I see tiny spots like ballpoint pen marks on the ceramic dining table top. Is it defective?
Some customers discover tiny spots on the surface of their delivered ceramic dining table and wonder if it is eligible for exchange, mistaking them for stains or scratches.
Small spots of 3mm or less appearing on the surface of the ceramic tabletop are a natural occurrence where iron in the clay is revealed during high-temperature baking, and they fall within the normal range.
There is a standard of 3mm. flat point guides that tiny spots appearing on the VOLINI CERAMIC TABLE tabletop are within normal specifications if they are within 3mm[1].
Ceramic is a material made by baking and hardening clay and natural minerals in a high-temperature kiln. Trace amounts of iron mixed in the clay naturally emerge in the form of dots or spots on the surface during firing at high heat[2].
It is not a defect or contamination. As it is a natural reaction left behind in the process of raw materials hardening while enduring fire, you can wipe it gently like a typical tabletop without attempting to dig it out with rough tools.
The standard for the allowable number of iron spots that can appear on a single tabletop has not yet been confirmed.