How to Renovate a Terracotta Tiled Floor

I was called in by a client from the Cotswolds market town of Witney who had lifted up a carpet to discover a Terracotta tiled floor underneath. Although the floor was in good physical condition the carpet and underlay had been trapping moisture from evaporating resulting. Old floors like this one were laid before damp proof membranes became standard so covering them up can cause damp issues. It is important to allow moisture from underneath tiled floors to evaporate unimpeded otherwise moisture can reach out to the walls resulting in rising damp.

 

Moisture can also penetrate the pores of the clay Terracotta tile potentially leading to its degradation over time and in this case resulted in the appearance of white efflorescent salts being deposited on the tile surface causing unsightly staining.

 

Cleaning Terracotta Tile

I started cleaning the Terracotta by doing applying strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is an effective alkaline tile cleaner. For best results I spread the solution on the floor and then leave it to dwell and soak in for up to twenty minutes. This gives the product time to eat into the dirt and old coatings before being scrubbed in with a black pad fitted to a rotary floor machine. This worked very well on the floor and the cleaning solution was soon dirty with the released soil which was removed using a wet vacuum and more water to rinse it away and dry the floor as much as possible.

To remove the white efflorescent staining the floor was given an acid wash using Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up which is designed for removing grout and other mineral stains from tiling. This was brushed into the tile and grout by hand and left to fizz as it reacted with the efflorescence. After another rinse and extract with the wet vacuum the floor was left to dry out for a couple of days. The next step would be to seal the Terracotta and for best results the tile needs to be dry.

 

Sealing Terracotta Tile

On my return I checked the tiles were dry by taking a few moisture readings with a damp meter. The readings came back fine so I need not have been concerned however Terracotta tiles being made from clay are very porous so its always a good idea to check.

Given the previous issues with damp I knew I would need to use a fully breathable sealer, so I opted to use Tile Doctor Colour Grow. This product will cope well with the moisture and contains a colour enhancing formula that really brings out the red colour of the Terracotta.

 

Except for a few deep efflorescent stains in the grout, the floor responded very well to the treatment and made a massive improvement to the overall appearance. My client was pleased with the transformation and the newly restored floor matched well with the character of the property.

Source: Terracotta Cleaning and Renovation Service in Oxfordshire

How to Pattern Ceramic Countertop Tiles

Depending on the size, shape and color of the tiles, the number of options can be staggering when it comes to creating a pattern for your ceramic countertop tiles. Countertops can be tiled with ceramic tiles, natural stone tiles, glass tiles with glittering metallic flakes embedded in the surface, glazed porcelain tile, and even elegant polished marble tiles. You can make patterns with mosaic sheets that are covered with a myriad of tiny ceramic tiles or design your own pattern and add personality to any room.

Thing You'll Need:

• Measuring tape
• 3 different colored tile samples
• Paper
• Pencil
• Ruler
• Digital camera
• Colored pencils

1. Research tile patterns for decor themes on the Internet or in home decorating magazines. Print or make a copy of any patterns that you would like to use as a visual aid.
2. Measure the dimensions of the countertop and write them down. Keep these measurements handy as you go to purchase sample ceramic tiles as they help you determine the size of the tile and how they fit together.
3. Select a main color tile, called a field color, for your countertop that matches the color scheme of your kitchen or bathroom.
4. Select two to three accent colors tiles that go with the color scheme and your overall decorating theme and enhance the visual appearance of the field color tile. Accent tiles are a lighter or darker hue of color, or they can be a matching color that draws attention to the simple pattern on your counter top. They can be square, diamond shaped or circular and can be a single color or have a striking design painted or embossed on them.
5. Draw a map of your countertop. Sketch tile design ideas on it to start brainstorming patterns for the ceramic tiles you selected.
6. Cut a 1-square-foot piece of paper and draw a grid of 1-inch squares on it with a ruler. The grid helps you visualize sections of the counter space and the tile positions of your pattern.
7. Experiment with tile patterns by laying out your ceramic tile samples on the paper grid. Start with simple designs and set the larger tiles down first.
8. Fill spaces between the larger tiles with smaller accent tiles as you begin to design your own tile pattern.
9. Create borders or lines of tile that goes across the entire counter near the midway point to create the illusion of a larger countertop.
10. Place the tiles on your counter in the desired pattern to see how they look once they are installed. You may need to come up with several different patterns before you find one that fits your room perfectly.
11. Take a picture of the tile pattern with a digital camera or draw the tile pattern and shade it with colored pencils that match the tile colors. These visuals assist with laying the tiles in your personalized pattern, as you are able to quickly see the color and position of the tiles without having to read over notes.

Tips:

• Find fabric prints that match the style of your decorating theme and use swatches of the fabric to help you find the perfect tile color combinations for your counter top.
• Brick patterns, straight, diagonal, checkerboard and herringbone patterns are common tile designs.

Source: www.HomeGuides.sfgate.com

How to Remove Carpet Adhesive

Carpet or tile adhesive can seem almost impossible to remove from a concrete or wooden floor, especially when it has been there for a long time. If you try sanding, it will heat up and clog up the sandpaper. If you wire brush it with a wire wheel on your drill, again if you let it heat up, it will just clog up the wire brush. A heat gun can soften most adhesives and allow for some degree of scraping, but it is slow as concrete below will be quite cold and will draw the heat away from the adhesive and bare wood below can just get blacker with melted adhesive. The good news is that most of these adhesives can be softened up by using their original solvent.

Water or Solvent based adhesive?

If you can’t find the new removers, or find them too expensive, then you will have to go back to the old techniques. First you want to determine if it is a water base or a solvent based adhesive. Take a face cloth and soak it in hot water. Place it over a patch of the adhesive, even cover it with plastic to keep it from drying out. Leave it for about an hour. Try scraping. If at least a little of the top has softened up enough to scrape off with a putty knife, you are in business. Cover as large an area as you can reach with hot water and something to avoid evaporation. You can dam up the water over concrete but be careful over hardwood as the water will flow between the cracks. You can simply keep rags soaked. You will soon learn just how long it takes for each patch to soften up. This is a slow process but the more patience you have the less elbow grease you will need.

Using Heat

If there is a clear varnish on a wooden hardwood floor under that glue, you can usually successfully soften the varnish with a heat gun, even if your don’t soften the glue. The soft varnish will permit you to easily scrape off the glue on top of it. In this case, sanding lightly and refinishing could give you a nice hardwood floor because the varnish kept the black adhesive from staining the wood.

Using solvents

If the neither water nor heat affect it, try the same technique with paint thinner. If you have to go this route, turn off all heating devices, all pilot lights and assure yourself some good cross ventilation. Put plastic over the soaking rags to prevent evaporation, to force the solvents down into the adhesive and to have less fumes to deal with. Work in a relatively small area at a time. This should soften up just about any adhesives that won’t respond to water. Hang the rags out to dry or keep them in a closed metal container to avoid the possibility of spontaneous combustion and fire. If you can find the new gell like glue strippers mentioned above, they will be less volitle and more effective than paint thinners.

Source: Joneakes.com

How to Renovate Old Terracotta Floor Tiles

This client had acquired a 400-year old cottage in Leatherhead as part of his divorce agreement. The front room was tiled with Terracotta which is a soft stone and particularly porous. The tiles had seen a lot of wear and use over the years and were now in need of some love.

   

He emailed over some photographs however it’s difficult to tell the best remedy without doing any testing, so I arranged visit the property and take a proper look. It was immediately clear the Terracotta had become badly discoloured in places some of which was from burning logs which had previously fallen from the fireplace onto the tiles. There was also a considerable amount of red paint around the edges that would need removing.

This work would take two days with at least 48 hours in-between days to allow for evaporation as a wet tile cannot be sealed. The client was happy to go ahead with my quote and we arranged a suitable time to complete the work for him.

 

Cleaning a Terracotta Tiled Living Room Floor

Firstly, as the terracotta is soft and more importantly red it can make a mess of the woodwork when cleaning with water, so I covered the kickboards with sticky plastic coating to ensure they were protected.

Then I removed the edging paint by softening it with an application of a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go. Once left for half an hour the paint starts to soften and this makes it easier to remove, although this is a manual process carefully scrapping the remains of the paint away.

Next, I coated the floor with Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel. This strong cleaning product is left for half an hour to work into the pores of the Terracotta. With some water I gently cleaned the floor with a rotary machine fitted with a nylon pad. This is a wet process, so no dust is created.

For the next few hours, I cleaned the whole room. The areas damaged by burning wood were worked on with a diamond encrusted pad to get deep into the tile. When finished, the tiles were clean and more consistent in appearance and colour. I left the floor for the weekend to fully dry.

 

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

On the Monday I returned to seal the Terracotta first checking the tiles had dried out using a damp meter. The customer didn’t want either a shiny finish or a matte finish. He did want a strong, protective sealer so we agreed on using Tile Doctor Seal and Go Extra which leaves a sheen finish and will last for years. The floor was now fully protected and should be durable for the foreseeable future.

   

The client was very happy with the work we had carried out, it had really transformed the room and he was looking forward to getting the furniture back in to position.

Source: Terracotta Floor Cleaning and Renovation Service in West Surrey

How to Seal Quarry Tile

Quarry tile adds beauty and value to your home. Perhaps the most well-known type of quarry tile is terra cotta, which is made from red clay. However, quarry tile is available in a wide range of colors and designs to suit any decorating theme. It’s important to apply sealant to quarry tile.

The tiles are porous and will absorb stains along with water if left unprotected. It’s not hard to seal quarry tile. You should use a sealing compound formulated for unglazed tile. Avoid common substitutes like linseed oil or floor wax. These do not properly seal the tile and may result in discoloration because the tiles will trap dirt.

Things You’ll Need

• QT sealer
• Paintbrush
• Rags
• T and G cleaner

Instructions

1. Test the quarry tile to see if it needs to be sealed. With newly-laid tile this isn’t needed, since you know sealing is required. Existing tile should be re-sealed periodically (about every two years). Place an ounce or so of water on a tile. Allow it to set for 5 or 10 minutes and then dry the tile. Wait about 2-3 minutes. If the tile is still darkened from water absorption, it’s time to re-seal.
2. Clean the tile thoroughly using grout and tile cleaner. Manufacturer’s instructions vary, but in general you should spread the cleaner on and allow it to set for a half hour or so, and then wipe the cleaner off the tile. Allow the tile to dry completely before applying sealant. To be sure it’s completely dry, leave the tile overnight.
3. Use a good paintbrush to apply the first coat of sealant. Spread a layer of sealant over the tile area and let it soak in for about 5 minutes. Use a rag to wipe excess off the tile. Wait at least 30 minutes and then apply a second coat the same way. Again, wait a few minutes, and then wipe off the excess. Allow the tile to dry for 2-3 hours before resuming normal use of the area.

Source: https://homesteady.com/

How to Make Slate Tile Shine

Slate is a natural stone with durability and low maintenance requirements that make it a good choice for flooring. Slate comes in a variety of colors and veins, but rarely does the stone have a natural shine to it, and never a high shine that you see on polished flooring such as marble. Although proper cleaning and avoidance of wax flooring products will reduce dullness of slate tile, to make slate tile shine, you need to treat the floor with acrylic sealer.

Things You’ll Need

• Broom or vacuum
• Mop or steam mop
• Acrylic sealer

Instructions

1. Remove all furniture and non-fixed floor items from the room with the slate tile.
2. Sweep or vacuum the floor to remove dust and dirt.
3. Mop the slate with hot water only to ensure the slate is clean. If you have a steam mop, that is an even better choice as it dries quickly. Hand-dry the floor with towels or wait until the floor naturally dries.
4. Apply acrylic sealer to the slate. Acrylic sealer can be purchased at flooring and home improvement stores. Be sure you select one that is suitable for slate tile. Allow the sealer to dry completely.
5. Assess the shine from the application of sealer. If the shine is not high enough, apply another layer of sealer to the floor. You may have to apply several layers of sealer before you achieve the shine desired. Wait 48 hours after applying the last coat of sealant before returning furniture to the room.

Source: www.Hunker.com

How to Remove White Paint Stains From a Black Granite Kitchen Sink

When an accidental paint splatters or drips leave you with white paint stains on your black granite kitchen sink, don't panic. Latex and acrylic paints usually do not stain and should clean right up. Oil-based paints will stain, but you should be able to remedy the problem without major chemical or professional treatments. As with any stain, the quicker you get to the stain, the better your chances of removing it completely.

What You'll Need:

• Razor blade
• Paper towels
• Baking soda
• Plastic scraper
• Plastic wrap
• Tape
• Soft cloth

1. Blot the stain with a paper towel if the paint is still fresh to remove it. Scrape paint off the kitchen carefully with a razor blade if it has dried. Wipe up paint flakes with a damp paper towel.
2. Wet the area, and then create a poultice of equal parts baking soda and water; use more baking soda if needed to create a thick paste. Apply a 1/4- to 1/2-inch-thick poultice. Spread the poultice evenly over the stained area with a plastic scraper tool.
3. Cover the poultice with plastic wrap and tape down the edges. Allow the poultice to stand for 24 to 48 hours, depending on the severity of the stain.
4. Remove the plastic wrap and rinse the area thoroughly. Buff the area with a soft cloth. Repeat the process if the stain has not lifted completely.

Warnings:

• Avoid using flame tools or acid products, such as lemon juice and white vinegar, to remove paint stains on granite.
• Wear goggles and a dust mask if working with a solvent to remove paint stains. Keep windows and doors open as well to circulate the air.
• Avoid using heavy-duty paint strippers to remove paint stains, especially if they are small. Paint strippers will break down the granite surface and you will have to re-polish the stone.
• Refrain from rubbing the paint stains.

Tips:

• Create a poultice of equal parts mineral spirits and poultice materials, such as fuller's earth, diatomaceous earth, talc or powdered chalk as an alternative cleaning solution for oil-based paint stains.

Source: HomeGuides.sfgate.com