answers your question?

Glass fused light

If the cleaner you normaly use works on the tap but not the joint it suggests not a limescale issue but more the silicone.

boardtc

I managed to remove a lot of the silicone carefully with a knife/nails. Interestingly some of the silicone was black at the back as it sprang out - definite mould.

I have not been able to find out if the installer used anti fungal silicone - does it work for such a regularly wet area in people's experience?

Dr_Colossus

boardtc wrote: »

I managed to remove a lot of the silicone carefully with a knife/nails. Interestingly some of the silicone was black at the back as it sprang out - definite mould.

I have not been able to find out if the installer used anti fungal silicone - does it work for such a regularly wet area in people's experience?

It’s no harm and worth using where water is prevalent such as around sinks/showers etc. The problem however with silicone is usually in the application in that the user will run the bead along a dry corner but then spray the area with a detergent mix to that excess silicone doesn’t stick to surfaces outside of the immediate corner and also to facilitate a smooth finish. This results in water/detergent getting trapped between the silicone and wall/upstand which doesn’t make a good seal and while initially looks good will result in mould and discolouration over time. Better to apply the silicone bead, tool/finger so there’s a good seal and thereafter spray with water/detergent mix for the final finish and tidy up.

boardtc

boardtc wrote: »

I managed to remove a lot of the silicone carefully with a knife/nails. Interestingly some of the silicone was black at the back as it sprang out - definite mould.

I have not been able to find out if the installer used anti fungal silicone - does it work for such a regularly wet area in people's experience?

So back after I posted in 2019 the installer of the Quartz counter got a recommendation of White MA silirub by Soudaland I bought a tube from him, seemingly it contains fungicide which should mean that no fungus can grow on it. I carefully applied a bead. But it has not stood up at all and it's nearly as bad again as in my OP

Has anyone cracked this problem of counter/upstand corner black mould?

Dr_Colossus

How did you apply it. Here's the best video to explain how and what not to do:

Also for that quartz I'd get a beige/grey silicone rather than white to match the stone colour, won't be as obvious.

Nigzcurran

boardtc wrote: »

So back after I posted in 2019 the installer of the Quartz counter got a recommendation of White MA silirub by Soudaland I bought a tube from him, seemingly it contains fungicide which should mean that no fungus can grow on it. I carefully applied a bead. But it has not stood up at all and it's nearly as bad again as in my OP

Has anyone cracked this problem of counter/upstand corner black mould?

I remember buying the most expensive anti fungal anti mould silicone I could find when I was sealing up around my bath and sink and it went crap after a few months, I replaced it with the standard white Bostik silicone and it’s still as good as new after about 7 years.

Gael23

Cif Cream on a toothbrush