You run the yacht. We fit in around you.
The people who call us are rarely owners. They are captains preparing for a season, chief stews who have just found a ring on the owner’s vanity, first officers organising a yard period with a dozen contractors on board. This page is written for you: how marble care for yacht crew works with us in practice, what to send, how we plan, and what your interior team can do between our visits.
We are LTDS Yachting, the international side of Les Traitements du Sud, the stone-care company that looks after yachts on the Côte d’Azur. We restore marble, onyx, travertine, granite and quartzite on board, and we know that on a yacht the schedule belongs to the crew, not to the contractor.
Start on WhatsApp, with a few photos
Most of our jobs start with a WhatsApp message. It is the channel crews already use with agents, yards and suppliers, it works from anywhere in the Mediterranean, and photos go through in full quality. A phone call works too, and so does the contact form if you prefer to attach everything at once.
What to send us
- One wide photo of each area concerned
- Close-ups of the damage, with light raking across the surface
- The stone, if you know it (from the yard’s specification or the interior designer)
- Where the yacht is now and where she will be
- The dates when the areas can be freed
- Your role on board and who signs off the work
What we send back
A first reading of the damage from the photos: is it etching, a stain, a scratch, a chip, limescale? What can reasonably be expected, and which polishing, repair or etch mark removal work it would need. If the photos are not enough to commit, we say so and propose a visit on board before quoting.
Then a written quote with the scope, the areas, the method and the conditions on board we need, so that the captain or the management company can approve it.
Marble care for yacht crew starts with your schedule
We plan with whoever runs the interior and the operations on board. In practice that is usually the chief stew for the guest areas and the captain or first officer for access, safety and the yard.
- 01
Choose where
We come to your yacht, wherever she is. Alongside in the marina is most common; at anchor is possible if access by tender allows; in the shipyard during a refit or lay-up is ideal for large areas; and removable pieces can go to a workshop near the yacht. Our team travels to the yacht in each of our ports.
- 02
Choose when
Between charters, while guests are ashore, while the owner is away, before the season or during the yard period. We work around the crew’s rotations and the yacht’s itinerary, not the other way round.
- 03
Agree the practical points
Boarding times, where tools are stored, a power supply, water access, which areas stay usable, who escorts the team, and any security procedure at the marina or the yard gate.
- 04
Work and hand over
A small team, protection of all the surroundings, dust extracted at source. At the end we walk the areas with the chief stew and leave written care advice.
The full sequence, from first message to handover, is on our how we work on board page.
How we behave on your yacht
Your yacht is your workplace and someone’s home. We act accordingly.
- Soft-soled shoes or shoe covers on board, as the crew requires
- Joinery, carpets, furniture and fittings protected before any tool is switched on
- Slurry and dust collected at source, waste taken off the yacht
- Low-odour products chosen for closed spaces, ventilation agreed with the engineer
- A small team that stays in the areas agreed, never in guest cabins without reason
- No photos of the interior beyond the stone we work on, and none published without consent
A simple care routine for marble on board
Most damage we repair could have been avoided with the right product or a cloth at the right moment. A routine that a busy interior team can follow:
Every day
Dust-mop floors and stairs with a clean, dry microfibre to remove sand before it scratches. Wipe vanities, bars and tables with a damp cloth and a pH-neutral stone cleaner, then dry. Squeegee and dry showers after use.
After guests or a party
Check bars, tables and vanities for rings and drips, and wipe them immediately. Look for glasses left on stone, cut fruit on counters, and perfume bottles on vanities. Report new dull marks: fresh etching is quicker to remove.
Every week
A more thorough clean of floors with diluted stone cleaner, checking the walking paths and the joints. Look at nosings on the stairs and at the edges of vanities for new chips.
Before and after each charter
A walk-through of every stone surface, ideally with photos, so that new marks can be dated and treated. A maintenance contract adds our visits at the moments that matter, and marble protection makes daily cleaning easier.
Products that damage marble and onyx
Many cleaning products found on board are perfectly good for glass, stainless steel or ceramic, and harmful to marble. Keep these away from stone:
- Vinegar, lemon and any “natural” acidic cleaner
- Bathroom limescale removers and descalers
- Bleach and chlorine-based products
- Ammonia and glass cleaners on stone
- Abrasive creams, powders and scouring pads
- Generic “multi-surface” sprays unless they state they are safe for marble
- Wax, oil or furniture polish on floors and stair treads
If in doubt, test on a hidden area or send us the product name on WhatsApp before using it.
Confidentiality
Discretion is part of the job. We do not publish yacht names, interiors or faces without consent, and a non-disclosure agreement is available on request, signed before the first visit if you or the management company wish.
When a manager is involved
Many yachts route quotes and invoices through a management company. We can work directly with you on the technical side while sending the quote, the report and the invoice to the manager. Our page for yacht managers explains how.
Where we usually help
Every yacht is different, but the requests from crews tend to come back to the same four areas.
SurfaceBathrooms
Vanities, showers, onyx.Read more
SurfaceFloors
Saloons, lobbies, cabins.Read more
SurfaceBars and tables
Rings, chips, galley counters.Read more
SurfaceStairs
Treads and nosings.Read moreWhere a harder, brighter finish suits the stone, marble crystallisation can complete the work.
Questions from captains and crew
We have guests arriving in a few days. Can you still help?
Send photos and dates on WhatsApp straight away. Depending on the port and the team’s schedule, targeted work on the most visible marks may be possible before guests board, with the rest planned later.
Can you work while some crew are still cleaning or doing other jobs?
Yes. We agree on the areas each team uses and keep our work zone contained, so the interior and deck teams can carry on.
A guest left a ring on the vanity. Should we try to remove it ourselves?
Wipe it with water and a pH-neutral cleaner and dry it. If a dull mark remains, it is etching and needs re-polishing. Do not scrub or use a limescale remover: it makes the mark larger.
Who approves the quote?
Whoever you tell us: the captain, the management company or the owner’s representative. We can send it to several people at once.
Do you sign an NDA?
Yes, on request, before the first visit.
Which cleaning product do you recommend?
A pH-neutral cleaner made for natural stone, used diluted. We give the interior team specific advice at the end of each job, adapted to the stones on board.
Tell us about your yacht
Send a few photos on WhatsApp: we reply with a first assessment and propose a slot that fits the crew’s schedule.