Didn't you get any information from the company you purchased it from? It would also be important to know their suggestion, especially if there is a guarantee with the product. Believe it or not, something as simple as a rag saturated with hot water and rung out for cleaning, and dry it with a towel. This seems to work for nearly all surfaces when used on a regular basis. I keep a microfiber towel handy to mop up drips and splatters after each use. The small towel hangs inside a vanity door and dries quickly so I can reuse it for several days before I put it into the laundry. One thing I was warned against using was any orange-based cleaners because they can etch the surface. Hard water can also etch the surface, so keep it dry. Make sure water doesn't pool under things on your counter, once again, it can etch the surface. I try to stay away from chemicals as much as possible. In order to sanitize the surface I'll use a steam cleaner at least once a week, and more often during cold/flu events. Otherwise it's hot water on a soft cloth, and drying the surface. Hope you enjoy your new counter-top. :-) -grainlady

you know I have a positive review! I don't have a problem with prints and I use Method (but I imagine any other granite cleaner would also be fine). Water also seems to be fine. We did not have it sealed, but I think the fabricator cleaned it or treated it before installation with something that really caused fingerprints for the first few days. After that substance was gone, we haven't had any problems. Actually, we DO have a problem if my DH wipes it with a very soapy cloth - then it looks streaky until it's wiped with water (or Method). I'm trying to be completely honest, so I will also say this - I wipe it down frequently because I loooooove how it looks when there are no crumbs, etc. And my kids make a lot of messes, so I have to clean all the time anyway. Maybe if you didn't wipe it very often, it would look yucky. But what wouldn't? The look is so quiet and simple and beautiful. I am so happy with it. And I love gardenweb for these kinds of questions!! No one in my real life wants to hear me talk about my granite any more! Or my cabinets! Or my pulls! I'm so TKO...

Rupes, After you tested the lemon juice on the sealer did you try to remove it? I'm wondering if it'll be permanent or if it can be dealt with. When our honed AB counters were first installed we had quite a few "stains.". For example, grease splatters. I could not get them out. They have since disappeared...whether they were absorbed into the stone or what, I don't know. I do periodically use the Method cleaner so I'm wondering if that helped. What I do now to clean the counters is use hot water and a tiny bit of dish soap, then use the Method cleaner every few days or so, with a microfiber cloth. I haven't seen anything on our counters like what you showed with the test above, even though our marble counter has etched quite a bit. I've heard the Cambria Black is less prone to fingerprints,etc., if that's an option for you.

I use 70% isopropyl alcohol (I think it's the strength rec by that doctor). I add the essential Lavender oil (I've seen it at Fairway, Whole Foods, Mrs. Green's, organic/health food stores....) because it has anti-bacterial properties of its own, and I like the scent. I've read (here) that it may alter the surface tension (of the alcohol and water) favorably as well. You can use as little as 10% alcohol to (90%) water and it will disinfect (again, according to the doctor), however, I use a higher am't of alcohol because it smears less, and cleans better. I started out using ~30% alcohol, but use somewhere around 50%-50% now. It's not exact. I top off my spray bottle when it gets low, or when I don't want to wait for it to become low. I eyeball the amounts, and leave a little room at the top of the bottle to tweak amounts as desired (I go by smell; just enough alcohol, just enough lavender... and by spray/wiping without smearing or streaking). I add maybe 20 drops of lavender oil, plus or minus. You can use other essential oils if you prefer. Tea tree oil is another one with natural anti-bac properties. I don't much care for it's scent, and avoided it because it is harmful to cats (don't know about dogs or other pets). I had resisted "making my own cleaner" for the first few years after our kitchen reno, but I do like this much better than the prepared products I'd been using, and I use it on the black enamel burner pans on our Wolf range, SS appliances, as well as on our granite. It's easy enough to mix up, and cheaper, too. I buy the larger bottles of alcohol, and try to pick up a few bottles when they're on sale. The lavender oil bottle, small as it is, lasts a long time.