Travertine deep cleaning/restoration

[doingygirl]

Hi,
We had honed chiseled edge travertine tiles installed in our kitchen and powder room about 2 years ago. Unfortunately they were never sealed, despite my questioning the contractor about the need to seal them. Fast forward to today and as you can guess the tile and grout need some deep cleaning and proper sealing. I contacted a couple of professional stone restoration companies (we live in D.C.) and they basically recommended having the tile and grout thoroughly cleaned and diamond honing (200-300 grit) followed by a powder polish (oxalaic acid) to restore luster and finished with a penetrating sealer. Does this sound like the proper protocol to restore our stone? I want to make sure things get done properly the second time around.
-Thanks,
DG

[doingygirl]

I forgot to mention that one of the stone restoration companies included the application of a honing powder. I'm not sure how that compares to diamond honing and use of oaxalic acid on restoring honed travertine floors.

[Trask]

DG,

Most restoration contractors I've run across are very good..They really know what they are doing and are often expensive as a result. What they are proposing in your case certainly does not seem uncommon. I would question how far you need or want to go with the polishing. Travertine can be polished but it is going to need a much higher degree of maint./care to preserve it. I have seen very good results from just honing and sealing. You might want to have the restoration comp. do a small sample area in a closet or hidden area. You then also get to see how they work on a very small scale. I would offer to pay a bit more for that service, but it buys you piece of mind.