Preparing for Marble Honing: Furniture, Dust and Timing

In short: The quality of polishing doesn't depend only on the machine and the craftsman; good preparation speeds up the work, improves the result and protects your home.

In this article, we cover what needs to be done before polishing, what the crew usually takes care of, and how you can plan the timing, in the form of a checklist.

What to Discuss Before Starting the Work

Clarifying the following points during the site survey prevents surprises on the day of the job:

• Areas to be polished: Deciding in advance which rooms, hallways and steps will be polished ensures that both the quote and the work plan are accurate.
• Who will move the furniture: If it isn't clear whether the homeowner or the crew will move the furniture, the start on the day of the job can be delayed by hours.
• Working hours and duration: Knowing what hours the crew will work and how many days the job will take makes it easier to plan your household routine and relations with neighbors.
• Crystallization or impregnation: Whether crystallization or impregnation will be applied after polishing changes both the duration and the materials, so it should be discussed during the survey.
• Continuing to live at home: If you will keep living at home, the order of the rooms is planned accordingly and the use of areas such as the kitchen and bathroom is arranged.

Furniture

Area to Be Cleared

Items touching the floor in the rooms to be polished should be removed as far as possible. The machine must work all the way up to the wall edges; a sofa left in the middle means the floor beneath it is not polished and will look different later.

Items That Cannot Be Moved

If built-in cabinets, heavy display cases or large furniture cannot be moved, this should be mentioned in advance. In such cases, the item is moved to an already polished section of the room, the remaining section is polished, and the item is moved back. This process extends the duration.

Rugs and Fragile Items

Rugs should be rolled up and moved to another room. Vases, frames and fragile items on low shelves should be kept away from machine vibration and cables.

Dust and Water Protection

There is very little dust with wet polishing; however, water and mud may splash.

• Baseboards and wall edges: Wooden baseboards, door frames and lower cabinet doors are protected with tape and plastic sheeting.
• Outlets: Outlets close to the floor are covered so that water and mud splashing during polishing do not reach the electrical installation.
• Wood and parquet transitions: Parquet or laminate flooring where the marble ends should be especially protected; it is sensitive to water.
• Rug edges and curtains: Rug edges and fabric curtains are lifted off the floor or tied up; otherwise they can absorb muddy water and become stained.

This protection is mostly done by the polishing crew; however, it is important for the homeowner to mention in advance any areas they particularly want protected.

Electricity and Water

• Strong electrical connection: Polishing machines require a strong electrical connection. The location of the fuse box should be shown to the crew; if a fuse trips, the work continues without waiting.
• Water source: A nearby tap or bathroom is used for wet polishing; if it is known where the water will be drawn from, hoses won't wander unnecessarily around the house.
• Wastewater disposal: Mud and wastewater are collected by vacuum; where it will be discharged should be determined in advance.

Pets and Children

Polishing machines are heavy and powerful; cables, water hoses and wet floors are present in the room during the work. For this reason, children and pets must be kept away from the work area. Cats and dogs may be disturbed by the noise of the machine; if possible, it is best for them to stay in another room or outside the house on work days. Also remember that a paw stepping on a wet, muddy floor can track marks into other rooms of the house. On the first day after polishing, keep in mind that pets' claws can scratch the freshly polished floor.

Neighbors and the Apartment Building

If the work will be done in an apartment building:

• Informing management and neighbors: If management and neighbors are informed of the work days in advance, the machine noise and the use of common areas are accepted without turning into complaints.
• Complying with quiet hours: Since polishing machines make noise, the building's quiet hours are observed; if necessary, the job is planned in stages over several days.
• Elevator and common areas: Protecting the elevator and common areas while equipment is carried prevents scratches and mud marks from being tracked to the building entrance.

These three steps are important for good relations with neighbors.

How to Plan the Duration?

The duration varies depending on the size of the area, the condition of the floor, the number of grit stages, the need for repairs and the edge work. As a general idea:

• Small bathroom or entrance: A small bathroom or entrance can be finished in a single day; even if the area is small, edge and corner work determines the duration.
• The whole apartment: An entire apartment can take several days; the number of rooms, the state of the furniture and the starting grit stage of the floor change the duration.
• Repair and drying: Repairs, fillings and other work that has to wait for drying can add extra days; the next stage is not started until the filler has hardened.

The exact duration is given at the site survey, after the floor has been seen. If there are dates involved, such as a move, guests or a rental, mentioning them upfront makes planning easier.

How Does a Polishing Day Go?

The schedule below summarizes a typical polishing day in a furnished apartment. Every job is different, but knowing the order makes it easier to plan your day:

Short Checklist

To make sure polishing day goes smoothly, completing a few basic preparations beforehand both speeds up the work and protects your home.

• Have small items been removed: If small items, rugs and fragile objects are removed from the rooms to be polished, the machine can work comfortably right up to the walls.
• Have large furniture pieces been reported: If large furniture that cannot be moved is reported to the team in advance, a separate work sequence is planned for the areas around and underneath it.
• Are the fuse box and tap identified: If the fuse panel and the tap to draw water from are known beforehand, the team can set up the machines and start work as soon as they arrive.
• Have parquet transitions been discussed: If parquet and wood transitions are discussed with the team, how to protect these water-sensitive surfaces is settled before work begins.
• Have the neighbors been informed: Informing the building management and neighbors prevents the work from being interrupted due to noise and use of common areas.
• Pet and child arrangements: If an arrangement is made for pets and children on working days, cables, hoses and the wet floor will not pose a risk to anyone.
• Do you know the first 48 hours: Not laying rugs and not doing wet cleaning in the first 48 hours after polishing allows the stone to dry and the applied protection to settle.

If Your Holiday Home Is in Alanya and You Are Away

Many homes in Alanya are owned by people who live out of town or abroad for most of the year. In this case, polishing can also be scheduled while the owner is absent: the key handover, moving and protecting belongings, and an update with photos and video at the end of the job are agreed in advance. An arrangement should also be made for airing the home for a few days after polishing, not laying rugs immediately, and not covering the home with sheets; otherwise the moisture inside the stone cannot escape and marks may remain under the covers.