A homeowner in Darlaston near Walsall got in touch regarding their White Limestone floor, which was being easily marked from foot traffic. Dark marks were being left on the floor which they couldn't remove.
This was concerning as the floor had only been laid a few months earlier and it had been cleaned and sealed by another firm. When I asked about that it turns out the cleaning firm had cleaned, burnished and sealed the whole floor in one day, which was incredibly quick when you consider the floor measured 120m2! This was a red flag for me as I would have expected a floor of this size to take four days when done correctly.
The only solution would be to do the floor properly so I popped over to survey the tiles and conduct a few tests. Whilst there I demonstrated the finish that we could achieve which they were happy with and I worked out a quote. They were happy with that and relieved the problem wasn’t more serious accepted my quote and the job was booked in.
Cleaning a Limestone Tiled Ground Floor
I returned a few weeks later and started by dividing the floor into four zones, which would make the job more manageable and have the advantage of being able to move furniture around.
Each section was cleaned with a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which was left to dwell and soak in for ten minutes before being worked in. I use a rotary machine to scrub the floor fitted with a 240-grit silicone carbide brush which combined with the Pro-Clean loosens trapped dirt and sealers from the floor. I then went over the grout with a grout brush by hand to get that clean. Next the soiling was rinsed away with water and extracted with a wet vacuum.
I then started the process of burnishing the natural stone floor, starting off with a coarse 400-grit and working through 800 and 1500 grit diamond pads fitted to the rotary machine which had extra weights added to increase traction. The pads are run over the floor with water for lubrication and after each pad the floor is rinsed and the soiling extracted with the wet vacuum. The pads struggle in the corners and edges so these are doing with a handheld polisher fitted with 6-inch burnishing pads to ensure no areas were missed.
The section was then allowed to dry with the aid of a floor fan whilst I finished off the process in a previous section by polishing the Limestone with the last pad which is very fine 3500-grit. This last pad tightens the pores and gives the stone a natural sheen, it is applied dry with only a little water sprayed onto the tile.
Sealing a Limestone Tiled Ground Floor
The last step was to seal the limestone tiles and grout using a couple of coats of Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal which is a natural look sealer that doesn't alter the look of the stone. This product is also an impregnator which works by soaking into the stone occupying the pores and ensuring dirt remains on the surface where it can be easily cleaned away. Afterwards the floor was buffed with a white pad to remove any excess sealer and further bring up the appearance of the Limestone.
The client was very happy with the results, and I left them a bottle of Tile Doctor Stone Soap to maintain the floor going forward. This will ensure the floor is easy to maintain and being a ph neutral product won’t impact the new sealer.
