Travertine cleaning and sealing in Palm Beach

On Palm Beach estates, travertine tends to belong to the newer layer of the property: a pool terrace added below an older sandstone house, an outdoor kitchen, a loggia opening onto the garden. That often puts travertine and sandstone side by side, with steps of one leading onto paving of the other. Depending on which side of the peninsula the house faces, the travertine takes ocean spray or damp Pittwater air, plus pool salt and the leaves and flowers of established gardens. The coping edge is where salt damage shows first. Shaded corners turn dark with mould, and sunscreen and cooking oils leave marks near loungers and the barbecue.

Mixed-stone areas are where careless cleaning does the most harm, because a product that suits one stone can damage the other. Our technicians treat the travertine with alkaline and pH-neutral limestone cleaners and soft rotary pads, and the neighbouring sandstone with its own low-pressure, biocide-led method, masking the junction between them. Leaf stains and mould are pre-treated; greasy marks may need a solvent poultice. The pool is covered and rinse water collected. Along the way we note etching, worn areas and open holes, and check for loose coping that a tiler or pool builder should re-bed before sealing.

When the stone has dried, holes are packed with a filler toned to the travertine, and an impregnator suited to salt and pool water is laid down in thin coats and buffed back so nothing sits on the surface. The terrace keeps a natural, grippy finish, or a deeper colour if you choose an enhancer after seeing a sample. The sandstone beside it gets a sealer matched to its own porosity, where sealing suits it. Coping on the ocean side will generally need re-sealing ahead of sheltered Pittwater terraces. A yearly water-drop test on the exposed edges tells you when, and we keep a record of each product used.