Tools needed to polishing granite edges
- Angle grinder
- Diamond polishing pads: Diamond pads are hard, sharp and wear-resistant, suitable for granite. Diamond polishing pads are available in wet pads and dry pads. It is recommended to choose wet polishing pads which can effectively reduce dust generation.
A complete set of diamond grit. From coarse to fine, such as 50, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1500, 3000. - soft resin backing pad: used to support the grinding disc to connect the angle grinder. It is recommended to use a soft and flexible resin backing pad that can be bent appropriately to polish the granite edge.
- Diamond hand polishing pads (for manual polishing when there are no power tools. Electroplated diamond hand polishing pads are recommended. The back is a foam pad, which is very suitable for hand polishing. The grit size is #60, #100, #200, #400, which is sharp enough to polish the edge of granite.Diamond handa pads are also use for polishing glass,tiles,marble,ceramic and more hard material.
Granite Edges Polishing With Angle Grinder
Rough grinding: Install a 50 grit diamond grinding disc, set the grinder to low speed (recommended speed <1000rpm), and tilt the angle to about 45°. Move the grinder back and forth from one side of the edge to the other for grinding.
Note: Apply constant light pressure (avoid excessive force), and pay special attention to grinding along the edge for at least a few seconds to remove burrs and uneven surfaces left after granite cutting.
During the grinding process, you can continuously add water to rinse the grinding area to reduce dust and extend the service life of the grinding disc.
Detect scratches: After completing the 50 grit rough grinding, observe and touch the edge. At this time, large gaps, burrs and deep scratches should basically disappear. If there are still obvious roughness or cutting marks If there are any marks, continue to use 50 mesh for grinding until the surface is flat.
Fine grinding: Change the grinding grit: After the coarse marks of the 50 grit grinding disc are removed, change to 100 grit, 200 grit, 400 grit, and 800 grit in sequence.
Polishing in sequence: Continue grinding from 100 grit; after checking by hand to remove the marks of the previous stage, change to a finer grit. After polishing with 400 grit, the surface should be very smooth but almost matte; after continuing to 800 grit, the surface begins to show a slight brightness. Each stage should move evenly to ensure that the brightness and finish of the entire edge are consistent.
Use water to check whether the polishing is smooth: During the polishing process, you can spray water on the polished surface regularly and wipe it dry immediately to check the surface smoothness. If a certain place remains wet and forms water marks, it means that the place is still not flat enough and needs to be polished again.
High gloss polishing: In the final stage, you can use 1500 grit, 3000 grit or even finer polishing discs to achieve a mirror effect.
Granite Edged Polishing By Hands
Wet grinding and lubrication: Keep the sandpaper wet during manual grinding (you can dip it in water regularly or use a spray bottle to wet it), which can prevent the sandpaper from clogging and stone chips from splashing, and increase the polishing effect. Wet sandpaper slides more smoothly on the stone surface.
Uniform force unidirectional movement: Grind back and forth in the same direction (such as along the length of the edge) with constant force, do not turn back and forth or use varying forces. You can wrap the sandpaper on a flat plate or building block to distribute the grinding force evenly.
Uniform coverage: Make sure that each section of the edge is similarly polished during manual polishing, and do not miss some areas, otherwise it will cause inconsistent gloss. Pay special attention to corners and edges, and increase the local polishing time appropriately.
The same is polishing in order of grain size, first coarse grinding (starting with #60 mesh) and then polishing in sequence, from coarse grinding to fine grinding.
Repeat inspection: Touch the edge with your fingers to check the smoothness during polishing, and clean the surface with water to observe the gloss. If necessary, you can use higher-fine sandpaper for multiple treatments until the edge is smooth and has no rough feeling and reaches the expected brightness.
How to maintain granite
Cleaning and sealing: After polishing, clean the edges of the granite thoroughly with clean water and a soft cloth. After drying, it is recommended to apply a stone-specific sealant for sealing protection to slow down the penetration of stains. Stone sealants can fill tiny pores and prevent oil and water stains from invading.
Regular maintenance: Use a neutral detergent for daily cleaning to avoid acid and alkali corrosion. For occasions that require extra gloss, you can use stone-specific paraffin wax or polishing wax for light polishing, but generally the granite itself is bright enough to meet the requirements.
Inspection and maintenance: If the seal is found to be aging or the glossiness has decreased, you can re-grind it with fine sandpaper and re-apply sealant or wax. Keeping the edges clean and free of dirt can also prolong the polishing effect.
