Stained Aluminum Tile Edging

6 years ago

I had a contractor install tile on my kitchen wall and around a window. He used some nice looking aluminum edging trim by Schluter. However, it appears to be etched or stain. The shiny finish is dull in various sections. It looks like film or some sort of substance that could be scraped away, but on closer inspection it’s looks stained or etched by some chemical reaction.

I tried cleaning with soap and water and scraping the surface lightly with a razor blade but nothing works. Any ideas on how to bring back the shine? Should it be polished or cleaned with a special type of aluminum cleaner.

See attached photo:

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (4)

krissie55
6 years ago
Have your contractor take a look and fix the problem.
weedmeister
6 years ago
Looks kinda like aluminum oxide. This is what aluminum does when exposed to air.
Related Professionals
Huntington Home Remodeling · Coldwater Home Remodeling · Bowling Green General Contractors · Washington Bathroom Remodelers · Keene Custom Closet Designers · Edison Interior Designers & Decorators · Yuba City Interior Designers & Decorators · Queens Interior Designers & Decorators · Zanesville Kitchen & Bathroom Designers · Phoenix Kitchen & Bathroom Designers · Richmond Kitchen Remodelers · Cincinnati Kitchen Remodelers · Chillicothe Kitchen Remodelers · Farmington Kitchen Remodelers · Boise Kitchen Remodelers
kudzu9
6 years ago
Don't mess with it before the contractor takes a look. If you try to fix it yourself and it ends up looking worse, you could be letting the contractor off the hook.
trudyandstephen
Original Author
6 years ago
I appreciate all the comments. The contractors
is coming Thursday to rectify the issue. He said he would replace the trim. My question now is will this cause damage to the tile? The trim has a J-shape and part of it is secured behind the surrounding tile.

Lastly, the grout is darker in some sections and lighter pretty much everywhere else. Upon closer inspection after being scraped with a razor blade the darker color comes off and the lighter color is visible. Is their something specific I should recommend to the contractor when asking him to fix this issue?