It's most likely just water that got into the stone and will dry over time.

Thank you! I will keep an eye on it. The irony is that the landlord didn't clean the oven at all, so I spent 3 hours & 15 rags cleaning all the sticky / smelly stuff out (per the manual, it said to use only baking soda and water) and then I just left the rags on the counter - not thinking it could hurt anything.

Well, if it dries, I'll update. I have to look into sealants for the rest of the year, since I like to cook. I actually had granite in a building for 2 years and never left a single spot. That place was all rentals, so perhaps they sealed it differently. The owner of this unit may not have bothered to do it.

Thanks Lisa. Yeah that makes sense. I'm glad your bowl issue came out okay. That's basically what is going on here, so it should hopefully resolve as yours did. I found this granite sealer I think I can buy once the dark spot is gone. It even has some videos explaining it, but it seems pretty straightforward. I don't normally leave wet things around like this, but at least the sealant will be better than nothing for the occasional spill. I'll have to keep water from sitting on it.

I wonder what my old apartment had on the granite because I swear that was never stained or scratched in two whole years. I bet there must have been something commercial / heavy duty that they applied.

Please let the landlord know what it going on, and let them seal it. They will want to make sure the proper sealer is used. It sounds like your rags also had sticky/smelly stuff on them, so there is probably oil absorption as well. That needs to be pulled out before the stone is sealed.

I agree with Catbuilder that there may be oil on the cloth that transferred to the counter. You'll know if that is the case if the water stain doesn't go away in a couple of days. There is a simple poultice you can make to draw out the oil if it is there - Google that.

What no one has mentioned is about the type of granite pictured which looks to be Imperial White granite or similar. Granites vary a great deal in how dense or "absorptive" they are. The more dense granites which have low absorption rates need sealing maybe once a year, or some actually never need sealing if they are the more dense type. Those granites don't stain and don't absorb water. On the other end of the spectrum are granites like Imperial White which is almost marble-like in its high-absorption rate, and needs sealing 3 or more times a year. The landlord may have sealed it before, but not lately.

Sealing granite is simple and not rocket science and not something to fret over. I wouldn't wait for the landlord to seal it, or have the landlord get prematurely upset about it. Home Depot carries Miracle 511 Impregnator Sealer. Get the smallest size bottle - sealing a counter takes a minimal amount of sealer. Apply per the instructions. It will take you longer to take your stuff off the counter (coffee maker, toaster, etc.) than it will to wipe the sealer on. Imperial White granite may need two coats though.

I used different rags for the majority of the grease in the oven. The first group I just had to just throw out. This was the final pass through to wipe everything one last time. So, these were basically just water & baking soda at that point. They weren't even picking up any grease anymore except maybe a little I missed in the corner of the rack or something.

I will probably just seal it myself. This landlord does not not care about this unit. It's the cheapest one of all his rentals. This pic is my friend holding the lint screen from the dryer (was never emptied in a year) and a picture of the Miele dishwasher filter (which was totally clogged). The Subzero fridge was also full of mold you could only see when you took the drawers out (I didn't see any of this on the showing). I am naming the brands because it astounded me that someone with such high end appliances would allow them to be treated this way & then not even clean them for a new tenant. When I told them all of this, they acted like I was too high maintenance and should stop complaining. They did clean the dishwasher, but the other stuff was all "normal move in condition" as far as they were concerned. That's why I want to seal the granite and the marble in the bathroom (which is already etched) myself. They will flip out if I make any more requests. (Sorry I'm venting. It was really unpleasant to deal with them.)

Here are the marble counters in the bathroom. You cannot see the etching in the photograph (I tried to get it on an angle but it doesn't show). Anyway, can I protect it with the same product above? I'm guessing it is even more delicate / porous than the kitchen?

I was spoiled by corian & other engineered surfaces in bathrooms forever.

Here's the stain now, by the way. I think it might be a little lighter.

Thanks again!

Oh Boy, that is such a pretty granite counter. I am hoping this is not stained.. but if it is you will need to use a poultice to remove the greasy grimy oven oil from the rags. And the Marble counters, I love the marble and easily live with etching because marble is timeless and gorgeous.

: )

~boxer

@Jane,

Wow, that place needs a good scrubbing. I can see why the rags wound up on the counter. You were probably exhausted from all the deep cleaning. My installer uses Drytreat Stainproof. I have heard... And I could be totally wrong... that oversealing more than a few times a year is not good with some granites. Not sure why but I remember hearing this a long time ago. Maybe the sealer changes the color of the stone. I am sure some stone guru will chime in. Hoping your stain comes out and the place is pristine.

@LIsa that counter is very pretty.

~boxer

I'm surprised the oven was not self cleaning.

" oversealing more than a few times a year is not good with some granites. Not sure why but I remember hearing this a long time ago. Maybe the sealer changes the color of the stone."

Boxerpal - you are thinking about the sealing advice that is for the more dense stones, which I mentioned in my post above. That type of dense stone is not what the OP has. The OP's counter looks like Imperial White granite, or similar, which is a granite known for easy staining, i.e., not dense. The advice you mention is for granites that are so dense, so low-absorptive, that sealant will not absorb into it. Instead the sealant will sit on top, and appear to be a haze and/or streaks on the stone (the sealant will not "change the color", though there is a product called a "stone enhancer" that will appear to change the color, but that's a different subject). Unfortunately, people who do not understand that some granites are that dense, including some fabricators, will apply sealant to every granite there is. They don't know that while most granites need one sealing per year, some should not be sealed at all. Then we see posts on this forum saying "why is my granite hazy?".

None of that applies to the OP's granite. I just wanted to make sure people reading what you wrote don't have the wrong information.

To the OP - because your granite appears so absorptive, it may need more than one coat of sealant. Here is how you tell. Apply one coat. Wait a while for it to be absorbed and disappear into the stone. Drip a bit of water on the counter. Wait 10 minutes. If it remains beaded up and has not stained the stone, you are done sealing. If it was absorbed into the stone and stained it, you need another coat.

Yes yes thank you Friedajune. I should have scrolled back up and thoroughly read your post. In no way was I trying to confuse anyone. I just knew that there were issues some people had with haze on their granites. I am glad you cleared this up. That was why I was careful to say....

"... I could be totally wrong... that oversealing more than a few times a year is not good with some granites. Not sure why but I remember hearing this a long time ago. Maybe the sealer changes the color of the stone. I am sure some stone guru will chime in. Hoping your stain comes out and the place is pristine.

Hello - Sorry I haven't been back yet. That big darkened spot is finally gone. It took 5 days to go away completely. I cleaned the counters and then did 3 coats of sealer using the instructions on the bottle (it says to do 2-3 coats). Water definitely beads up now. I left a tablespoon for 20 minutes, forgot about it - and after 3 hours - it was still beaded up. I wiped it up to reveal a dark spot ... but this disappeared in 10 min! Like you mentioned Lisa, you definitely still have to be careful - but it won't be as sensitive (I am not leaving rags for 2 days again). I used the "Granite Gold" cleaner and sealer. The sealer has a strong smell, but the cleaner doesn't smell like much.

The oven I have is a Wolf R304 (range / oven). I couldn't find reliable instructions about self-clean, but I am also a bit averse to it because of the strong odor it can produce. I had no idea what the former tenant had in there, so I was more comfortable cleaning it myself manually, though it did require a whole pack of 24 microfiber rags and 2 boxes of baking soda. I made a $1.29 betty crocker cake to celebrate (and test if this oven worked before I made anything more serious). It works! The "blue ceramic" interior doesn't have the best instructions on how to clean it, but that's why it took so many microfiber rags. They can't do much with just water.

The prior tenant left a lot of rings on the granite, and I asked the LL if I should seal over them (since it's can be a process to remove them & they'd really have to call someone for that) and they said it's fine. So, some of the orange spots are sealed over now. Some are natural anyway (iron / rust deposits or whatever)

Lisa, I don't think I have those light striations - I have seen them in homes (and bars too - it seems to be popular) & like that look actually, but mine is more speckled.

Thanks for all of your help. I hope future people see the thread & know you haven't just destroyed $1000 in countertops because of a water accident.

Oh also I did the range and all those 50 lb metal grates (could those be any heavier??) so that's what used up so much baking soda & those rags. They're still not as clean as I was hoping but that material is very weird. You can't soak it or put it in the dishwasher so it'll just start looking more used over time I guess. Here's the counter (I guess you can see a tiny bit of it here, but in person, you can't really). And the oven just for fun. That thing is sparking.

lol just once upon move in! Then I only have the patience to spot-clean. It think also in my head, it's just gross when it's someone else's food grime & they moved out months ago.

I have seen this long discussion after years. I had this granite as my flooring rather than countertops. The granite name probably is "River White". After 3 years I started seeing that it is absorbing a lot of water,stains and I am in deep trouble. Although now I cannot undo whats done and replace everything(unless there is a possible solution) Can anyone suggest me the correct sealant that I need to apply from your experience. Also suggest me after how many years that the sealant needs to be put again in cycle.

I am so sorry for everyone suffering stains in their granite. But it gives me hope I CAN stain mine. I just stopped payment on my install that is horrible. The seamed sides are not matching up well. I need to put a few stains nearby to make a transition or I may take a sledge hammer to it one day. I'm thinking turmeric will do the job.