Repairing a Marble Table Top
There's always something interesting going on at my Bedford, New York farm.
Some time ago, I decided to transform my blog studio into a more useable room for me and my family. I moved a very large, long marble topped table into the space. The top was made of three marble sections glued together - it was extremely heavy. Unfortunately, during transport the marble broke - at both seams and at one of the middle corners. Marble is a very beautiful and durable material, but like all stone, it can crack and break. Last week, a team from Precision Stone, Marble & Granite in nearby Greenwich Connecticut, came by to repair it. And the results were amazing.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
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- Marble is a hard crystalline metamorphic form of limestone, typically white with mottlings or streaks of color. Marble has been used for centuries – for buildings and monuments, interior decoration, statuary, table tops, and other architectural pieces. This is one of the breaks in the marble top – at the seam where two pieces were connected.
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- Here is another crack – this chunk was completely broken off. This marble top is a combination of marble and black granite – it is a beautiful and very valuable piece.
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- Carlos, Jerry, and Benicio from Precision Stone, Marble & Granite, came to repair the marble with a special stone epoxy.
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- The first step was to remove all the old epoxy from the sides of the break.
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- Here, one can see the chips of old epoxy that were removed. It is very important to clean all the surfaces, so the new epoxy can take firm hold. Epoxy resin is a very strong adhesive when used properly.
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- This is a clear epoxy that won’t be seen when the repair is complete.
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- For darker areas, Benicio mixes the clear with some gray to match the table top colors exactly.
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- Meanwhile, the team vacuums the area of any debris – leaving both sides of the marble clean and ready for repair. It is also wiped down with acetone, the same liquid solvent used in nail polish remover.
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- Carlos uses a heavy duty suction cup stone setter to hold the pieces together.
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- The two pieces must be level before they are glued. Carlos uses a wooden shim to level the pieces. This shim will be removed later. Then, he feels the two pieces to see if they are both aligned just right.
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- Carlos uses a simple utility razor blade to gently check the level of the pieces. Carlos feels for unevenness or irregularities by going over the seam in several spots with the blade.
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- Once the two pieces are completely level, Benicio spreads the epoxy in the crack and pushes it in as deeply as possible.
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- Here, one can see the epoxy in the seam. It is left to dry for about 15-minutes.
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- Any excess is carefully scraped off with the blade.
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- The suction cups are tightened to ensure the two pieces adhere properly.
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- Jerry uses the same process for the crack.
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- Here, there was also a small chip at the side of the table. The clear epoxy was used to repair it and then Benicio goes over the fixed area with the blade to make sure it is smooth.
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- Next, Benicio uses a very fine grit sandpaper over the seams to make sure any remaining epoxy is removed and the two surfaces are even and smooth. A vacuum is used alongside the sander to remove any dust.
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- The area is checked again with a razor blade.
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- The seam needs a little more sanding.
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- After some time, one cannot even see where the work was done.
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- Lastly, Carlos wipes the entire table with a heavy duty exterior sealer made especially for stone.
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- The table looks like new. What a great job! The entire process took just a little more than an hour to complete, and it looks great. Thanks Carlos, Jerry, and Benicio. Please visit the Precision Stone, Marble & Granite web site for more information. I’ll share more photos from this room’s transformation in a future blog.
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