Limestone Tiled Floor Spruced Up and Burnished in Owestry

Installed in a lovely residence in the ancient market town of Oswestry close to the English/Welsh border, these Limestone Tiles had become dim and filthy over the years and I was asked to get them looking their best again. When I arrived to do the quotation the customer’s main concern was that the grout lines had become dirty, but when I completed a test clean on one tile and the grout around it they found out the tiles themselves were dirty and had lost their shine to become a matte finish.

Refurbishing Limestone Tiles

It was a huge floor so working in sections I gave the floor a general clean using a mild dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which was scattered over the floor with precise attention in getting the solution into the grout lines. The solution was left to seep in and eat through any dirt and a stiff grout brush was run along each grout line giving it a good scrub along the way. Next we removed any trace of product by using a wet vacuum to extract the now dirty cleaning solution and rinsed thoroughly with clean water.

There were a couple of holes in the Limestone that needed particuar attention so these were filled with a similar colour. The next step was to use a set of diamond encrusted burnishing pads which was attached to a rotary machine and polish the floor with four different grits from coarse to super fine. To remove any remaining sealer and grime, the floor is polished using a course pad and a little water to help wet the area passing over each tile around four times in the process. The resultant soiled water is rinsed away with clean water which in turn is removed using a wet vacuum. This process is then repeated with the remaining pads, rinsing between each pad until a nice polish is built up on the tile. I managed to finish with the 2nd and 3rd pads but it was getting late to completely finish the polishing so called it a day.

Sealing Limestone Tiles

When I arrived on the next day to finish the polishing process with the fourth super fine polishing pad and seal the floor the client thought I was done polishing and was already glad with the shine we had achieved so far, so you can imagine how happy she was when I told her there was more to do. Once I was done polishing, I used a single coat of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which impregnates the pores in the stone to prevent other contaminants getting in there; Colour Grow also does a great job of bringing out the natural colours in the stone.

The customer was very happy with the final result and left this feedback:
“Joe’s work is excellent. He planned the work accurately and arrived punctually, and he works without leaving any mess. Our limestone floor is now as beautiful as when new. Highly recommended.”

Modernized Victorian Tiled Hallway in Telford

A customer in Telford who bought a house with a Victorian Tiled Hallway a couple of years ago and has been renovating it in sections. When I got there to do the floor estimation, I could see it was in a very bad shape and in need of a deep clean and reinstatement of several broken and cracked tiles, there were several loose ones too.

Washing and Refurbishing a Victorian Tiled Floor

The floor was purified using a medium dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which was left to steep into the tiles for around 15 minutes before being worked into the tile and grout with the use of a rotary machine fitted with a black scrubbing pad and a stiff grout brush. Pro-Clean is a potent alkaline cleaning product that is safe to use on Stone, Tile and Grout. The floor was given a thorough rinse with clean water and a wet vacuum was used to expel the water from the floor, hard to clean areas were then spot cleaned using the same process and the floor was then left to dry off overnight.

The following day I came back to do the repair work, originally there were only seven tiles to be changed, howeverI ended up replacing sixteen tiles and fixing twenty five of them. Luckily, Victorian tiles are still popular and you can still find replacements.

Sealing a Quarry Floor Sealing

To ensure the repaired areas had adequate tile for the adhesive and grout to set I left the floor for four days before coming back to apply the sealer and checking the moisture level first to be sure it was dry enough to take the sealer. To seal the tiles which will help protect them from staining I applied five coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go which works really well on Victorian tiles and adds a nice subtle shine to the floor also being water based you don’t get that smell that a solvent based sealer has.

Rehabilitated Riven Slate Tiled Floor in old Barn Conversion in Ince

A client in Telford recently bought this barn reconstruction in the village of Ince, Cheshire. The unit had Riven Slate floor tiles set up on the ground floor from hallway and corridor through to the utility room and downstairs WC. The tiles were not looking good and in fact the old polyurethane based sealer had gone somewhat yellow and begun to peel off in places. The building was originally built in 1886 and is grade 2 listed and after the first shot to bring the floor back to life and didn’t work out as planned and the owner decided to get professional help.

Cleaning Quarry Tiled Floor

To have the floor back to its original state so it could be re-sealed, the old sealer would have to be fully removed off the tiles, favorably we have a product available that does exactly that called Tile Doctor Remove and Go. Working in portions, the tiles were coated with a mixed solution of Remove and Go which was left to absorb into the slate for twenty minutes before being brushed using a rotary machine fitted with a stiff brush head. The soiled solution was then removed from the floor using a wet vacuum and the process was repeated until all the old sealer had been removed and the floor was looking refurbished again. Furthermore, I needed to steam clean the whole floor and scrub hard areas with a hand brush. After the whole floor was clean I gave it an intensive wash down using fresh water to get rid of any trace of the cleaning product and then use the wet vacuum to get as much water off the floor as possible to minimize the drying period.

Sealing a Quarry Floor

I left the floor to dry off for several days and then came back to apply the sealer while also investigating the moisture level of the floor first to be sure it was dry enough to apply a sealer. I had deliberated the different options for sealing and the client wanted a satin finish so we decided to use Tile Doctor Seal and Go which is a water based sealer that brings forth the required finish and being water based, it can be applied without leaving a solvent smell as it dries. Four coats of Seal and Go were necessary to completely seal the slate.

It was quite a huge area and originally I had predicted it would take around two days to get rid of the old sealer and get the tiles clean in the end nonetheless it took us three days to clean the floor due to the state of the tiles and a day to seal. The client and his wife were really ecstatic with the end product and left the following feedback for me on the Tile Doctor feedback system.

“I would like to commend Jozsef on his hard work and tile doctor on their faith and training in there staff to achieve such a high standard in an end result. The experience from start to finish has been a very pleasant one. Jozsef was very professional, polite and punctual, knowledgeable, very hardworking and trustworthy. Both my wife and I would not hesitate to recommend Tile Doctor & Jozsef.”
Many Thanks again Mr & Mrs Pasquali!

Restored Marbled Bathroom in Westminster

You may remember an earlier job I wrote about concerning a Limestone tiled floor in Westminster, well I am pleased to say that the owner of that property was so happy with my workmanship that I was called back to restore their Marble tiled bathroom which included a sink unit.

Cleaning Marble Tiles

When working with polished stone it is necessary to burnish the floor however in this case the tiles were in good condition with no scratches in the polish. There were only a few marks and spots on the tiles that needed to come off and they had lost their glimmer however a full burnish would not be necessary.

To remove the spots and marks I treated them first with a solution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean diluted 4:1 with hot water. I then scrubbed them using a red buffing pad on my rotary floor machine, which removed the marks away from the stone. Then I used a medium burnishing pad with a bit of water and followed it with the use of a fine pad and finally the ultra-fine burnishing pad to revive the shine and polish. I offered to build-up a durable polish with Tile Doctor Shine Powder however the home owner was glad with the end result that had been achieved.

Sealing Marble Tiles

Once the tiles were completely dry I sealed them using Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an infusing sealer which occupies the pores of the stone and also improves its natural colours in the process.

Once I finished up the floor, I carried out the same process on the Marble sink unit using small six inch pads with a hand polisher. All went well and as you can see from the water bubble test in the photograph attached below, the floor is now completely sealed nonetheless there is more work to be done somewhere else in the house and the owner has now booked me in to clean all of their carpets as well.

Thorough Cleaning on Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor in Cardiff

Never give up is how I would describe this job!!! In Cardiff, I surveyed the floor in this kitchen in November 2014 and finally completed it and the end of February 2015 working on it off and on as I searched for right tiles to match the existing.

On my survey the Victorian tiled floor which the owner was hoping to restore was covered over by ceramic tiles which the owner agreed to remove before my next visit so I could carry out a cleaning sample. Furthermore, there was an area of flooring which needed to blend in with kitchen as the pantry wall that previously separated it had been knocked down.

The ceramic tiles were removed and I came round to carry out a cleaning sample in what I thought was one of the most heavily soiled areas; I used Tile Doctor Remove & Go combined with another Tile Doctor product called NanoTech HBU which stands for Heavy Build-up Remover. The results were excellent and it was decided to go and start the restoration.

During my visit I tested for moisture and in general the readings were good with the highest reading of 12 in different parts of the floor.

Fully Restoring a Victorian Tiled Floor

To clean the tiles I set about cleaning adhesive and grime off using a combination of Tile Doctor Nanotech HBU and Pro Clean which was left to soak in for two hours before scrubbing with a rotary machine fitted with a black scrubbing pad. I tried this for a while and found it was not removing the dirt as expected and on inspection I discovered that the inner body of the ceramic tile was still stuck to the floor. It seems that when the customer removed the ceramic tiles they had only managed to remove the top layer of the tile and had left the lower part stuck to the floor. This Job was now becoming a nightmare as the solution would be to chip and scrape away tiny pieces of the remaining tile away so I could reach and clean the original Victorian floor.

I had suggested to the customer that it might be cheaper to replace the whole floor but he was determined that we should stick with our original plan and try to do the best job possible so never giving up I was happy to oblige.

In between cleaning the floor I prepared the base adjacent to the original floor with levelling compound. Also with the cleaning in progress I was getting a better look at the Victorian tiles which were now starting to appear and I could see how badly damaged which would have to be replaced.

The hallway floor had to be cut at the kitchen doorway as it protruded into the kitchen which when the door was closed looked odd so the customer was happy with my suggestion. I made different suggestions for the new floor layout, and colours which we felt complimented each floor pattern , the new tiles were purchased from original style and the local reclamation yard but I did have to cut the back off a few because of different thickness.

I finished fixing the replacement tiles and laying the new tiles in a pattern that we had agreed and in a style that best matched the original floor.

Sealing a Victorian Floor Sealing

After all the work undertaken including the tilling of the area attached to the original I gave the whole floor a final and thorough steam clean which I did on a the Friday leaving it to thoroughly dry out over the weekend so I could move onto sealing early the following week.

However, when I arrived on Monday I found patches of efflorescence had appeared on certain tiles and I was still unable to finish the job. To resolve this the tiles needed to be given an wash down with Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up diluted 50/50 with water; this did the trick so I gave the floor another rinse with water and left to dry overnight.

When I came back the next day I checked for moisture which was a borderline reading of 15-16 so using a heat gun applied some warmth to the whole floor making sure to let it cool down before sealing with a coat of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an impregnating sealer that fills the pores in the tile to prevent dirt from becoming ingrained there. Next I applied three coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go which added a nice sheen to the floor and really brought out the vibrant reds in the tile. The following day I returned to do some tiling on wall above the cooker so applied a further three coats of Seal and Go to the floor to ensure it was fully sealed.

If you have read this story through to the end you will appreciate that this was an enormous job but it was satisfying to accomplished because the final result looks fantastic, needless to say both myself and the owner were very happy with the final result.

Sandstone Tiled Floor in Cardiff Refreshed

This Sandstone tiled floor with Limestone coloured grout in Cardiff was laid in 2006 and had now discoloured with wear and tear and had almost turned black in places which I suspect was due to no sealer being applied after installation.

I carried out a cleaning sample using Tile Doctor HBU Remover, which is a strong cleaning solution, applied it to one tile in the utility room and the dirt was removed with exceptional results; I then dried the tile with a heat gun to show the customer the results which she was delighted with.

Sandstone Tiled Floor Cleaning

For the rest of the floor I begin by wetting the surface and carried on treating it with more HBU remover diluted 50% with Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which made it thinner and more effective for deep cleaning. Using a stiff sweeping brush with bristles about half inch long (well broken in for this type of job) I then scrubbed away at the tiles and then the grout joints using a small hand held scrubbing brush which I always find is more effective than a machine which can make a lot of mess and can be overly aggressive. I cleaned the tiles in 5m2 sections rinsing each section four times to ensure there were no trace of cleaning solutions left behind. When finished the floor was left to dry for two to four hours and I tested for moisture knowing it would be ok but always worth checking.

Sealing a Sandstone Floor Sealing

Sandstone was sealed with four coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow. An impregnating and colour enhancing product which will protect the floor for many years to come.

I tested the floor with a water test to ensure it was fully sealed, this is a simple test whereby you check to see if drops of water applied to the surface form beads on the tile. The end result was incredible as you can see the tiles looked as good if not better than the day they were cut from the quarry, and the Colour Grow certainly enhanced the true colours in the stone.

Removal Of Wax From Terracotta Tiles in Battersea

Usually, Terracotta floors were protected using wax and this floor at a house in Battersea had been coated with a number of treatments including wax and other sealers, without a full history of the floor, it’s not that easy to tell what you’re dealing with. Wax isn't a recommended sealer as it can scratch easily which allows dirt to become ingrained and modern sealers outperform it in many ways.

Cleaning Terracotta Tiled Floor

To begin the cleaning process, I started the job using a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which was scrubbed into the tiles using a rotary machine fitted with a scrubbing pad. Pro-Clean is a heavy duty alkaline cleaner which can be used to eradicate wax residues and old sealants and being an alkaline product its safe for use on tiles. Unfortunately because there was so much old sealer and wax in the tiles it took a number of attempts to get the tiles clean and in the end it took five days to get them back to their natural state. Once this was done the floor was given a thorough rinse to remove any trace of cleaning product and was left to dry.

Sealing Terracotta Tile

Tiles need to be bone dry prior to sealing or it will upset the result of the sealer and in the end I had to wait three weeks before I was happy to start sealing, Terracotta being clay based is very porous so this is not that unusual.

To seal the tiled floor I used eight coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go which is a water based topical sealer which leaves no smell as it dries and also adds a nice sheen to the floor, eight coats is not unusual for Terracotta again due to its porosity.

The customer was so happy with the transformation and even though it took a lot longer than first anticipated he was really pleased, especially when he got his invoice, because he was expecting to be charged for the extra time it took to complete. I told him that once I had given him my price I do not add extras.