Before you try anything: always speak to a professional before cleaning, treating or applying any product to your stone. Every slab is different, and the wrong product can cause permanent damage. Contact us or a qualified stone restorer first.
Quick answer
Red wine stains in quartzite lift with a hydrogen peroxide poultice: blot the wine immediately, wash the area, then leave the poultice covered for 24 to 48 hours to draw the colour out.
First, check what you are dealing with
- Purple, pink or grey-blue mark: a wine stain. Follow the steps below.
- Dull mark with no colour: worn surface treatment rather than the stone.
What you need
- Paper towel
- pH-neutral dish liquid
- Hydrogen peroxide
- Flour, talc or diatomaceous earth
- Plastic wrap and tape
- Plastic scraper
Step by step
Blot fast
Blot up every drop straight away. On quartzite, the first few minutes decide how deep the colour goes.
Wash the area
Clean with warm water and a few drops of pH-neutral dish liquid, rinse and dry with a soft cloth so you can see what is left on the quartzite.
Test first
Try the mixture on a hidden spot of your quartzite (inside a cut-out or under an overhang) and check the finish after it dries.
Mix the poultice
Stir an absorbent powder (plain flour, talc, diatomaceous earth or whiting) into hydrogen peroxide (3% from a pharmacy for fresh stains, or 12% from a hairdressing or pool supplier for older ones) until it has the consistency of peanut butter.
Apply it
Spread it 5 to 6 mm thick over the wine stain, extending about a centimetre past the edge. Resin-filled fissures in quartzite will not absorb much; concentrate on the stone around them.
Cover and wait
Cover with plastic wrap, tape the edges and poke a few small holes so it dries slowly. Leave it 24 to 48 hours until completely dry: the drying is what pulls the stain up into the powder.
Remove and rinse
Lift the dry poultice with a plastic scraper, rinse with clean water and dry the quartzite. If the wine stain is lighter but still there, repeat up to three times.
What not to use on quartzite
- Scourers, steel wool and abrasive creams on a polished surface.
- Mixing cleaning chemicals, especially bleach with anything else.
- Salt, soda water and white wine "tricks": they do nothing for stone and can spread the stain.
When to call a professional
If colour remains after three rounds, or you are dealing with a treated or resin-filled surface, call a restorer. A stone restorer can re-polish quartzite and draw out stains, though its hardness makes polishing slower work.
Understanding red wine stains on quartzite
True quartzite is dense, but porosity varies from slab to slab and even within a slab, so some quartzites absorb oil and dark liquids in patches.
A stone restorer can re-polish quartzite and draw out stains, though its hardness makes polishing slower work.
Good to know
True quartzite ignores wine's acidity, so a wine mark on quartzite is a stain in a porous patch, not an etch. If it looks dull rather than coloured, check whether the stone is really dolomite.
Stop it happening again
Whether yours is Taj Mahal, White Macaubas and Cristallo, repairing it fixes today's mark; protecting it stops the next one. Our clear Stone Protection Film sits over the surface, so liquids cannot soak in. Choose Gloss for polished quartzite or Matte/Satin for honed and matte finishes. The protection is identical. It is installed across Sydney with a 10-year written warranty.
How we protect quartzite · Stain removal guide · Red wine stains on every surface