How to clean
Gaffi never goes in the washing machine and never needs a detergent cycle. Most owners do this three or four times a year — and that is the whole maintenance schedule.
Every day
Nothing. Step on it, step off it, leave it where it is. If a large splash lands on it, let the stone do the work.
The three-step refresh
Wet and soap
Rinse the surface with warm water to loosen anything sitting on it, then spray evenly with a mild liquid soap or a gentle household cleaner.
Scrub and rinse
Work in small circles with a scrubbing sponge or a stiff brush, paying attention to any darkened patches. Rinse thoroughly and repeat if needed.
Sand out the marks
For stains that will not lift, dampen the area and sand it lightly with the medium-grit paper in the box. Work in a ventilated room, rinse off the dust and let it dry fully before use.
Do
- Lift it and stand it on edge occasionally to air the underside.
- Use the supplied non-slip pad — it also lets air move underneath.
- Sand lightly whenever it starts to look tired. It comes back.
- Keep it flat when storing or moving it.
Do not
- Never put it in a washing machine or dishwasher.
- Do not use bleach, acids or oil-based cleaners.
- Do not stand it against a radiator or dry it in direct heat.
- Do not drop it or bend a full-size mat — stone is rigid.
Upkeep
If it stops absorbing
A mat that has been used with bath oils or heavy soap can seal over. Sand the surface lightly and the pores open again — this is the single most common fix and it works almost every time.
Care
Wet the surface, spray it with a mild liquid soap, scrub in small circles with an abrasive sponge and rinse. For stains that will not lift, dampen the spot and sand it lightly with the medium-grit paper in the box, then rinse the dust away and let it dry fully. Most people do this three or four times a year.
No, never. It is a rigid stone slab, not a textile — a wash cycle will crack it and can damage the drum. It also never needs one: rinsing and the occasional sanding is the entire maintenance routine.
This is almost always a sealed surface rather than a worn-out mat, and it is caused by bath oils, body butters or a rich soap film closing the pores. Sand the face lightly with the supplied sandpaper, rinse and dry — absorption comes straight back. It is the single most common question we get and the fix works nearly every time.
Because the stone is absorbent, strong pigments — hair dye, turmeric, a dropped foundation bottle — can leave a mark. The stone is designed to be sanded, so those marks come out rather than staying forever. On the Marble mat, sanding will lighten the printed veining in that spot, so go gently.
There is no pile to flatten and no fibre to fray, so a mat does not wear out the way a textile does — it gets marked, and you sand it back. Treated properly, and kept from being dropped on a hard floor, it should outlast several cotton mats.