Marble is beautiful but notoriously susceptible to scratching. As a relatively soft natural stone, marble floors, worktops and tiles show surface scratches, scuffs and dulling far more readily than granite or quartz. The good news is that unlike man-made surfaces, marble can be ground, honed and polished back to its original finish — or better.
Why Marble Scratches So Easily
Marble has a Mohs hardness of around 3–4, compared to 6–7 for granite. This means everyday abrasives — grit carried in on shoes, cleaning products, or simply dragging furniture across the floor — are hard enough to scratch or dull the polished surface. Marble is also vulnerable to acid etching from lemon juice, vinegar, wine and many cleaning products, which creates a dull patch that looks similar to a scratch but is actually surface dissolution.
What Type of Damage Do You Have?
- Fine surface scratches — visible when light catches the floor at an angle but no depth when run a fingernail across. Often repolishable.
- Deeper scratches — catch a fingernail; need honing (grinding away the top layer of stone) to remove.
- Acid etching — dull cloudy patches, often circular or drip-shaped. Respond well to re-polishing.
- Chips and gouges — actual material missing from the surface. Require filling before polishing.
Professional Marble Restoration
Professional marble restoration involves:
- Honing — grinding the surface with progressively finer abrasives to remove scratches and restore a flat, consistent surface
- Polishing — bringing the surface to the required finish, from matte/honed to high-gloss mirror polish
- Sealing — applying a penetrating impregnator sealer to protect against future staining
- Chip repair — filling chips with a colour-matched resin before honing and polishing
The result restores the marble to its original appearance, and in many cases looks better than new.
How Much Does Marble Restoration Cost?
For small areas (a single tile, a worktop section) or spot chip repairs, professional repair typically costs £80–£250. For a full floor hone and polish, pricing is typically per square metre and depends on the current condition of the stone and the required finish.
Shazam Repairs carries out marble chip repair and surface restoration across the UK. Get a free assessment →
