Bright yellow on marble tile

[Aspandrea]

Help!! We purchased a marble mosaic tile for a backsplash and laid it out on the floor to apply sealant to it so the grout would not stain once we got it adheres to the wall. I applied the sealant per the instructions and left it to dry for 24 hours. Now that the tile is completely dry some of the tiles have bright yellow staining on them. Note that the tiles never got wet with anything except the sealant. How can I get it out? It’s ruined about 25% of the tile we purchased and don’t want to run the risk of using replacement tile and having the same thing happen.

[cx]

Welcome, Andrea.

I'm guessing what you applied to the tiles was a penetrating sealer, rather than any sort of sealant. Best to tell our folks specifically what sealer you used.

Photos would also likely be helpful in diagnosing the problem.

I've never encountered what you're describing, not in real life nor here on the forums. Hopefully someone else will recognize the problem.

My opinion; worth price charged.

[Aspandrea]

See attached for photo of what’s happening

[jerrymlr1]

Hi Andrea. My first guess would be that something was already on the tile and the Miracle 511 reacted with it and resulted in the yellow stain. That looks like chinese stone and there's no tellin what it's been thru. How much of the stone do you have and how much invested? You might bring this up to the folks at FnD, especially if you bought both the stone and sealer at the recommedation of the sales person there.

[Tool Guy - Kg]

Welcome, Andrea!

After applying the sealer, did you polish it completely dry within about 5 minutes....or did you let the sealer dry on it’s own?

[Aspandrea]

It was dryish when we left it overnight. I’m guessing there was something on the tile since it was a clearance item at Lowe’s and likely not the highest quality. That will teach me to look for a deal! Is it safer to get marble tile from a place like Floor & Decor or do I have to go to a specialty tile type store?

[jerrymlr1]

Not sure why I was thinking you had bought from Floor and Decor Andrea. Lingered on from another thread maybe. I honestly doubt you will run into this again. It wouldn't hurt to buy one sheet of something you like and do some testing at home. When the sealer is applied it is to be wiped off in the first few minutes, not leaving any standing liquid whatsoever behind. I have a feeling you will find some suitable marble tile at FnD.

[jadnashua]

Is the sealer itself slightly the color indicated? I'm guessing, but those blotches are probably excess sealer that pooled. All of the sealers I've used call for applying, waiting a specified time, then buffing the excess off. That dried on excess can be a big pain to remove. Sometimes, the solvent in the sealer if you were to apply some more then buff well, is the easiest way to remove the excess. Wouldn't hurt to try it on a small area.

[Dave Gobis]

My bet is some type of iron reaction.

[Tool Guy - Kg]

I was thinking that it was iron in the tile rusting from the sealer moisture when I asked if the sealer was polished completely dry. And if Dave thinks it’s an iron reaction, that solidifies my bet, as well.

This problem isn’t something that’s easy to spot...and buying new stuff from F&D doesn’t guarantee avoiding the problem in the future. Natural stone is not necessarily homogeneous...it’s one of the reason for its physical beauty.....but it also means that unpredictable stuff like this can happen. Sorry. Just be glad it didn’t happen from the moisture from your mortar after you set the tile.