As a homeowner, having granite countertops in your kitchen is highly desirable because it increases home value. Plus, it gives your kitchen a beautiful appearance and the granite countertops are durable and easy to maintain. However, granite countertops, if not taken care of properly can cause problems. Here are three tips to help you keep your granite countertops in pristine condition:

​Kick the Bad Habits:

There are plenty of bad habits homeowners have that can ruin the look of granite countertops. These bad habits include cleaning up spills later instead of right away. Even if you have the protective seal over your granite countertops, if you don't clean up spills right away it can potentially damage and stain the surface. You also want to always use coasters and trivets when placing hot pots and pans on the counters. Otherwise, burn marks and water marks are easily going to be left, which seriously diminishes the value of your granite countertops. 

Keep Them Clean:

Keeping the granite countertops clean should consist of more than just cleaning up the occasional spills. You should regularly clean the granite countertops with cleaners specially made for the material granite. It's important not to use any harsh cleaners that can damage the surface. You should also be sure not to use just regular dish soap since the soap suds will build on the surface and leave water marks. 

Reapply Sealer:

Finally, you want to be sure that you are regularly reapplying sealer on the surface of your granite countertops to keep them safe from spills. If the sealer is not reapplied, then spills are going to almost immediately soak up into the surface of the counters. This is a problem because it is going to leave stains that cannot come out. The sealer will prevent this from happen. A good way to determine whether or not you need more sealer is to test the surface with water. If the water starts soaking up into the surface, this means that your sealer is no longer working. 

When you consider these three tips, you can be sure that your granite countertops continue to add value to your home. Otherwise, the beautiful granite won't do much for your home at all except look nice for maybe the first couple of years. Keeping it nice is going to ensure that your kitchen likely doesn't have to go through any renovating when you are ready to sell. 

For more information, talk to a professional like Artisan Granite & Marble.