You should only use a stone cleaner on your granite countertops. A good stone cleaner will not harm the sealer or the stone. For every day cleaning, we recommend using Marbamist from Stone Care International. It is a wonderful product, and it smells good too!

We use Miracle Sealants 511 Porous Plus impregnating sealer. This sealer does soak down into the stone to prevent any other liquids from doing so. Depending on the stone, you want to re-seal your countertops every year or so. To test to see if your granite needs to be re-sealed, put some water on the countertop. Let it sit for a minute or two. If the water is soaking down into the stone, then you want to re-seal your countertops. If it is not absorbing into the granite, then you're fine!

If you want a good resource for stone care tips, check out this website: http://www.marble-institute.com/consumers/care.cfm

We agree with Stoneshop. Only use dedicated cleaning and sealing products. Here are some information videos on how to clean on seal your countertops.

The website stoneshop links to is a good one.

As far as cleaning products are concerned: yes, there are many excellent stone cleaners on the market. No, it is not necessary to use a dedicated "granite cleaner" to clean your granite countertops. We recommend a mild dish soap. Clean with a damp cloth, and then rinse to get rid of any remaining soap so it doesn't build up.

As for the sealer: Stones are naturally porous. Sealers fill in these pores to create a stain-resistant barrier. Over time, the sealer will wear off and you will need to reseal (about every 3-5 years, or when you notice water soaking into the stone). We do a similar test to Stoneshop but with a damp sponge. Wet your sponge, set it on your counter for about 5-10 minutes. If, when you lift up the sponge, you see a wet spot, that means that water is soaking into the stone and it should be resealed.

We have more information on our website and blog here: http://www.stonecenterinc.com/care/granite-care/