Cleaning limestone fireplace?

[RiojaLover75]

Does anyone have any experience in cleaning a limestone hearth and mantle? It's just basic ground in dust and dirt I think. Also there is one tiny spot of blue permanent pen on the lovely cream limestone .

If anyone has any experience of cleaning or any advice for the blue spot I'd be very grateful

Stay away from vinegar/acidic products as they will take the surface off.

Yes.yes I do!
I had to re do one of the fire places here..

Takes fucking ages but the stain block from Lakeland works. It really does. And doesn't damage the limestone.

Can you tell I tried everything. And I was soooooooo peased with myself when I found what worked and restored the fireplace. And have had no one to tell....

Oh thank you Pag! Does the stain block clean as well as block further stains?

Ours is really grubby and the lady who lived here before us had an open fire so the place is covered in soot :-(

Will come to G'ford over the weekend and buy some :-)

Dr so far I have only tried baby wipes........ yes, it's true they clean most things but limestone fireplaces they do not!

Pag do you mean this? www.lakeland.co.uk/magic-eraser-block/F/keyword/stain+block/product/9009

it is this one
Cut it into three or four pieces, get a large glass of wine, wet block and rub. I used three blocks as fireplace was filthy.

x-posted.
Yes. That's it.

Just cheap white wine? Seriously?? I think I still have a bottle of some crap we were given at Christmas .

Fab thanks so much for the tip Pag.

Oh wait, re reading that last post do you mean, get a large glass of wine because it'll take a while to do the job or get a large glass of wine to dip the block in !

Drink the wine. Always drink the wine........

It takes a while. Small sections at a time.

I will wave at you across the aisles in Lakeland.

Ah ha! Good, am clear now drink NICE wine, dip block in PLAIN water .

Brilliant will try it just as soon as I can get over the A3 .

Did it work rioja lover?

Previous house, but found salt on damp cloth worked briliiantly. Then simply wiped off with fresh cloth after.

Reanimating this thread to say thanks (three years later!) to pagwatch for suggesting a magic sponge to clean a limestone fireplace.

Mine has had tea stains splashed up the left side for months (knocked a whole cup of tea off the side table eek!) and hadn't dared try anything more than washing up liquid, which didn't work, but my newly-acquired magic sponge has brought it up beautifully. It got rid of ALL the tea stains and has smoothed it out somehow so it feels like it did when first installed ten years ago.

Duly bookmarked. Thank you.

So pleased to have stumbled on this thread [thanks Google] I've had workmen in the house today and they have made several tea stains on my limestone fireplace! Everyone who knows me knows how precious I am about the fireplace and after not so much as a speck on it after 8 years I'm truly gutted. I'm off to Lakeland here's hoping that they still sell these sponge thingy.

Try to clean the limestone with oven spray - it's easy and cheap & for me it worked fine. :)
More tips for kaminofen/fireplaces

HG Headstone cleaner. Absolutely brilliant , got log burn mark out in 4 sprays

Does anyone know if any of these would work for an expanding foam stain?