Most people promise results. John at Stone Improvement actually delivers. We've worked with other stone repair and maintenance professionals before, so we had a pretty good benchmark going in. John was, by far, the best we've experienced. We had stains in our limestone and porcelain that we were completely convinced were permanent. We had already given up on them. John came in, took a look, and somehow brought everything back to life. It honestly felt like walking into a different home once he was done. What I appreciated just as much as the results was how he worked. He was careful, respectful of our space, and clearly knows his craft inside and out. No rushing, no cutting corners, just really thoughtful work. He also took the time to explain how to care for everything going forward in a way that actually made sense and felt doable, not overwhelming or overly technical. We don't hand out glowing reviews lightly, but this one is well deserved. We'll absolutely be having John back. read more

John did an excellent job restoring the hardscape in our backyard, including some delicate stonework around our pool and gazebo. He was incredibly thorough, and I really admired his dedication to getting the best results possible. I would be happy to work with him again on any future stone work. read more

Excellent Work! Very professional and careful of my property. during the cleaning Floors turned out better than I could hope for.! Explained every step of the procedure . Very Knowledgeable. Gave me the correct cleaner & instructions tp maintain the floors after the cleaning. All around a great job. I will hire Stone Improvement when the floors need cleaning and sealing again!!! read more

John from Stone Improvement did an excellent job and I would highly recommend this business. I sent John some photos of staining and cracked grout in our master marble shower. He provided a fixed price in his prompt response. On the day of the appointment, he was on time, very professional and his work exceeded my expectations. We had another company come out to do this work in previous years and this is the first time the bathroom shower looked dramatically better. Some before and after photos below. Also loved that receipt was electronic and payment via credit card online was possible. Easy. read more

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Hard working owner... cleans & seals my terracotta entry and the results are always perfection! His sonic equipment makes ALL the difference. read more

Stone Improvement - Terracotta stairs after Stone Improvement's visit - Flooring Near Me

After the last communication, John did sent back an email stating that he was not available for site visit due to his busy schedule. He did manage to come by and then gave me an estimate for the job. I found him very knowledgeable and pragmatic. He answered all my questions and made useful suggestions. Will have a follow up review if he is hired to do this job, read more

I just wanted to take the time to give my highest recommendation for John and Nick at Stone Improvement. I am a pretty picky customer who is a resident in The Infinity, one of the luxury high rise buildings here in San Francisco. In our master bathrooms we have beautiful limestone showers. Beautiful yes. . .but also high maintenance. Anyone who knows anything about limestone knows that it can be porous. That means possible stains, and difficult to keep appearance. I have had some bad luck with particularly porous stone in my shower, but also a poor grouting and caulking job from the initial builder. It resulted in me not being able to use the shower for a very long time and using the guest bathroom shower. One very prominent company "sealed" the shower and did a very bad job, resulting in stains all over the place. I then proceeded to contact a few stone restoration people. One other stone expert (who will remain nameless) who has very high reviews here on yelp made me extremely angry by calling my stone "cheap" and that "it would be very difficult to fix and he usually doesn't do this kind of stuff anymore, and maybe I should consider putting a gloss on it, or maybe just replace it." He wouldn't even look at my pictures telling the whole story of what had transpired over the last 6 months, and how I was not able to use the shower. He quoted me a price of over $2,000 to take the stains away and re-seal it. I was appalled. When I called John and Nick, from start to finish they have been nothing but empathetic and professional. They looked at all my previous pictures, and read my long email about the previous failure of the other contractor who tried to seal the stone prior. They were so knowledgeable, and told me they had seen the same issue with other limestone in the building, and that they could fix it. They quoted me a price that was 1/4 the price of the other contractor mentioned above, plus gave me a deal for having them re-seal the other stone items in my place. The first time they sealed and re-caulked the stone it looked great. But what impressed me again was that some stains began to re-appear before I used the shower again for some reason. But rather than do what typical contractors do which is say "no, it's not my fault," they worked with me to try and figure out why this happened by having me talk to our head of engineering to ensure nothing else from other units was leaking in, and rethinking what they had done. John just kept saying "we want to do whatever it takes to make you happy." We solved the problem, realizing, that all along it was the defect in the caulking/grouting that was the problem causing recurrent staining of the tile (which they had already re-done for me). They came back to my unit a second time to remove the stains that remained a second time and re-sealed everything at no extra cost to me. I really appreciate their patience. I haven't turned the shower on again after not using it for so long, but I am confident the problem is now solved. They are truly the stone experts in the city. I'm as picky as they come, and I'm sure those in The Infinity would be similar--I recommend them to make even the most fussy customers happy. They also left me a cleaner to clean my stone with--claiming it will make the sealant last longer--which I found so honest since this would make me seek their business less. I will continue to hire them for years to come. Kudos! read more

This company was top class form start to finish. Great on the phone, prompt, professional, did a great job, and followed through when there was some added work needed. We needed their expertise in dealing with some deep groves in a marble floor. It took longer than expected, but they stuck to their estimate. There was cheaper out there, but you pay for what you get. You don't want just anyone redoing your marble floors. Avoid the horror stories and pay for the pros. Thanks Guys. read more

I cannot say enough great things about this service. We have had them for two visits for cleaning and coating terracotta, marble and tile and both visits worked out very well. We appreciated showing up on time: being neat and organized; communicating well before during and after the visit with broad knowledge and insights; and, oh yes, the WORK WAS DONE WELL. We wish that we could find more people like this to work on our house read more

Contacted Stone Improvement for polishing and sealing of travertine tile in 2 bathrooms in a condo in South Beach. Spoke with owner John who described what he would do. A day later provided a fair bid, and a few days after that he arrived on time to work all day on the job. The tile looks SO much better. At the end of the day John walked through how to maintain the newly polished / sealed tile. Overall was very pleased with the work and have no reservations recommending John and Stone Improvement. read more

These guys are as good as it gets. Also purchased some tile from Country Floors (very good) but for installation I was very pleased. read more

I wish all SF tradesmen were as good as John. I had 3 tile kitchen counters and two small bathrooms, all with tired looking grout. John came by to look at the job and give a quote, which I accepted. He came to the job on time and well prepared. He and his helper spent the day going over these 30 year old surfaces. They took their time and did a nice job, making sure to keep my wood floors dry along the way. Very professional and the counters and bathrooms are much improved. He also left some sealer with instructions, so I probably won't need him again (at least for these surfaces) for 40 years! Couldn't be happier to give him the 5 star rating. read more

We too have "ancient" tile in our bathroom...1935 builder-grade tile. 70+ years later, the grout was impossible to clean, but the delightfully professional young owners of the company brightened up the tile, made the grout look as good as new. Provided I clean grout and tile as they recommended (no more Tilex), the renewal should last another 15-20 years. They also worked on my remodeled (2005) downstairs bathroom tile. The remodeling crew walked on the tile before the grout was totally dry...then they sealed in the dirt. I didn't notice until it was too late. Stone Improvement made the grout look perfect! I am very happy with the work they've done and recommend them without reservation! read more

Prior to service from Stone Improvement, my tile floor looked awful; dirty grouts under a stubborn floor sealant which gave the tiles an appearance of discoloration and dilapidation. Nick and John did a great job cleaning the floor and resealing. I was very impressed with their workmanship and professionalism; they were on time and very courteous, answered my questions beyond sufficiency, and serviced the floors to their *clean* original state. John and Nick worked incredibly hard (the floor sealant was very tough to remove) which admittedly necessitates an apology, sorry guys. In addition, the service charge was more than competitive. It goes without saying that when it comes to tile and stone restoration these are the guys to call. Thank you John and Nick! read more

We've used Stone Improvement twice in the past year. Once to remove some rust and wine stains from a relatively new marble bathtub surround. They communicated clearly what the expectations were, and exceeded them with the final results. It was a lot of work polishing and sealing the tub and excruciating care was taken not to harm any of the fixtures or walls in he process. The second job was to clean and seal a marble shower that had become stained from soap, etc. Again, prompt, courteous and careful, they cleaned the tile/grout. sealed it, and even left us some cleaning solution specific to our needs. Nothing but the highest praise for this operation! read more

I had a problem where the marbles had a deep major soap looking like stain engraved into the stone damaged by my previous tenants. They came and estimated the damage, it turned out harder then it looked and they kept working at it and would not stop until it was all fixed! Worked many extra hours on top of there estimate with no complaints. These guys work hard and are of integrity! Everything looks like BRAND NEW now, I love it, saved a lot of money from replacing the entire marble since I have expensive marbles tops! Would highly recommend to anyone both for skill and integrity and kindness. Two thumbs up. read more

I found Stone Improvement through Yelp a couple of months ago and was very satisfied with their service. I noticed that the stone tile around the toilet and the stone tile counter top in one bathroom were getting a white haze from the traditional bathroom cleaner I had been using. They told me the clean and seal service would not correct the problem and that the stone would have to be polished in order to return it to the original state. However, both areas did look much improved after their service. They also gave me a concentrated cleaner to use on the tile so the problem would not get any worse. The guys were very professional and took great pains to ensure that no damage was done to my wood floors while they were doing their work on the bathrooms and kitchen counter top. The final cost was close to the estimate, but a bit higher due to some bar counter space in the kitchen they had not anticipated. I would definitely recommend them for doing stone tile work and will plan to use them again in the future. read more

Consummate professionals. John and Josh cleaned and sealed the marble counter tops in our kitchen and the marble walls/floors and limestone floors in our bathrooms. They worked carefully, showing a strong commitment to doing the job properly. In addition, they patiently and thoroughly responded to several questions we had about the process. They also provided valuable advice about how we should care for our stone to keep it looking good. We will definitely turn to them again for all of our stone needs. read more

I recently hired Stone Improvement to clean and seal several sets of outdoor granite stairs at my home. Several of the stairs had tar stains from the underlying waterproofing material that had leaked during last winter's rains and none of the stairs had been sealed or caulked when they were originally installed a year ago. Nick came by the property to give me an accurate estimate and set expectations on what could be done. He and his team exceeded my expectations. The work was done professionally and at each step of the way, Nick provided me with an update on progress as it took several days to complete the work. The stairs that looked hideous before are almost as brand new. I cannot recommend Nick and Stone Improvements enough. Having been working with various contractors and vendors over the past several years through many renovations, I was most impressed with Nick and his professionalism and quality of work. Highly recommended. read more

This is a long overdue rave review! I hired Stone Improvement to redo my little front concrete 'yard'; clean up layers of ancient sealant and stain the area. Couldn't be happier with the results. They answered my call promptly, explained the process before and as they went, showed up when they said they would, worked really hard, and finished on time. The process from A-Z was smooth as can be and their staining job is gorgeous. Stone Improvement are the guys to go to, it doesn't get better than this. read more

We have Mexican Cantera stone in our front entry and sun room. Not many stone cleaners knew about this product; more common to see it used in Arizona and southern California. It was filthy after 20 years of heavy use and a kitchen remodel. John Garfield (owner) and I communicated by email as to scope of job. Less than a week later, he and his assistant Josh showed up promptly. They did an awesome job; looks like new. They cleaned and then applied a penetrating sealer--minimal odor to the sealer. 24 hours later we have moved the furniture back in place. Highly recommend SI, very professional. Will definitely use again. read more

At last, a competent company that cleans and seals granite, tile and grout. This was my 4th attempt to solve some grouting problems and Nick and John are the first to actually spend time understanding the problem before trying to solve the problem. All prior companies did a very poor job and charged me much more than the reasonable amount I paid Stone Improvement. In addition they resealed my granite kitchen counters and they now look brand new. Nick and John were professional, trustworthy and I would use them again in an instant. read more

These guys are real professionals who do a high quality job. They completed a complex multi-room job in my house in a single full day. They did more work than they had originally estimated but stuck to their estimate. The quality of the caulking was excellent and I'm hard to please. I have already given these guys a referral for another high-end home. read more

We have a limestone tiled steam shower that got pretty stained up from some renters. It looked horrible. We tried everything to get the stains out and were about to tear everything out and re-tile it. Glad we didn't. John spent a day honing all the limestone and got rid of all the stains. Amazing job. When he was done he waited for everything to dry and spent an extra hour trying to perfect every last inch of tile. We are extremely happy. Thank you John! read more

Nick and John were wonderful. The grout & tile in our shower stall were very difficult to clean because the previous owner of our house painted over it with enamel paint. The paint gets stained over time and makes our shower stall look terrible and it was just impossible to get rid of. Nick and John came in and made the miracle happen. They applied their work with patience and professionalism. A few hours later, the shower stall looks almost like new. Now months have gone by and it still looks really good and is very easy to clean. I so much appreciate their hard work! I'd say that before you decide to re-do the tile in your bathroom because it's looking old, you may want to give them a call--you just might be surprised! read more

I was lookingfor someone to clean and reseal my walkin shower,slate floor and granite countertops.I found stone improvement on the BBB website(A rating) then went to there website and finally checked Yelp.I also noticed they a small,local co.Nick and John came to my condo and verified all the work I requested on a prior phone call What else can I say,they were Honest,Courteous,Professional and a Great Value. read more

WOW! 5 Stars for John (the owner of Stone Improvement) and his assistant Nick for their hard work and not giving up on our red brick porch floor. My husband and I bought a 100+ year old house about 2 years ago and one of the projects was to clean the grease, old paint, stain, and grime off our brick porch floor. It was incredibly dirty and though we usually do many projects around the house ourselves we knew we had to call in professionals to tackle this one. It was easy to schedule an appointment with John. The job did indeed turn out to be difficult and John and Nick tried several approaches, always keeping us in the loop. It took longer than expected but we did not need to pay more than the agreed price. John and Nick didn't finish the job until we, and they (!), were completely satisfied. They take pride in their work and we can highly recommend John and his company for being hard working, honest, professional, and doing a great job. read more

Great Job!! I hired Stone Improvement to clean my front concrete stairs that were all dirty and moss started appearing here and there. The work was done in one morning and now it looks like like completely new stairs. Unbelievable. John was also fast in responding to my emails, easy to schedule, on time and estimate was what we ended up paying. Will definitely hire again. read more