What is the best way to remove hard water stains on dark granite?

Janine Hammond
by Janine Hammond
I have hard water stains around the faucets in my bathroom. It is dark granite. What is the best way to remove stains?
  4 answers
  • William William on May 07, 2017

    Marble, granite, and stone do NOT like having acidic (ie: citrus-based) cleaners used on them. Citrus or vinegar will actually cause “etching” on granite countertops. Not a good thing. Granite countertops also don’t like it when you use something like Windex on them because it strips the “seal” off of the stone. *****Apparently there are some very nice countertop/granite cleaners out there that do a great job…but $7.00 for a 12-ounce bottle? YOU can do better than that! :-) ***** After researching several homemade options out there…I discovered they all had the same basic ingredients…just in varying amounts. Some had a LOT of alcohol in them…some very little. I think the following “recipe” has a good balance of the ingredients, based on the information I read. ***** Homemade Granite Cleaner, 1/4 cup of rubbing alcohol (or cheap vodka), 3 drops of Dawn or other dish soap (Castile soap would also be a good alternative if you prefer), Water, 5-10 drops essential oil (optional – to help mask the alcohol smell). ***** Put the rubbing alcohol or vodka into a 16 oz spray bottle. Add the dish soap, essential oil and fill up the rest of the bottle with water.


    Now give it a few shakes….THEN give it a try! It should give your countertops a nice, clean shine. Works on appliances too! All at a FRACTION of the price of the store-bought stuff.


  • Vls21368592 Vls21368592 on May 27, 2017

    I have used a salt paste . . . . lots of salt and a little vinegar to make the paste. Smear on and leave for 15-30 minutes. Hard water build up comes off and stays off better than other things I've tried.

  • Vls21368592 Vls21368592 on May 27, 2017

    I've used it on granite and the surface around the faucets does not feel or looked scratched. The area is a bit rough but I think that could just as likely be from the hardwater build up.

  • Janine Hammond Janine Hammond on May 27, 2017

    Thanks so much! I tried it and it did a good job with lightly rubbing!