How to Renovate Dirty Terracotta Tiling

We were contacted by the owner of a property in Moulton with a problematic Terracotta tiled kitchen floor. She was seriously considering ripping up the entire area of tiling and replacing it as she was having a new kitchen installed. Both her and her husband were concerned that unless I could restore this floor to somewhere near to its original condition, they would need to replace it.


I went over to inspect the Terracotta tiles and could see the entire surface was deeply ingrained with soiling and the grout lines were filthy. After carrying out a test it became obvious that the previous sealer had been applied very sparingly and had mostly worn away, leaving the stone prone to staining. Terracotta is a very porous tile and dirt had become ingrained in the pores leaving it looking very dull and difficult to clean.


I completed the test on a small part of the floor and the customer could see the results which could be achieved. Happy with the result they agreed my quote and we set a date for my return to complete the floor.

Cleaning a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor

The tiles turned out to be made of a fairly soft Terracotta which meant that we were able to deep clean them extremely effectively using a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean. We used Tile Doctor Remove and Go in particularly stubborn areas.

The process I use is to spray the Pro-Clean onto the floor and leave it to soak in for about ten minutes before being worked in using a heavy rotary machine fitted with a black scrubbing pad. The resulting slurry is removed using a wet pick up vacuum. All the dirt and virtually all of the old sealer was removed at this stage; the remaining patches around the edges of the area being finished by hand with a 200-grit burnishing block. The grout lines were then cleaned by hand with an angled grout brush.


Finally, the deep-seated oil stains in front of the cooker were brought out using Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel which was left to dwell on the marks for an hour before being agitated with a diamond burnishing pad and rinsed away with a wet pick up machine. The floor was rinsed with water and allowed to dry off overnight.

Sealing a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor

The following day I inspected the floor and checked it was ready to be sealed. All was well so I applied an initial coat of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an impregnating sealer that occupies the pores in the tile enhancing the natural colours of the Terracotta and provide a base layer of protection from staining.


I returned at a convenient time once the kitchen was completely installed to finish the job. This involves carrying out a light maintenance clean with Tile Doctor Neutral Cleaner and once the floor was dry, I applied 5 further coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go which provides a pleasing satin finish which is really suited to this type of floor.


The customer was very happy with the results and has left the following feedback. "We were really pleased with the results, thank you!"





Source: Terracotta Tile Cleaning and Sealing Service in Northamptonshire

Dealing with Mould on Grout and Silicone in Northampton

A common problem with bathroom and shower cubicle tiles is the appearance of mould on the tile, grout and silicone which if not tackled on a regular basis will spread and threaten to severely damage the appearance of the tiles, along with the silicone. This problem is usually due to inadequate ventilation however the good news is that with early intervention with Tile Doctor Mould Away spray the problem can be reversed. The two photos below show a bad case of this very problem at a property Read more...

An Alternative Way Dealing With Missing Victorian

Here's a job I completed just before Christmas last year, at a house in Northampton which has a rich history and mix of architectural styles. The run up to Christmas is always popular as people try to get their household projects finished off in time for celebrating the festive season with Read more...

Quarry Tile Floor

Quarry Tile Floor in Weldon, Northants I think you will be impressed with these photographs from a Quarry Tile floor we did in Weldon recently. This quarry tiles were installed in the kitchen and went through to the dinning room, hallway and down stairs cloakroom, at total of around 40sq metres The tiles were recenctly installed and the customer called us in because they were unhappy with the finished result. This can be a common problem with Tilers who do a great job of levelling, tiling Read more...

Slate Tile Flooring Cleaning In Northampton

Pictures below from rough slate tile flooring installed in the Kitchen and Toilet of a house in Northampton. The home owner had called us in to give the slate floor a clean and seal. Cleaning the Slate Tile Flooring We cleaned the slate tiled floor with a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean in order to strip any remaining sealer together with a buffing machine fitted with a black scrubbing pad. The buffing machine doesn't get into the grout lines so well so we had to use hand brushes Read more...

Restoring the Polish on Travertine Tiles

Polished stone floors such as Travertine need to be regularly maintained correctly or will lose their sheen over time, additionally grout lines can fill with dirt and light scratches can quickly dull down Travertine and attract yet more soil. This was the case with this Travertine tiled floor Read more...

Polished Travertine Tile Maintenanced in Northampton

Polished stone floors such as Travertine need to be regularly maintained correctly or will lose their sheen over time, additionally grout lines can fill with dirt and light scratches can quickly dull down Travertine and attract yet more soil. This was the case with this Travertine tiled floor in Northampton which had been left too long between deep cleans and now the protective sealer had worn off and were badly scratched and soiled. Burnishing Polished Travertine Tiles To get the surface Read more...

Refurbishing a Victorian Tiled Hallway in Northampton After Building

This customer asked me to pay a visit following work to refurbish the house and wanted to restore as many original features as possible; work had been going on to restore coving, picture rails, ceiling roses and fireplaces but unfortunately nobody had thought to cover up the beautiful Victorian floor. When I arrived there was plaster dust and splashes of paint all over the floor that needed attention. A quote was given which was accepted and the work was booked in for the following week. Read more...

Travertine Tiled Kitchen With Badly Stained Grout Cleaned in Northampton

Earlier this month I was in the town of Northampton, to see a client who had reported a problem with her Travertine kitchen tiles. Basically the grout between the tiles was badly stained, to the point of appearing almost black. The Travertine tiles were also in need of some maintenance, and so I was commissioned to provide a clean, polish and a fresh seal. Travertine is a popular choice for kitchen flooring due to its relatively high durability and distinct features. My task was to get this Read more...

Deep Cleaning Terrazzo Hallway Floor

This Terrazzo tiled hallway at a property in Northampton was in a really bad state. It was heavily soiled and suffered from glue marks where the original carpet covering it had been removed. Additionally, there was some damage to the edges of the doorway, and a large crack in the floor running across the width of the hallway. Terrazzo is an interesting material, originally produced in Italy, that consists mainly of concrete with segments of marble and other stone interspersed and held Read more...

Victorian Hallway Tiles Repaired and Restored in Northampton

The photographs below are from a Victorian tiled hallway floor at a house in Northampton where I was called in by the owner to inspect the floor for restoration, deep cleaning and re-setting of all loose tiles covering around 3sq metres. Cleaning Victorian Tiles The initial process was to Read more...

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Restoring a Victorian Tiled Hallway in Northampton

The photographs below are from a Victorian tiled hallway floor at a house in Northampton where I was called in by the owner to inspect the floor for restoration, deep cleaning and re-setting of all loose tiles covering around 3sq metres. Cleaning Victorian Tiles The initial process was to vacuum and remove any loose debris before applying Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel to the entire area. Oxy-Gel is a strong alkaline based gel cleaner/stripper which is safe to use on tile and grout and being gel Read more...

Victorian Hallway Floor Tile Restoration

The photographs below are from a Victorian tiled hallway floor at a house in Northampton where I was called in by the owner to inspect the floor for restoration, deep cleaning and re-setting of all loose tiles covering around 3sq metres.

Cleaning Victorian Tiles

The initial process was to vacuum and remove any loose debris before applying Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel to the entire area. Oxy-Gel is a strong alkaline based gel cleaner/stripper which is safe to use on tile and grout and being gel based it’s very easy to control. The gel was left to get to work on the dirt for ten minutes before being scrubbed into the tile with a black stripping pad fixed to a rotary floor machine. The resultant slurry and dirt was then rinsed with water and removed using a wet vacuum. The floor now free of dirt and old sealers was now prepared ready for repairs and re-grouting.

Grouting Victorian Tiles

The next step was to remove small sections of loose tiles and then re-fixing and re-grouting as required. We took care to replace tiles into their original position to ensure they sat together correctly. Once the section was replaced I removed the tiles in the next section and repeated this process until the 3sq metres of loose tiles were all reinstalled.


I allowed the grout to dry for a few hours before polishing off excess grout with a cloth and removing difficult grout smears with a weak solution of Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up. The floor was then rinsed again using water to remove any trace of products and then dried using the wet vacuum.

Sealing Victorian Tiles

I returned a few days later to ensure the floor was completely dry as dampness can be issue with this type of tile, I then vacuumed the floor and gave it a light clean with Tile Doctor Neutral Cleaner to make sure it was spotless before sealing. Once the floor had dried I took damp readings and when satisfied the floor was dry again I applied three coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow Sealant for a light sheen finish and to enhance the natural colour of the floor. Colour grow is a penetrating sealer that protects from within by soaking into the pores of the tile stopping dirt from becoming ingrained there, it also enhances colour.




Source: Victorian Tile Repair and Restoration Service in Northamptonshire

Restoring a Victorian Quarry Tiled Hallway in Northampton

Here's a job I completed just before Christmas last year, at a house in Northampton which has a rich history and mix of architectural styles. The run up to Christmas is always popular as people try to get their household projects finished off in time for celebrating the festive season with family so this is always a busy time for Tile Doctor. The photos below show a neglected Victorian Quarry tiled floor in need of repair, with cracked tiles along the edges. These were caused by somebody in Read more...

Heavily Soiled Terrazzo Hallway Restored in Northampton

This Terrazzo tiled hallway at a property in Northampton was in a really bad state. It was heavily soiled and suffered from glue marks where the original carpet covering it had been removed. Additionally, there was some damage to the edges of the doorway, and a large crack in the floor running across the width of the hallway. Terrazzo is an interesting material, originally produced in Italy, that consists mainly of concrete with segments of marble and other stone interspersed and held Read more...

Mouldy Shower Cubicle Refreshed in Northampton

A common problem with bathroom and shower cubicle tiles is the appearance of mould on the tile, grout and silicone which if not tackled on a regular basis will spread and threaten to severely damage the appearance of the tiles, along with the silicone. This problem is usually due to inadequate ventilation however the good news is that with early intervention with Tile Doctor Mould Away spray the problem can be reversed. The two photos below show a bad case of this very problem at a property Read more...

Deep Cleaning Terrazzo Hallway Floor

This Terrazzo tiled hallway at a property in Northampton was in a really bad state. It was heavily soiled and suffered from glue marks where the original carpet covering it had been removed. Additionally, there was some damage to the edges of the doorway, and a large crack in the floor running across the width of the hallway. Terrazzo is an interesting material, originally produced in Italy, that consists mainly of concrete with segments of marble and other stone interspersed and held Read more...

Heavily Soiled Terrazzo Hallway Restored in Northampton

This Terrazzo tiled hallway at a property in Northampton was in a really bad state. It was heavily soiled and suffered from glue marks where the original carpet covering it had been removed. Additionally, there was some damage to the edges of the doorway, and a large crack in the floor running across the width of the hallway. Terrazzo is an interesting material, originally produced in Italy, that consists mainly of concrete with segments of marble and other stone interspersed and held Read more...

How to restore the appearance of Terrazzo

This Terrazzo tiled hallway at a property in Northampton was in a really bad state. It was heavily soiled and suffered from glue marks where the original carpet covering it had been removed. Additionally, there was some damage to the edges of the doorway, and a large crack in the floor running across the width of the hallway.


Terrazzo is an interesting material, originally produced in Italy, that consists mainly of concrete with segments of marble and other stone interspersed and held together with a resin. Since Terrazzo is formed in this way, I explained to the customer that I would fill the crack along the floor and the small holes around the edges with concrete, before then using tile paint to match in the colours as best as possible. This would be the most cost-effective solution, which was ideal since the customer had a limited budget for the repairs.


Before beginning the restoration, I tested a small area using a diamond encrusted burnishing pad, thereby giving the customer an indication of the type of results that could be achieved. With the customer pleased by the results, the job was booked in for the following week.

Cleaning and Burnishing a Soiled Terrazzo Tiled Hallway

To begin, Tile Doctor Remove & Go was applied to the floor and was left to dwell for ten minutes to soften the carpet glue and break down any old sealer. This was then scrubbed in to the tiles with a pad fitted to a rotary machine. To remove the remaining residue and marks in the particularly stubborn areas, I used a manual hand scraper. The entire floor was then wet vaxed to soak up the soiled cleaner and leave the area clean for burnishing. This was followed by the use of Tile Doctor diamond encrusted burnishing pads to polish the tiles, starting with a coarse grit pad, followed by wet vaxing and repeating the process with a medium grit pad and finally the fine grit pad to achieve the desired effect. I then installed a turbo dryer to dry the floor. I returned to the property once the floor was dry and carried out the repairs which had been discussed earlier with the customer (filling the holes and cracks in the floor with concrete), cleaning off any concrete residue before I finished for the day.

Sealing a Terrazzo Tiled Hallway

Upon my return to the property the next day, I refined the polish on the floor even further by applying the extra fine grit burnishing pad.


To finish off the three day restoration, I sealed the Terrazzo tiles using two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow sealer. As an impregnating sealer, Colour Grow soaks into the pores of the stone, protecting it from ingrained dirt. Colour Grow also contains colour intensifying properties, allowing it to enhance the naturally occurring shades in the stone, and therefore stopping it from appearing dull.


This floor certainly was in a bad state, with damage as well as dirt to deal with, but I'm pleased to say that the work went a long way in transforming its appearance, leaving a very happy customer.





Source: Terrazzo Floor Tile Restoration Service in Northamptonshire

An Alternative Way Dealing With Missing Victorian

Here's a job I completed just before Christmas last year, at a house in Northampton which has a rich history and mix of architectural styles. The run up to Christmas is always popular as people try to get their household projects finished off in time for celebrating the festive season with Read more...