Tile Doctor Feed 2

Incredibly Dirty Sandstone Tiled Kitchen Floor Renovation in Church Minshull

Fri, 20 Dec 2024 14:01:08 +0000

We received an enquiry from a client in the sleepy village of Church Minshull, North of Nantwich, in the Cheshire countryside to ask if we could renovate a Sandstone tiled kitchen floor.

Availability was critical in this case as they were having a new kitchen fitted and they wanted someone who could work on the floor in between the old units being removed and the new ones being fitted. Happy to help if I could, I arranged a visit to survey the floor and discuss timings.

Whilst at the property I conducted a test clean on a small section of flooring which revealed just how incredibly dirty the stone had become. It was clear to me that the sandstone was heavily ingrained with dirt and that any sealer that may have been present was now long gone. Sealers prevent dirt from dirt becoming ingrained into the pores of the stone which keeps the dirt on the surface where it’s much easier to remove.

Impressed with the difference I had been able to achieve so quickly and happy with my quote for renovating the whole floor the only thing outstanding was to work out if I could get the floor clean before the new kitchen was installed. Fortunately, I was able to move a few things around so it would work.

Cleaning a Sandstone Tiled Kitchen

To get the floor clean, work started with an application of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is a strong alkaline tile and grout cleaner. I used a very strong solution diluting four parts Tile Doctor Pro-Clean to only one part water. This was then left to soak into the sandstone for twenty minutes to give it time to break down the dirt.

The grout lines were then scrubbed using a stiff grout brush before turning attention to the Sandstone which was scrubbed using a rotary floor machine fitted with a Black scrubbing pad and more water. All this scrubbing released a lot of dirt from the floor turning the cleaning solution into a dark slurry. The dirty residue was then removed by wet vacuum.

The floor was then inspected, and the process repeated where needed. Once I was happy the Sandstone and Grout were clear of all the dirt, I gave it a final rinse and extracted as much moisture as possible with the wet vacuum.

Sealing a Sandstone Tiled Kitchen

The floor was left to dry overnight, and work resumed the next day to seal the floor. First the floor was checked with a damp meter to make sure it was dry and ready to take a seal.
The results were fine and so the floor was sealed with two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an impregnating colour enhancing sealer. Large fans were used to speed up the drying process between coats.

Once done the floor looked incredibly different, the patterns and colours in the stone were now visible and it looked so much cleaner. The grout had also responded well and the floor was completely transformed by the work.

For aftercare cleaning I recommended they use of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is an effective pH neutral tile and grout cleaner that won’t impact the sealer.

Professional Restoration of a Sandstone Tiled Kitchen in West Cheshire

The post Incredibly Dirty Sandstone Tiled Kitchen Floor Renovation in Church Minshull appeared first on West Cheshire Tile Doctor.

Heavily Soiled Limestone Kitchen Floor Renovated in Crianlarich

Fri, 13 Dec 2024 12:23:04 +0000

Earlier this year I attended a home in Crianlarich to work on a Limestone Kitchen floor. The stone floor was pretty grubby and proving difficult to keep clean. It was clear to me that the sealer that had once protected the stone had been worn away leaving it vulnerable to ingrained dirt. This process happens so slowly you don’t really notice it.

I carried out a small test clean to demonstrate just how bad the problem was and the improvement made by the cleaning was quite a contrast. Impressed by this and now looking forward to a transformed floor I was asked to provide a price for the renovation.

I worked out a quote which included deep cleaning the tile and grout, polishing the Limestone and then sealing the whole floor with a hard-wearing sealer. They were happy to go ahead, and we scheduled a date in for the work, it was only a small area so would not take too long.

Cleaning a Limestone Tiled Kitchen Floor

To get the tile and grout clean I started with a 1 to 4 dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which was sprayed onto the floor and left to soak in for ten minutes. The dwell times gives the product time to breakdown the dirt and old sealer before being worked into the floor using a Black Scrubbing pad fitted to a rotary buffer machine. The pads are run over each tile multiple times to lift the dirt from the pores of the stone.

After rinsing the tiles and extracting the soiling with a wet vacuum it was time to refine the appearance of the Limestone using a set of diamond burnishing pads of different grits. This process starts with a coarse 400-grit burnishing pad and then repeated with a medium 800-grit pad and a fine 1500-grit pad. The floor is rinsed and extracted after each pad to remove the slurry generated during the process.

The next step was to scrub the grout lines using more Tile Doctor Pro-Clean. I find this is best done manually, as the pads can struggle to reach the recesses of the grout lines. Once complete, the floor was rinsed and extracted multiple times to neutralize it and remove any remaining product.

The floor was then left to dry off overnight.

Sealing a Limestone Tiled Kitchen Floor

On my return the next day work started with the application of the last of the four burnishing pads which is a an extra-fine 3000-grit. This pad further refines the stone and is applied dry to the floor, with only a light misting of water sprayed onto the tile – a process we call a “Spray Burnish”. This leaves the floor nice and dry, and ready for the final step of sealing.

Having discussed sealers and the difference finishes that can be achieved with the customer earlier we had decided upon Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal. This is an almost invisible sealer that leaves the Limestone looking very natural. It works by seeping into the stone, occupying the pores and thereby preventing dirt from becoming ingrained there. This ensures dirt remains on the surface where it can be easily cleaned away. Only two coats of Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal were needed to fully seal the stone, leaving around 30 minutes of drying time between coats.

I think you will agree from the photographs the Limestone floor was transformed by the renovation process and now looks so much cleaner and lighter in colour. The Kitchen now looks much more appealing and inviting much to the delight of my customers.

For the ongoing care of this polished stone floor, we recommend using Tile Doctor Stone Soap. It is a gentle yet effective cleaner that helps maintain the patina without damaging the sealer, ensuring the floor’s finish lasts for a long time.

Professional Cleaning and Polishing of a Limestone Tiled Kitchen Floor in Stirling

The post Heavily Soiled Limestone Kitchen Floor Renovated in Crianlarich appeared first on Stirling Tile Doctor.

Quarry Tiled Kitchen Floor Deep Cleaned and Satin Sealed in Woodham Walter

Wed, 11 Dec 2024 03:33:44 +0000

The photos are of a large Quarry tiled Kitchen floor at a property in Woodham Walter which is a small village between Danbury and Maldon. The floor had been installed 20 years ago by the current owners and although in reasonable condition they felt it was time to have them renovated as the tiles had lost their sheen and now looked flat and unattractive.

I went over to survey the floor and quote for deep cleaning and then re-sealing. The photographs don’t really show it, but it was clear to me that the sealer had worn off and it was the sealer that had brought the depth and colour to the quarry tiles.

We discussed the process which would take two days and decided on a sealer that would best match their expectations. They were happy with my quote and the work was booked in.

Cleaning a Quarry Tiled Kitchen Floor

On arrival I set about prepping the floor for cleaning which for this floor primarily meant removing the kick boards from underneath the kitchen units.

Working in sections I set about cleaning the quarry tiles using Tile Doctor Remove and Go. This as the name of the product suggests is a coatings remover that cleans the floor and removes any sealer left on the tiles. Although it had been some time since it was last sealed its important that all the previous sealer is removed before applying a new sealer. This ensures you don’t end up with different levels of sealer and some areas appearing darker than others.

The Remove and Go was left to soak in for ten minutes before being worked in with a rotary buffing machine fitted with a black scrubbing pad. The grout was also scrubbed into the grout lines by hand using more solution and a stiff brush. This action lifts the dirt out of the floor and turns the cleaning solution and old sealer into a slurry, this is then rinsed off with water and extracted with a wet vacuum.

Next, I treated the tiles to an acid rinse using a 1:5 dilution of Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up. This further cleans the tiles and will neutralise the pH level of the floor following the use of Tile Doctor Remove and Go earlier which is a strong alkaline. The acidic nature of the product microscopically etches the tiles to ensure a stronger bond with the sealer.

The Grout Clean-up was brushed into the floor and then rinsed off with more water before being extracted with the wet vacuum. After another rinse with water the wet vacuum was then utilised to get the floor as dry as possible before leaving it to dry off fully overnight.

Sealing a Quarry Tiled Kitchen and Dining Room

The next day the moisture level of the Quarry tiles was checked using a damp meter to ensure the floor was dry enough for sealing. This is always worth doing as applying sealer to a damp floor can result in a patch appearance.

The moisture readings were fine and so work started on sealing the tiles using Tile Doctor Seal & Go which works really well on Quarry tiles and results in a warm satin sheen finish. This product is also water based so you don’t get that solvent smell being given off as it dries.

Sealers work by keeping the dirt on the surface of the tile where it can be easily cleaned away and on the subject of aftercare cleaning I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner. It’s important to use a neutral tile cleaner on sealed floors like this as stronger bleach-based products will wear the sealer off prematurely.

Professional Restoration of a Quarry Tiled Kitchen and Dining Room in Essex

The post Quarry Tiled Kitchen Floor Deep Cleaned and Satin Sealed in Woodham Walter appeared first on South Essex Tile Doctor.

Terrazzo Floor Discovered under Hallway Carpet Restored in Neath

Fri, 06 Dec 2024 14:30:26 +0000

A family in Neath, just outside Swansea, got in touch about a Terrazzo floor that they discovered when pulling up old carpet in the hallway. Having discussed the floor on the phone I arranged to the property to better understand its condition and provide a quote for its restoration.

It was a beautifully large hallway, but having spent many years under carpet it was now in a very poor state. There was a lot of damage from nails from gripper rods and door strips being hammered in to the floor to secure the carpet. There were also multiple large cracks, missing stones and areas that had risen.

At some point in the past central heating pipes had been run across one section and then back filled with concrete. Multiple doorways had been all-but-destroyed by door strips and going into the other rooms entire quarry tiles were missing and smashed.

The family had taken on this charming house with the intention to maintain as many of the original features as possible, and upon discovering the floor hoped that it could be salvaged. Having discussed the work that was needed at length I worked out a quote for fully restoring the floor. Happy with the costs involved and keen to get it restored the quote was accepted.

Restoring a Terrazzo Floor in Neath

Work started with the repair work including the careful removal of concrete backfill using hand tools and a grinder. The rubble from this was cleared away and then the detailed repair work began using resin, tints and various stones to replicate the damaged and missing areas.

Terrazzo floors are made from stone chippings and in this floor, there was a lot of Marble content. Because of this we find the best way to renovate Terrazzo is to treat them like polished stone and hone them using a set of diamond burnishing pads. The pads come in a set from 400 to 3000 grit and are applied to the floor using a rotary floor buffer.

The first pad which is a coarse 400-grit that cuts through the grime and dirt. In this case I run it over the floor in combination with a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which also adds lubrication. The process generates a lot of slurry which is rinsed off with water and extracted with a wet vacuum. The whole process was then repeated using an 800 and 1500-grit pad, only water was used with these pads and the floor was rinsed and extracted as before after each pad.

To further enhance the appearance of the floor and add a lovely durable shine, Tile Doctor Shine Powder was then ground into the floor using a White buffing pad

Sealing a Terrazzo Tiled Hallway

After allowing it to dry properly, the floor was sealed with multiple coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow sealer. This is a colour enhancing impregnating sealer that soaks into the Terrazzo, occupying the pores and preventing dirt from residing there. This protection will ensure dirt remains on the surface where it can be easily cleaned away.

The floor responded very well to the treatments and the couple were delighted with their stunning floor. The work had transformed the hallway and given the Terrazzo a new lease of life that has enhanced their spectacular house.

For aftercare on a floor like this I recommended using Tile Doctor Stone Soap which is a gentle yet effective neutral pH tile cleaner that contains a patina enhancer.

Professional Restoration of a Terrazzo Tiled Hallway in South Wales

The post Terrazzo Floor Discovered under Hallway Carpet Restored in Neath appeared first on Swansea Tile Doctor.

Polishing and Sealing a Dull Limestone Tiled Floor in Colne Burnley

Tue, 03 Dec 2024 06:09:14 +0000

Earlier this year I received an enquiry from Colne regarding a Limestone tiled floor that needed attention. The floor had been installed a few years earlier throughout much of the ground floor including the utility, hallway and large kitchen diner. It was last sealed by the installer and since then it had become quite soiled in parts, particularly the heavy traffic areas and grout. The client hoped for a lighter finish, with a light sheen/semi honed finish to the stone and cleaner grout.

The protective sealer had clearly worn down and was now letting dirt into the pores of the stone making it difficult to clean effectively. After surveying the floors, I recommended burnishing the Limestone with a set of diamond pads and then re-sealing the stone with a suitable modern sealer that would give the finish they were looking for. Happy with my quote we set a date to start the work.

Cleaning and Polishing a Limestone Tiled Floor in Colne

Diamond burnishing pads are the best tool for renovating honed stone floors like Limestone and after setting up the equipment work started with the application of a coarse 400-grit pad.

The pad is fitted to a weighted buffing machine and applied to the floor at low speed with water to lubricate the process. This coarse pad strips off old sealers and cleans the stone and is run over each tile three times, once done the resultant soiling is rinsed off with water and extracted with a wet vacuum.

The burnishing process was then continued with finer 800 and 1500-grit pads which slowly restore a honed finish to the stone. After each pad is run over the floor the dirty water was extracted using the wet vacuum as before.

The next step was to scrub the grout joints using a medium dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean. The solution is left to soak into the grout for ten minutes before being scrubbed in by hand with a stiff brush. Once done the now dirty solution was rinsed off with more water and extracted using the very useful wet vacuum.

The floor was then reviewed and any issues spot cleaned using a repeat of the various processes. Part of this work included hand finishing the edges and corners using a set of small hand burnishing blocks of different grits.

A lot of water was used during the cleaning process and the floor needs to be dry before applying the sealer. So once all the work was done the floor was dried as much as possible with the wet vacuum and then left to dry out for 24 hours.

Sealing a Polished Limestone Tiled Floor in Colne

On my return I set about polishing the Limestone using the last pad in the burnishing pad set which is an extra fine 3000-grit. This last pad is applied to the floor dry with only a little water sprayed onto the stone as you progress. It adds a lovely deep shine to the Limestone and leaves the floor dry and ready to be sealed.

To finish Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal was then applied to the Limestone, this is an impregnating sealer that provides a natural look finish. It works by soaking into the stone occupying the pores and thereby preventing dirt from becoming ingrained there, this ensures dirt remains on the surface where it can be easily cleaned away.

The floor looked much cleaner and lighter once done and my client was very happy with the result and left the following comment on our review page:

“Thoroughly professional job from start to finish with fantastic results!”

For aftercare I recommended using Tile Doctor Stone Soap for polished stone floors like this, it is a gentle effective cleaner that’s ideal for cleaning sealed floors and helps to maintain the patina.

Professional Restoration of a Limestone Tiled Ground Floor in South Lancashire

The post Polishing and Sealing a Dull Limestone Tiled Floor in Colne Burnley appeared first on South Lancashire Tile Doctor.

20-Year-Old Porcelain Floor & Grouting Deep Clean in Beeston

Fri, 29 Nov 2024 11:28:57 +0000

Here we have a 20-year-old Porcelain tiled kitchen floor at a property in Beeston where I was asked to carry out a deep clean. The main issue was the Grout which had basically turned from what was a nice clean white to a grubby dark grey with accumulated dirt. The porcelain tiles were matt with an unusual, speckled pattern.

Porcelain tiles are generally easy to keep clean due to being impervious to water. The trouble is however that the dirt from the tile gets washed into the grout line during cleaning where it gets stuck in the cementitious grout, eventually causing it to discolour.

I quoted for cleaning the tiles and giving the grout a deep clean to remove the dirt and restore its fresh white colour. Happy to have found a solution to their grout issues my quote was accepted and a date booked in the diary.

Cleaning a Porcelain Tiled Kitchen

On my return I decided it would make sense to focus on the discoloured grout first and review the tiles second. So, to help break down the soiling that had built along the grout line I started with an application of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean diluted 1:4 with water. This product is a strong alkaline degreaser that’s safe to use on all types of tiles and grout.

The solution was allowed to soak in for fifteen minutes prior to scrubbing with a rotary floor machine fitted with a nylon scrub brush. The brush works well on grout as the bristles get into the recesses of the grout lines. The brush was run over the grout lines first to get them as clean as possible and then moved over the surface of the porcelain tiles.

Once done the resulting slurry was removed with a wet vacuum and the grout inspected, any stubborn staining was then re-treated with more Tile Doctor Pro-Clean and scrubbed by hand.

Sealing a Porcelain Tiled Kitchen

The next step was to give the floor an acid wash to further clean up the tile and grout and to neutralise the pH level of the floor following cleaning with Tile Doctor Pro-Clean. To do this I used Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up using a 1:10 dilution with water. It was applied to the tile & grouting and then brushed in before being rinsed off with water and extracted with the wet vacuum.

Finally, the floor was given a thorough rinse with fresh water and then dried with the wet vacuum. To speed up the drying times a floor fan was deployed which ensured the floor was dry before I left allowing the client could see how effective the work had been. There is no need to apply a sealer as the tiles are sealed during production.

Professional Renovation of a Porcelain Tiled Kitchen in Nottinghamshire

The post 20-Year-Old Porcelain Floor & Grouting Deep Clean in Beeston appeared first on Nottinghamshire Tile Doctor.

Removing Limescale from a Granite Worktop in an Oxford Kitchen

Fri, 22 Nov 2024 12:27:02 +0000

A client from Oxford was in touch recently regarding their Granite worktop which was heavily stained with limescale build-up and she simply couldn’t get it clean. Oxford is a known hard water area with high readings of calcium carbonate in the water.

Normally granite needs little maintenance however the calcium deposits in the water (often referred to as limescale) are deposited on the worktop surface and over time this slowly builds up.

There are several household products on the market that can remove limescale however you need to be very careful when using these on natural stone as they can make the problem much worse so wisely, we were asked to resolve the problem.

Removing Limescale from a Granite Worktop and Sink

Granite is not as acid sensitive as Limestone and Marble so to start I carefully applied Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up. This was rubbed into the limescale then rinsed off with water.

This was followed up with a set of six-inch Tile Doctor Burnishing pads applying them in sequence from coarse to extra fine over each part of the Granite countertop. The pads are fitted to a hand buffer and the soil generated by the pads was rinsed off between pads with water.

Granite Kitchen Worktop Aftercare

The granite worksurface does not require an actual sealer to be applied so to finish I sprayed on Tile Doctor Stone Patina Spray and buffed with a cloth to give it a high shine finish. This product is designed for cleaning stone worktops and contains a special ingredient that maintains the lustre so ideal for maintaining the worktops going forward.

Granite is an expensive material and makes the most beautiful and practical worktop you can install in a kitchen. In this case though the Limescale had ruined its appearance, once I had finished buffing the stone however I was pleased to see the kitchen had regained its wow factor.

Professional Renovation of a Limescale Stained Granite Worktop in Oxfordshire

The post Removing Limescale from a Granite Worktop in an Oxford Kitchen appeared first on Oxfordshire Tile Doctor.

Wax Coated Victorian Tiled Hallway Renovated in Addlestone

Thu, 21 Nov 2024 14:11:40 +0000

This Victorian tiled hallway floor in Addlestone is a great example of what happens to tiles when you apply wax. I’m sure it looked great for a while but as you can imagine wax is easily scratched and after a few years it darkens and ends up looking like the photos above.

Having surveyed they hallway I could see the floor was in good physical condition with no tile replacements required. I recommended removing the wax (which would not be an easy job), then deep cleaning the floor and then re-sealing with something more modern and appropriate. I worked out a quote which they were happy with and agreed a date for my return.

Cleaning a Victorian Tiled Hallway

Working in small section, I applied neat Tile Doctor Remove and Go adding water occasionally so it wouldn’t dry out. This product is a strong alkaline coatings remover that weakens and breaks down the wax so it can be carefully scraped off with a sharp blade. The waste was then removed with a brush and the tiles re-treated with another application. This time applied as a strong dilution and left to soak in for a further ten minutes. Next the product was worked into the tiles using an aggressive carbide brush fitted to a rotary machine to remove what was left of the wax. The waste which was mainly a brown sludge was then extracted with a wet vacuum.

Old Victorian floors don’t have the benefit of a damp proof membrane so there is nothing to prevent moisture coming up through the floor. As a result, nothing should be applied to the tiles that would prevent moisture rising through the tile and evaporating at the surface. If its unable to evaporate it will pool and reach out to the walls potentially leading to rising damp.

Wax is not a breathable covering so I was concerned at this point that moisture had now built up under the floor and with the wax removed it would rise to the surface bringing with it salt deposits. This is called efflorescence and is a common problem with old floors like this one.

To counter this potential issue, I rinsed the floor with fresh water, and I gave it a gentle acid wash with Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up. The acidic formula of this product further cleans up the tiles and neutralises any salts in the process. The solution was then extracted with the wet vacuum and the floor given another rinse to remove any trace of product.

Before leaving, the floor was dried as much as possible with the wet vacuum and left to dry out fully overnight.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway

The next day I checked the tiles were dry with a moisture meter to ensure they were sufficiently dry to take a sealer. Applying sealer to damp tiles can result in a patchy finish and naturally wanted to avoid that.

Once I was happy the tiles had dried, I applied the first of what would be five coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go Extra leaving thirty minutes drying time between coats. This product is a water-based sealer so has the advantage of not leaving a smell as it dries. It works really well on Victorian tiles and resulted in a subtle silky finish.

Once complete the floor looked great and my client later texted me the following comment:

“Thank you very much on behalf of myself and the family we appreciate your work that you did today I will get on the link and give a feedback”

For the aftercare of Victorian Tiles, I recommend the use of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner, it’s a gentle but effective product that being ph neutral won’t damage the sealer which can be the problem with stronger bleach-based products.

Professional Restoration of a Victorian Tiled Hallway in West Surrey

The post Wax Coated Victorian Tiled Hallway Renovated in Addlestone appeared first on West Surrey Tile Doctor.

Discoloured and missing Grout Restored on a Ceramic Tiled Floor in Cumbernauld

Mon, 18 Nov 2024 15:26:02 +0000

These clients in Cumbernauld had recently moved into a new home with light grey ceramic tiles covering the kitchen, dining area, and lounge floors. Whilst the tiles were mostly in good condition and the clients wanted to keep them, the grout was a problem. The grout was discoloured throughout the installation and in some places, it was damaged or completely missing.

Discoloured grout is one of the main problems we find with ceramic or porcelain tiled floors, this is because the tiles are impervious, and any dirt tends to get washed off into the grout line. The surface of grout is porous and so it will attract dirt over time and unless its sealed it will start to stain and discolour.

Having reviewed the floors, I recommended deep cleaning the tiles paying particular attention to the grout lines, replacing grout where required and then applying a grout colourant to achieve a consistent appearance throughout. Grout colourants seal in the grout thereby making it as impervious as the adjacent tiles and much easier to keep clean.

Happy with my quote we set a date for my return to do the renovation.

Deep Cleaning and Recolouring Grout on a Ceramic Tiled Floor

To thoroughly clean the tiles and grout I applied a 5 to 1 dilution of Tile Doctors Pro-Clean and left it to soak into the tiles for ten minutes. Then using a stiff bristle brush the solution was worked over the tiles and the soiling removed using a wet vacuum. The grout was then cleaned separately using the same approach with a grout brush. The floor was rinsed with clean, cold water and dried as much as possible with the wet vacuum.

Once the cleaning was complete, the damaged grout was removed and repaired using a light grey flexible grout, matching the desired recolouring.

The recolouring process had to be done carefully in small sections to prevent the solution from drying on the tile surfaces and causing staining or damage. We selected to use Tile Doctor Grout Colourant in light grey. This product is available in eleven shades. This is a slow process, but the results are well worth the time spent.

The recoloured grout gave the entire floor a lighter, refreshed appearance. It’s a cost-effective way to renew the space and certainly much quicker than regrouting.

The clients were very pleased with the result, which is evident in the before and after photos showing the repaired tile at the doorway, regrouting the floor and the lounge floor showing the difference between recoloured grout and old grout.

As the tiles are ceramic there is no requirement to apply a sealer, they are sealed with a glaze at the factory. For aftercare cleaning I recommend Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is a pH neutral product that won’t impact the grout colour. The stronger floor cleaning products you find in supermarkets can be too strong and often contain bleach.

Professional Grout Restoration on a Ceramic Tiled Floor

The post Discoloured and missing Grout Restored on a Ceramic Tiled Floor in Cumbernauld appeared first on Stirling Tile Doctor.

Classic Black and White Diamond Pattern Encaustic Tiled Hallway Restoration in Rugby

Fri, 15 Nov 2024 15:19:10 +0000

Earlier this year the owner of an Edwardian 1930’s double bay property in Rugby got in touch regarding an original encaustic cement tiled hallway floor that needed renovation. The floor had been covered in carpet with underlay for many years and this had recently been removed by the owner only to discover this classic floor underneath. Realising it was an original period feature they wanted to have it restored.

I paid a visit to the property to survey the floor and work out a process for its restoration. It comprised of encaustic tiles (more commonly referred to as Victorian) laid in a diamond pattern throughout the main hallway.

Having inspected the floor I was able to confirm no tile repairs would be needed, and the main issue would be removing the thick layer of glue which was predominantly used around the perimeter of the floor to secure the carpet.

Once that had been dealt with, the tiles would need deep cleaning to remove years of dirt and then sealing to add protection going forward. I worked out a quote based on the restoration plan and was confident the work could be completed in a day. Happy with the quote, a date for the work was scheduled.

Cleaning an Edwardian Encaustic Tiled Hallway

The first job was to tackle the glue which involved applying neat Tile Doctor Remove and Go and then leaving it for ten minutes for it to soak in and break down the adhesive. Handheld scrapers where then used to carefully scrape off the glue and then this was followed up with hand-held diamond blocks of different grits to ensure all the adhesive was removed. The soiling was then extracted using a wet vacuum.

The whole floor was then cleaned using an application of Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel, again left to soak in and then scrubbed this time with a buffer machine fitted with a black scrubbing pad.
The soiling was then removed with a wet vacuum and then wiped with cloths to get it as dry as possible. I also deployed a couple of floor fans to further dry the floor.

Using a Gel cleaning product minimised the amount of water used to clean the floor and thus result in a reduction in drying times. I also deployed a couple of floor fans to assist with drying which were moved around the floor. It could need to be completely dry before sealing however so it was left for a few hours before being checked for moisture with a damp meter.

Sealing an Edwardian Encaustic Tiled Hallway

To seal the tiles, I applied a couple of coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow, leaving a good thirty minutes between coats. This sealer is fully breathable and will cope well with any moisture that rises through the tile from the foundation and allow it to evaporate. Old floors like this one were installed before the invention of damp proof membranes and so need to be allowed to breathe.

Tile Doctor Colour Grow is a colour enhancing impregnator which works by occupying the pores in the tile and thereby preventing any dirt from residing there. This keeps dirt on the surface where it can be easily cleaned away.

The colour enhancer in the new sealer really made the Black tiles pop and should remain that way as long as the sealer stays in place. Regarding cleaning, I recommended they use Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner. This product is pH neutral and so won’t impact the sealer which can be the problem with many of the stronger products you find in supermarkets.

My clients were very happy with the renovation, and I popped back a week later to check everything was fine.

Professional Restoration of a Edwardian Encaustic Tiled Hallway in Warwickshire

The post Classic Black and White Diamond Pattern Encaustic Tiled Hallway Restoration in Rugby appeared first on Warwickshire Tile Doctor.

Red Quarry Tiled Floor Restoration in Penarth

Wed, 13 Nov 2024 14:06:58 +0000

This client from Penarth contacted Tile Doctor to see if their 100-year-old Quarry tiled floor which had broken and missing tiles could be salvaged. The property dated back to 1890 and had experienced many years of wear and tear and it certainly showed. One of the biggest problems however would be to renovate the area in front of the old fireplace where a hearth was once situated.

It was clear the area in front of the fireplace would need to be rebuilt using matching replacement quarry tiles more of which would be needed for the other repairs that needed doing. Once that was done the floor would then need a deep clean and a fresh sealer applied to give the whole floor a consistent appearance.

I worked out a comprehensive quote which included the repairs and renovation work. This was accepted by the client and a date set for the work to start.

Cleaning and Repairing a Quarry Tiled Room

Work started with the tile repairs which involved breaking out the damaged tiles and those in front of the old fireplace and then cleaning up the floor ready for the replacement tiles to be installed.

Quarry tiles are still very popular, so it wasn’t a problem finding matching replacements which I had manage to source before work commenced. The replacements were then laid in-line with the existing tiles using rapid set adhesive and grouted in.

Once the tiles had set, I was able to start the cleaning process which started with scraping off as much cement, paint, and plaster residue off the floor as possible. This was then followed up with a deep clean of the tile and grout using a mixture of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean combined 50:50 with with Tile Doctor Nanotech HBU Cleaner.

After leaving these products to soak in for ten minutes I worked by hand scrubbing in 1m2 sections at a time, cleaning and rinsing with water and vacuuming up the waste with a wet vacuum as I progressed. Doing it this way ensures maximum attention to detail and ensures the floor is as clean as possible.

Once done, the floor was given an acid rinse using Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up which was brushed onto the floor and extracted with the wet vacuum as before. Old floors like this don’t have a damp proof membrane and are susceptible to efflorescence, giving the floor an acid rinse like this counters salts and helps further clean the tiles.

After another rinse and extraction with the wet vacuum the floor was left overnight to dry.

Sealing a Quarry Tiled Floor in Penarth

The next morning the floor was tested for moisture with a damp meter and the readings confirmed it had dried sufficiently to accept a sealer. I don’t recommend sealing a damp floor as it impacts the sealers’ ability to cure and leads to a patchy finish.

Sealing started with the application of a single coat of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is a very durable and breathable sealer which being an impregnator provides an excellent base. The customer wanted a shiny finish so this was followed up with a couple of coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go. This product further protects the floor and adds a subtle shine which together with the Colour Grow really brought out the colours in the Quarry tiles. As you can see the red colour of the floor looks vibrant and stunning after the two different sealers were applied.

My client was delighted with the result and offered to recommended Tile Doctor to their family and friends which was nice. For aftercare I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is a gentle but effective tile cleaner that’s ideal for cleaning sealed floors.

Professional Restoration of a Quarry Tiled Floor in South Wales

The post Red Quarry Tiled Floor Restoration in Penarth appeared first on South East Wales Tile Doctor.

Carpet Covered Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor Renovated in Heywood

Tue, 12 Nov 2024 03:12:25 +0000

This client from Heywood reached out for some advice regarding their Victorian tiled floor that needed renovating. It was quite a large hallway and porch that needed attention and having tried cleaning it themselves they realised the tiles contained a lot of ingrained dirt that was proving stubborn to remove.

They had uncovered the original Victorian floor under old carpet, and though there was some damage to the perimeter due to carpet fitting and plumbing updates etc it was broadly complete. There was also some work required in the porch due to settlement.

The client had attempted to clean the floor themselves as much as they could but there was ground in dirt and staining from carpet glue and paint which meant it looked permanently unclean. In addition, it was ‘sticky’, and unpleasant to walk on due in part to unstable old sealers.

They needed a quote for someone to clean and seal the tiles properly and leave a serviceable floor that could be maintained easily. For now, repairs were to be left except for replacement of a missing piece and re-fixing a few loose tiles at the foot of the stairs.

Happy with the quote, we agreed a date for the work to start.

Cleaning and Repairing a Victorian Tiled Hallway

The first job was to re-secure the tiles by the stairs and adding the missing piece of tile that I mentioned earlier. This was followed by removing what was left of the sticky old sealer which was done using a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go and a 50-grit diamond pad. Coarse pads are ideal for removing the ingrained patterns that carpet can leave on a tile after being covered for many years. The floor was then inspected, and any stubborn areas re-done before extracting the soiling with a wet vacuum.

The next job was to clean the floor using a gel cleaner called Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel. Due to the age of the property and the fact there was a cellar below, I wanted to minimise the use of water, this would also help with drying times. The gel was spread onto the floor with a little water and then scrubbed into the tiles using a 100-grit diamond pad. Once the whole floor was cleaned in this manner the soiling was extracted as before with the wet vacuum.

The last step in the cleaning process was to treat the floor to an acid wash using Tile Doctor Acid-Gel. This is another specialist Tile Doctor gel-based product that has several benefits including the further cleaning of the tiles, neutralising the PH level of the floor and countering salts which are quite common with old floors.

The floor was now free of ingrained dirt and staining and after a final rinse and extraction with the wet vacuum the floor was left to dry off overnight.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway

I returned the next day to seal the tiles and started by taking moisture readings from the tiles using a damp meter. This confirmed the floor was dry and ready for sealing.

I was then able to move onto sealing the floor using Tile Doctor X-Tra seal which is a long-lasting oil-based impregnating sealer that improves colour in the tile and is fully breathable, an important consideration when sealing an old floor that was previously covered in carpet. This product is also rated for external as well as internal use so its ideal for hallways which can get wet.

Once complete the floor looked new again, much to the delight of my clients who were very happy with the work and left the following comment on our feedback system:

”Kevin was fantastic – he was so helpful and knowledgeable and made our old, tired floor look brilliant. Would 100% recommend”

Before leaving I took time to discuss aftercare for which I recommended they use Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner, being pH neutral its ideal for the regular cleaning of sealed tiles. Many of the tile cleaning products you find in supermarkets are very strong and will strip the sealer off a floor so always read the label.

Professional Restoration of a Victorian Tiled Hallway in South Lancashire

The post Carpet Covered Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor Renovated in Heywood appeared first on South Lancashire Tile Doctor.

Renovating a Multi-Coloured Indian Slate Hallway Floor in Redditch

Mon, 04 Nov 2024 13:51:48 +0000

We were contacted by a homeowner from Redditch who was unhappy with the condition of their multi-coloured Indian Slate hallway floor. They were most concerned with the condition of the grouting, some of which was missing, and the Slate itself which was holding onto dirt. The floor now looked dirty and un-inviting, and they hoped we would be able to repair the missing grout and renovate the stone back to its original condition.

I visited the property to survey the floor and provide a quote for its renovation. The grout certainly needed attention, and it was clear to me that the sealer had worn off with use. Hallways are very busy areas and without a sealer in place dirt was now becoming ingrained into the pores of the Slate making it difficult to clean.

I worked out a quote for deep cleaning the Slate tile and grout, replacing the grout where needed and then sealing the floor to protect it and improve its appearance. The quote was accepted, and a date set for the work to start which would take three days.

Cleaning a Multi-Coloured Indian Slate Tiled Floor

I started by applying a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean and let it soak in for ten minutes so it could get a head start on breaking down what was left of the old sealer and ingrained dirt. The solution was then worked into the floor using a Black pad fitted to a rotary floor buffer which had extra weights added to increase traction. This action soon turned the solution into a dark slurry which was then rinsed and removed using a wet vacuum.

The Slate and Grout was then inspected any stubborn areas re-treated as needed. The pads can struggle to reach into the recesses of the grout line so more Pro-Clean was applied to the grout lines at this point. The grout was then scrubbed by hand to ensure it was as clean as possible.

After another rinse and extraction with the wet vacuum the floor was wiped over with fresh water and microfibres cloths before being left to dry off overnight.

Day Two started with repairs to the grout which was raked out where required and replaced with new grout that was colour matched to the original. The floor was then left to allow the grout to set and give the Slate more time to dry out before sealing. Its important that tiles are dry before sealing as too much moisture can affect the sealer curing and result in a patchy appearance.

Sealing a Multi Coloured Indian Slate Tiled Floor

On the third and final day the floor was sealed with Tile Doctor X-Tra Seal which is an oil-based product that gives excellent hard-wearing protection and excellent colour enhancement. This product is an impregnator that soaks into the stone, occupying the pores and thereby preventing dirt from residing there. The sealer will ensure dirt remains on the surface where it can be easily cleaned away.

Once complete the Slate looked so much cleaner and the grout very consistent and clean. My customer and her little dog were extremely happy with their restored floor and commented that I had saved it from being ripped up!

For the aftercare of sealed Slate tiles, I recommended they use Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is a mild yet effective tile and grout cleaner. Its important to use a PH neutral product like this as many products are simply too strong for use on a sealed surface and can prematurely breakdown the sealer.

Professional Renovation of a Multi Coloured Indian Slate Tiled Hallway in Worcestershire

The post Renovating a Multi-Coloured Indian Slate Hallway Floor in Redditch appeared first on Worcestershire Tile Doctor.

Cleaning and Sealing Terracotta Tiled Flooring in Bannockburn

Wed, 30 Oct 2024 08:51:37 +0000

This cottage in Bannockburn had 70m2 of Terracotta tiled flooring in various rooms across the property including the conservatory, kitchen, utility room and porch. The tiles had not been sealed since they were laid 30 years previously and now needed renovation, including removing what was left of the old sealer, deep cleaning then and resealing.

Without an active sealer protecting the porous Terracotta had no protection from ingrained dirt and were heavily soiled in the busier areas, also some of the tiles were loose and wobbly.

I worked out a quote for the renovation and due to the size of the area I planned on splitting the work into three sections. This would make the job more manageable and has the advantage of minimising the impact on the homeowner’s movement around their home. Happy with my plan the quote was accepted and we worked out a schedule for the job to start.

Cleaning a Terracotta Tiled Ground Floor

Before starting work in a section all the moveable furniture was removed and the rest was protected from the cleaning and resealing process. To tackle what was left of the old sealer and deep clean the Tile and Grout a strong dilution of 2 parts water to 1 part Tile Doctor Pro-Clean was applied to the floor.

The strong dilution makes an extremely effective as a stripper and cleaner and was applied with a cloth and then left for ten minutes. This gives the product time to breakdown the dirt and old sealer. The floor was then scrubbed using a black pad and then once complete the soiled solution was removed with a wet vacuum. The floor was then rinsed with clean water and extracted again.

The next stage of the process was to neutralise the floor as it would be alkaline after the clean. To do this I used an acid to rinse the floor called Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up. This product not only neutralises the floor preventing the build-up of efflorescence which can be a problem for old floors. It also provides a better bond between the floor and sealer. During this process a grout brush was used to ensure all the grout had been reached during the cleaning process. The Tile Doctor Grout Clean Up solution was then extracted with the wet vacuum and then the floor is thoroughly rinsed.

While the floor area that had just been stripped and cleaned was left to dry before sealing, I repaired the “wobbly” tiles which will prevent them from cracking and becoming a hazard. Small holes were drilled into the grout around the moving tile and then injected with a filler. The tiles were then left for 24 hours for the filler to cure and then the tiles were tested to ensure the issue has been fixed.

Sealing a Terracotta Tiled Ground Floor

When the tiles had been thoroughly cleaned, rinsed and given time to dry, they were tested with a damp meter to ensure they were dry and ready for sealing. The readings were fine and I had selected two different sealers to protect the floor. Two were needed to match the clients finish requirements which were to enhance the colour of the tiles and for them to have a slight sheen finish.

First the tiles were given a coat of Tile Doctors Colour Grow sealer which as the name states enhances the natural colours in terracotta tile. The coat was given 30 minutes to dry before the second sealer was applied.

The second sealer was Tile Doctors Seal and Go which is a topical sealer and works well with Tile Doctor Colour Grow. Tile Doctor Seal and Go leaves a slight satin sheen on the tiles and six coats were needed to complete the process. This did take some time as each coat needed time to dry before the next coat was put on.

For aftercare cleaning I recommend the use of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is a mild but effective Tile and Grout cleaner that won’t upset the sealer which can be the issue with the stronger products you find in supermarkets.

Professional Restoration of a Terracotta Tiled Ground Floor in Stirling

The post Cleaning and Sealing Terracotta Tiled Flooring in Bannockburn appeared first on Stirling Tile Doctor.

Revamping a Marble Mosaic Tiled Sauna Room Floor in Epping

Sun, 27 Oct 2024 14:32:11 +0000

The pictures below are of a large Marble mosaic tiled Sauna room at a property in Epping. I was asked for advice regarding the mosaic tiles on the floor which had whitened and lost all their character since it was installed approximately four years ago.

Having inspected the tiles and discussed their cleaning regime it became clear that strong cleaning products had been used to clean the floor tiles and this had stripped off the sealer prematurely. The sealer which was still present on the seating added colour and depth to the Marble and there was now a stark contrast between them.

To restore the appearance of the tiles I came up with a renovation plan that included deep cleaning and then burnishing to restore their honed appearance before re-sealing. Happy with the plan I worked out a quote which was accepted and a date set for the work to start.

Renovating Marble Mosaic Sauna Room Floor Tiles

Being a wet room and with little prep to do I was able to get to work straightaway cleaning the tiles using a 1:4 dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean. This is a strong alkaline tile and grout cleaning product that’s safe to use on stone. For best results the solution was left to soak into the Marble for about ten minutes before being scrubbed in. This gives it time to breakdown the dirt and other contaminates first.

Next, I started burnishing the mosaics with the Pro-Clean worked in with a 6-inch 400-grit burnishing pad fitted to a hand-held buffer. The area was relatively small so I felt 6-inch pads would allow for a more detailed approach and cope better with the shape of the floor, corners and grout. The pad is slowly run over the mosaics several times turning the cleaning solution black in the process. The soiling was then rinsed off and the extracted with a wet vacuum.

The burnishing was then repeated with the 800 and 1500-grit pads, this time using only water to lubricate the process. These finer burnishing pads start building the polish on the mosaics and restore the honed appearance of the Marble. After each pad the soiling is rinsed off with more water and extracted with the wet vacuum.

The wet vacuum was then used to get the floor as dry as possible and then left to dry off naturally for a few hours.

Sealing Sauna Room Marble Mosaic Floor Tiles

Once dry the Marble mosaics were buffed with an even finer 3000-grit pad to achieve a semi shine before sealing, this is the last pad in the burnishing process and is applied to the tiles dry with only a little water sprayed onto the tile. This is a technique we call “Spray Burnish” and has the advantage of leaving the tiles dry.

The final step of the renovation was to seal the floor with two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is a hard-wearing impregnator that works by soaking into the pores of the stone thereby preventing dirt from residing there. The sealer will ensure dirt and water remains on the surface where it can be easily removed.

Colour grow as its name suggests contains a colour enhancer which I felt would best match the sealer that was used on the seating. The choice worked well and once complete you really couldn’t tell the difference.

Before leaving I took time to discuss aftercare cleaning which was so important to ensure the mosaic tiles didn’t degrade like they had done previously. For this floor I recommended they use Stone Soap which is a gentle but effective floor cleaner that contains an enhancer designed to maintain the patina on polished stone.

Professional Renovation of a Marble Mosaic Tiled Sauna in South Essex

The post Revamping a Marble Mosaic Tiled Sauna Room Floor in Epping appeared first on South Essex Tile Doctor.

Modern Terracotta Tiled Floor Cleaned and Sealed in Ashmanhaugh

Fri, 25 Oct 2024 12:36:26 +0000

Earlier this year I received a message from a homeowner in the small village of Ashmanhaugh near Wroxham about their Terracotta tiled floor. The floor had been installed twelve years prior in a large conservatory sunroom extension and was now in need of a clean and seal.

I went over to survey the floor and could see the Terracotta tiles were modern 30cm tiles. They had been sealed with a topical acrylic sealer after installation, but the finish was now very dull, patchy and worn. It was clear to me that the sealer had worn off on most parts of the floor leaving it porous and exceptionally difficult to mop.

The grout lines were particularly discoloured mainly due to the use of various wet-look cleaning products used over the years. This type of maintenance product often just serves to glue dirty water into the grout.

I worked out a quote to deep clean the Terracotta tile and Grout and then apply a new sealer that would give the desired finish. My client was happy with the quote and being frustrated with the floor was keen to have it restored to its former self as soon as possible.

Cleaning a Terracotta Tiled Conservatory Sunroom Floor

I returned to the property on the scheduled date and started by cleaning the grout with a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove & Go. This was sprayed along the grout line and left to soak in for ten minutes. The product was then scrubbed in with a narrow wire-bristle brush to get the grout as clean as possible.

The whole floor was then cleaned using a Klindex Rocky rotary machine fitted with a Nylon brush attachment to work in a strong 3 to 1 dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean. This process lifts the dirt and contaminants out of the tile turning the solution black. The floor was then rinsed with more water and the resultant slurry vacuumed away with a high-power industrial wet vacuum.

Next step was to give the floor an Acid Wash using a 10:1 dilution of Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up. Doing this has several benefits which include further cleaning the floor including removing grout haze, neutralising the PH level of the floor after the use of alkaline cleaning products and lastly it improves adhesion with the new sealer. This was brushed into the floor, rinsed off with water and then extracted with the wet vacuum.

The floor was then dried thoroughly with the wet vacuum before being left to dry off overnight, this is particularly important as Terracotta being made of clay is very porous and tends to hold the moisture. The floor needs to be dry before sealing as it can cloud the sealer and result in a patchy finish.

Sealing a Terracotta Tiled Conservatory Sunroom Floor

Work the next day started by confirming the Terracotta was dry and ready to take a sealer. I use a damp meter for this and was able to confirm the moisture readings were acceptable.

Tile Doctor has many different sealers available and in this case Seal & Go was chosen based on the flooring material and desired finish. Seal and Go is a modern sealer containing acrylic polymers and provides a hard-wearing low sheen satin finish that will subtly enhances the natural colour in the Terracotta without the floor being too glossy. Five coats were applied with a 300-gsm split-filament microfibre cloth, each coat was allowed to dry before applying the next.

My client was delighted with the mid-sheen finish and please that the floor would be so much easier to keep clean going forward. On the subject of cleaning, I also recommended our Neutral Tile Cleaner which will keep the floor looking in great condition and will ensure the longevity of the newly applied sealer. It is a pH neutral cleaner so is mild enough to use daily if required.

Professional Restoration of a Terracotta Tiled Conservatory Sunroom in Norfolk

The post Modern Terracotta Tiled Floor Cleaned and Sealed in Ashmanhaugh appeared first on Norfolk Tile Doctor.

Tile Doctor of the Year 2nd Place Runner Up

Fri, 25 Oct 2024 09:50:37 +0000

Earlier this year Tile Doctor held its annual conference at the famous Old Swan hotel in Harrogate. It’s the highlight of the Tile Doctor calendar as we don’t often get to meet up with each other and discuss the different aspects of Tile Cleaning with other professionals.

Its also when they announce the winners of the Tile Doctor of the Year competition which is based on customer feedback. I’m pleased to say out of 50 Tile Doctors I came in 2^nd place runner up with only a small difference between me and the winner.

Award presented by Tile Doctor Directors Russell Taylor and Jeremy Taylor

I also won a lovely hamper Neston on the Wirral Peninsula had become filthy with ingrained dirt. Any sealer that was once present on the stone or grout has long since worn off and the grout especially had darkened with ground in dirt.

This is a common problem with stone floors as the sealer ensures dirt remains on the surface where it is easily cleaned away. Sealers however wear down with use and so they do need replacing every three to five years depending on use. This happens gradually over time and tends to go un-noticed until eventually you realise it no longer looks like it should.

To renovate the floor, I quoted for deep cleaning the stone and grout, strip off what was left of the old sealer, polish the stone and then re-seal to ensure easy maintenance in the future. Some of the Travertine tile also had small pitts that were dirt magnets so I offered to fill these in with a specialist stone filler as part of the work.

Happy with the price and relieved to have found someone who could renovate the floor a date was set for they work to start.

Deep Cleaning Travertine Tile and Grout

The best way to restore the appearance of honed stone is the application of diamond encrusted burnishing pads which come is a set of four pads with different grits. Work starts with the coarse 400-grit pad which is fitted to a rotary floor machine and run over each tile several times using only water for lubrication. This coarse pad cuts through the stone to remove dirt, old sealer, marks and fine scratches. The water turns into a dark slurry and this is rinsed off and extracted with a wet vacuum.

Pads can struggle to reach into the recesses of the grout line so the next step was to hand clean the grout using Tile Doctor Pro-Clean, scrubbed in with a stiff brush. Pro-Clean is a strong alkaline tile and grout cleaning product which is safe to use on all types of tile and grout. The soiling was then rinsed and extracted as before with the wet vacuum.

Next step was to fill in the small holes in the Travertine with a specialist stone filler which is colour matched to the stone. Once done its very difficult to detect and will prevent dirt from becoming lodged.

Once the filler had set work continued with the burnishing of the floor using the 800 and 1500-grit pads using the same process as before with water. These pads bring up the appearance of the stone building up a lovely finish. The floor was then left to dry out overnight.

Sealing Travertine Tiles

I returned the next morning and set about applying the last pad which is a very fine 3000-grit polishing pad. This last pad is applied dry with only a little water sprayed onto the Travertine; this is a process we call a “Spray Burnish”.

Last step was to seal the floor with an impregnating sealer that works by occupying the pores in the stone thereby preventing dirt from residing there and ensuring it remains on the surface where its easily cleaned away. The client loved the light appearance of the natural stone so Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal was applied which provides invisible protection and doesn’t darken the stone.

One the sealer had dried I gave the floor a quick buff with a White Pad and once complete the floor looked so much cleaner and lighter; the grout in particular was transformed by the treatment. For aftercare cleaning I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Stone Soap which will help maintain the patina on the stone.

Professional Cleaning and Polishing of Travertine Ties in the Wirral

The post Deep Cleaning a Filthy Travertine Floor Tiles in Neston Utility Room appeared first on West Cheshire Tile Doctor.

Limescale Stained Micro-Porous Porcelain Tiled Shower Renovated in Aughton

Fri, 18 Oct 2024 10:52:58 +0000

This enquiry came from a customer in the village of Aughton which is located between Maghull and Ormskirk. They had a large walk-in shower cubicle which had ten years of limescale build-up on the shower tiles which were Micro-Porous Porcelain. This type of Porcelain tile is as its name suggests is slightly porous and needs to be sealed to protect it from ingrained dirt. Sealers do wear off over time though and once that happens the appearance of the tile will degrade as dirt becomes trapped there.

Limescale can be removed with acidic cleaning products however you have to be careful as some surfaces such as stone are acid sensitive and can cause etching. In this case I didn’t foresee any problems of that nature and was happy to quote for deep cleaning the tiles and then resealing.

I worked out a quote which was accepted and the work booked in.

Removing Limescale from Micro-Porous Porcelain Shower Tiles

To remove the thick limescale Tile Doctor Acid Gel was applied to the tiles and then covered in cling film. Being a gel the product sticks to the wall tiles easily and the film stops it from evaporating and ensures a long contact time giving the product maximum opportunity to soak in and breakdown the dirt and limescale.

After one hour the film was removed and the limescale was scrubbed with a six-inch 1500-grit Burnishing pad fitted to a handheld buffer. These pads are made from industrial diamonds and was run over each tile four or five times. A similar process was applied to the grout lines and then a wet vacuum was used to remove the resultant slurry from the walls. The tiles were then rinsed with water and speed dried with fans.

Sealing Micro-Porous Porcelain Shower Tiles

Once dry the tiles were sealed with two coats of Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal which is an impregnating sealer that soaks into the Porcelain occupying the pores. This prevents anything else from becoming ingrained there and ensures that water simply falls off the tile.

The last step was to strip out the silicone sealant around the base of the wall tiles and replace with new. This really completed the renovation and left the shower looking fresh and inviting.

For aftercare I recommend they use a neutral shower tile cleaner called Tile Doctor Aqua-Pro and suggested they consider asking us back every 12 months to give the cubicle a quick clean and re-seal. We offer a maintenance program like this to all our customers as it keeps the tiles in their best state and avoids getting a large renovation bill in the future.

Professional Renovation of Stained Micro-Porous Porcelain Tiled Shower in Merseyside

The post Limescale Stained Micro-Porous Porcelain Tiled Shower Renovated in Aughton appeared first on Merseyside Tile Doctor.

Tired Limestone Patio Renovated in Wargrave in Reading

Wed, 16 Oct 2024 05:27:38 +0000

Earlier this summer I received an enquiry from a homeowner in Wargrave near Twyford regarding their Limestone patio which was “looking tired”. The patio had been laid around five years prior and during that time the UK weather had degraded its appearance significantly resulting in ingrained dirt and algae.

The client tried pressure washing themselves over the years however the stone needed more work to return its former glory. The client was on the High Street in Wargrave which is notoriously difficult to park especially if you have a large van like myself.

A quote was provided, materials were ordered, and a date was booked in. The client had seen a recent work history of mine where I had restored a marble table, having one herself in similar condition she asked if anything could be done. Confident we could dramatically improve it that was also booked in to be restored on the same day. If you have been though my website you will see I have restored several stone tables in the past and I’ll detail the restoration of this one as well in a future article.

Deep Cleaning a Tired Limestone Patio

Usually, I use a van mounted high pressure cleaning system to help clean exterior stone, however due to the parking issue this wasn’t going to be an option. The alternative was to initially clean the stone using a combination of cleaning products and abrasive burnishing pads, similar to how I would tackle internal Limestone.

The outside elements had certainly taken its toll on this patio, fortunately Tile Doctor have a wide variety of products that help us resolve numerous issues with stone. In this case I decided to start with Tile Doctor Patio and Driveway Cleaner. This is a very strong product that I normally wouldn’t recommend for use on Limestone however its very effective at removing algae, lichens and black spot which was exactly what this patio needed.

I applied the patio cleaner diluted 50/50 with water to a small area, allowing dwell time before scrubbing with a mechanical scrubbing machine. The dirty slurry was rinsed down and vacuumed away. Once I was happy the contamination was eliminated, I ran a series of burnishing pads across the stone, starting with a coarse 400 grit burnishing pad, followed by 800, and finely a fine 1500 grit pad which gradually closed the pores, and restored the appearance of the stone. This is a messy process which generates a lot of slurry which is removed after each pad with the wet vacuum.

Sealing a Limestone Tiled Patio

I offered the option to seal the stone, however on this occasion the client said she would rather me come back every one or two years to repeat the process. The drainage wasn’t particularly good on this patio installation and water tends to pool on the stone for long periods of time, so they were concerned the seal wouldn’t last over the upcoming autumn and winter.

Should they have wished to go ahead and seal the stone I would have used either Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal for a natural look or Tile Doctor Colour Grow to enhance the colours of the stone.

Completed in a day the patio now looks like it was only just installed and the owners are looking forward to showing it off to their guests of the rest of the summer.

Professional Restoration of a Limestone Tiled Patio in Berkshire

The post Tired Limestone Patio Renovated in Wargrave in Reading appeared first on Berkshire Tile Doctor.

Screed Covered Victorian Vestibule Floor Restored in Morningside

Wed, 09 Oct 2024 12:45:35 +0000

Having seen some of our previous work on the restoration of Victorian tiled floors this customer from Morningside contacted us about the tiled floor in their vestibule.

You can see from the photos below that the tiles were in quite a state and barely recognisable as a Victorian tiled floor. The floor had until recently been covered with a linoleum which had been glued onto a cement screed to level the floor. There were also many loose tiles that would need to be secured before the floor could be cleaned.

I quoted for rebuilding the floor, removing the cement screed, deep cleaning and finally sealing to protect the tiles going forward. It was going to take a lot of work to restore the Victorian floor back to its original condition fortunately however it was only a small floor.

Convinced that once complete the period floor would amazing and be a great asset to the property my quote was accepted and we agreed a date to commence the work.

Restoring Cement Covered Victorian Floor Tiling

On the first day I scraped off as much cement from the tiles as possible and lifted those that had become loose. Although it’s a small floor the pattern is made up from a lot of individually cut tiles so I ended up removing over 120 pieces of tile in total. We wanted to r-use as much of these original tiles as possible to the old adhesive was grinded off from the back and edges of every Individual tile.

On the next visit the floor base was cleaned up and each of the newly grinded tiles were dry fitted to ensure the pattern was correct. This process also revealed where we had missing tiles so these were replaced with reproduction tiles cut to fit exactly.

Once happy with the dry fit, the tiles were put back in place with fresh adhesive and then grouted. Once complete the floor was left to set for three days.

On my next visit I started the cleaning process commencing with the application of Tile Doctor Acid Gel worked in with a 200-grit diamond pad. The acidic nature of the product breaks down the remaining cement stains and will take care of hold grout smears from the surface of the tile. Once done the floor was rinsed with water and the soiling extracted with a wet vacuum.

Next, Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel tile cleaner was applied using the same method to remove any remaining dirt, glues and adhesives which were still present. I then used more Tile Doctor diamond pads in 400, 800 and then 1500 grits to further refine the appearance of the Victorian tiles.

The floor was then wiped with Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up to neutral the ph level of the floor after using Oxy-Gel which is a strong alkaline product and left to dry out for ten days. The tiles had been covered with lino for over forty years so I wanted to give the floor as much time as possible to dry out. Old floors like this don’t have a damp proof membrane so can take a lot longer to dry out especially if covered with a non-breathable covering like lino.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Vestibule Floor

When I returned, the floor was first tested with a damp meter to ensure it was dry enough to proceed with sealing. Applying sealer to a damp floor can lead to a patchy result so its always worth ensuring its dry before proceeding.

All was well with the moisture readings were fine so I was able to proceed and apply the sealer which for this floor we chose Tile Doctor X-Tra Seal. This is a robust oil-based impregnating sealer that enhances colour that is externally rated so perfect for a vestibule floor.

My client was over the moon with the transformation and left the following feedback for me:

“The amazing Thomas managed to save our beautiful floor which had been covered for years. We found the floor underneath layers of old linoleum and glue and I was unsure if anyone could bring it back to its former glory.
Can’t recommend his company enough! Xx”

For the regular cleaning of sealed floors, I recommend the use of Tile Doctor Neutral Cleaner which is a gentle yet effective tile cleaner. It’s important to choose a neutral pH cleaner for cleaning sealed tiles as a lot of products you find in supermarkets contain bleach and are simply too strong for cleaning a sealed surface and will quickly erode the sealer with use.

Professional Restoration of a Victorian Tiled Hallway in Edinburgh

The post Screed Covered Victorian Vestibule Floor Restored in Morningside appeared first on Edinburgh Tile Doctor.

Filthy Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor Renovated in Danbury

Fri, 04 Oct 2024 11:09:33 +0000

The Terracotta tiles in the kitchen of this property in Danbury near Chelmsford were installed by the owners only five years prior. At the time they didn’t like the light colour of the terracotta, so they were sealed with a black pigment added to the sealer in an attempt to darken the floor. Five years later and the sealer had clearly failed, and the tiles and grout were now seriously filthy and impossible to clean.

I wanted to be certain I could remove the dirt and old sealer so whilst at the property surveying the floor I did a cleaning test with Tile Doctor Remove and Go scrubbed into a couple of tiles by hand. The product worked really well and easily cleaned the tiles and grout with excellent results (see picture).

The difference was quite striking and equally impressive so after I worked out a quote, they were more than happy to get me booked in to complete the floor.

Deep Cleaning a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor

I returned on the agreed date and immediately set about applying the same process to get the Terracotta tile and grout clean. I used a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go working it into the tiles using a black scrubbing pad fitted to a rotary machine which also cleaned the grout lines.

The Terracotta was rinsed, and the soiling extracted with a wet vacuum. Once done the tiles and grout were inspected and any stubborn areas re-treated using the same process until I was satisfied the Terracotta, and grout was as clean as possible.

The underfloor heating was switched on and used to dry the floor overnight so it would be dry and ready for sealing the next day. This was a helpful addition and avoided the need for me to get the fan dryers out overnight.

Sealing a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen

Terracotta is made from clay and as a result is a very porous material, because of this it took eight coats sealer before it was fully sealed. I applied Tile Doctor Colour Grow sealer for this, it contains a colour enhancing formula which really brought out the orange and red colours in the tile.

This sealer is an impregnator that works by soaking into the tile, occupying the pores and ensuring dirt remains on the surface where it is easily cleaned away. It will provide long term protection moving forward and it improves the appearance of the floor without the tiles becoming too shiny.

I think you will agree from the photographs that the floor was completely transformed, and I’m pleased to say the owner was really happy and shocked to see it so different from before.

For aftercare cleaning I recommended Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner, this is a pH neutral product which will ensure the newly applied sealer retains its integrity. Many household cleaning products are simply too strong and will strip away the sealer with use.

Professional Restoration of a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen in South Essex

The post Filthy Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor Renovated in Danbury appeared first on South Essex Tile Doctor.

Sandstone Flagstone Floor Milled and Restored in Ramsbottom

Thu, 03 Oct 2024 04:10:44 +0000

I was invited to this 300-year-old building in Ramsbottom, Lancashire to look at restoring a Sandstone Flagstone floor. Despite some minor repairs over the years, it was now in very poor condition and after renovating the property outside and in the owners felt it was now time to tackle the floor. Having done their research, they decided to call Tile Doctor in to do the renovation.

Having visited the property, I recommended milling the floor to remove years of wear and to reveal the new stone underneath. With old rough flagstones like this it is the only way to retain the character yet have a more serviceable floor that won’t shred mops.

Happy with my recommendation and quote I was given the go-ahead to do the work.

Cleaning a Sandstone Flagstone Tiled Kitchen

I started work by taking notes of moisture readings from various areas, these base reading will be used later to understand if the floor has dried sufficiently for sealing.

To mill the floor, I started with the application of a very coarse 50-Grit DRB pad which was fitted to a weighted buffing machine and run over each flagstone several times using only water for lubrication. Once that step was completed the floor was rinsed with more water and the slurry extracted using a wet vacuum. The coarse pad removes a very thin layer of stone off the top of the flagstone leaving it smooth.

The floor was then cleaned using Tile Doctor Remove and Go which was scrubbed in using a 240-grit carbide brush. Again, the floor was rinsed and the slurry extracted as before.

The 50-Grit pad is very coarse, so the next step was to refine the appearance of the stone using finer grit milling. Using the same process as before a 100-grit milling pad was applied to the stone with water, rinsed off and then the floor vacuumed. Then the process repeated with the 200-Grit milling pad.

The final step of the restoration was to give the floor an acid rinse using Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up worked in with a 200-grit soft pad. Again, the floor was rinsed and vacuumed afterwards.

With the sandstone flagstones now cleaned I turned my attention to the old pointing which was also in bad shape and crumbling in many areas. This was removed and re-pointed with a modern breathable pointing product.

The floor was left to dry out and I returned a few days later to seal the floor which will protect it going forward from staining and ingrained dirt etc.

Sealing a Sandstone Flagstone Tiled Kitchen

Before applying any sealer, I took several moisture readings for the floor and compared them with the base readings I had taken at the start of the job. There were a few areas of concern, but I was able to resolve this with floor fans until the readings were acceptable.

I was then able to proceed with the final step of sealing the floor for which I used Tile Doctor X-Tra Seal. This sealer is a fully breathable oil-based sealer which improves the appearance of the stone and being breathable will cope with any moisture rising through the floor. It’s very important to use a breathable sealer on an old floor as it won’t have the benefit of a damp proof membrane. The sealer was left to dry and then the process repeated with a second coat.

The Sandstone Flagstones were completely transformed by the process and my clients were over the moon with their new floor, they even left the following feedback:

“Kevin has just completed our very tired stone flags. The restoration was faultless from the first consultation to the hard work he put into it and the aftercare advice was amazing. We can’t thank Kevin enough for his professionalism, fantastic knowledge, hard work and friendly manner. Our floor looks as a 300 year old stone floor should look, really really pleased, price was also reasonable and knowing Kevin used the best products too! We would highly recommend!!”

Before leaving I took time to discuss aftercare which for Sandstone, I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is pH neutral and ideal for cleaning sealed stone.

Professional Restoration of a Sandstone Flagstone Tiled Kitchen in South Lancashire

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Deep Cleaning and Sealing a Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor in Dunblane

Mon, 30 Sep 2024 10:57:54 +0000

Due to scheduling conflicts, I was unable to survey this Slate tiled floor at a property in Dunblane. This was mainly due to the client who didn’t live at the property and was only available on certain dates. As a result, I requested detailed photos and measurements of the kitchen, which allowed me to assess the tiles and provide a quote for renovating the floor. This is not ideal, especially for old floors but in this case, I was happy this would be a straightforward clean and seal.

The proposed work would take two days and involve removing the remaining old sealer, deep cleaning the slate, and then resealing the tiles with a matte finish sealer. It’s important to remove all the old sealer before applying new as busier parts of the floor will wear the most resulting in different levels of sealant across the floor.

I worked out a detailed quote for the renovation, which was accepted, and dates agreed to complete the work.

Cleaning a Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor

Work began by adding protection to the kitchen units, I use a lot of water during the cleaning process and didn’t want to mark them in anyway. Once that was done a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go was applied to the floor and left to soak into the stone for ten minutes. This gives it time to breakdown the old coatings and being an alkaline product its safe for use on all types of stone or tile. A 200-grit diamond pad fitted to a rotary floor buffer was then applied to the tiles and work the solution into the stone. This process strips off the remaining sealer and pulls the dirt out of the pores of the stone.

This was then followed with grout cleaning brush along the grout lines and corners to ensure I reached all the areas which needed to be cleaned. The floor was then thoroughly rinsed, and the soiled solution was removed using a wet vacuum.

Next, I treated the floor with an acid wash using Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up. This product is effective for removing grout smears and other mineral deposits, it also neutralises the pH level of the floor after the use of the alkaline Tile Doctor Remove and Go. After using the rotary cleaning machine and black pad to work the solution into the tiles I rinsed the floor and extracted all the soiling with the wet vacuum.

Sealing a Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor

The floor was left to dry overnight and returned the next day to apply the sealer. Before doing so, I checked the moisture level of the tiles with a damp meter to check they had dried sufficiently. This step is crucial, as applying sealer to a damp floor can lead to an inconsistent finish.

The sealer chosen for the Slate tiles was Tile Doctors Colour Grow. This was chosen as the client wanted a matt finish and was keen to bring out the natural colours in the Slate. Two coats of sealer were applied to protect the floor from ingrained dirt. The first coat was applied and after 5 minutes the excess sealer was removed with a white cotton cloth. After half an hour passed the second coat was applied and again the excess sealer was removed. A water test was completed after 2 hours to ensure the sealer had worked.

Once done the Slate tiles looked so much brighter and the grout was consistently clean. My client was delighted with the finished appearance of the Slate tiles as the true colour was again visible.

Before leaving we discussed aftercare cleaning and the importance of avoiding strong cleaning products which can damage the sealer. Because of this I always recommend Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is pH neutral.

Professional Restoration of a Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor in Stirling

The post Deep Cleaning and Sealing a Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor in Dunblane appeared first on Stirling Tile Doctor.

Edwardian Geometric Mosaic Tile Restoration in Cardiff

Mon, 23 Sep 2024 09:21:41 +0000

Earlier this year I was contacted by a homeowner in Cardiff to see if anything could be done to save their Edwardian tiled hallway floor. They had previously contacted another local company who advised to remove the floor and have it retiled. They felt upset to hear this news, having discovered the tiles under the hallway carpet and realised they must be original from when the house was built in 1910. Ideally, they wanted this original feature restored and so they reached out to us.

Having spoken to them over the phone I was happy to re-assure them that the floor could be restored and arranged a visit to survey the floor and carry out a cleaning test to see what could be achieved.

The floor although in a bad way was very impressive, someone had clearly spent a lot of time laying down a mosaic of what must have been thousands of small square tiles arranged in a repeating geometric pattern. During the visit I realised extensive tile repairs would be required however the sample clean proved successful and the clients were delighted.

I worked out a quote for the restoration which they were happy to accept, and a date was arranged for my return.

Repairing and Cleaning Edwardian Mosaic Floor Tiling

Work started with tile repairs which were done with replacement tiles cut to size, secured with adhesive and grouted in. The floor was then left to set hard before moving onto the next step of cleaning.

Before the carpet had been installed a thin layer of self-levelling cement had been spread across the floor and this had to be removed. To do this I carefully scraped off as much cement as possible along with paint splashes and remnants of plaster all of which were marking the tiles. The waste from this was then swept and bagged up.

To get the floor clean, a mixture of Tile Doctor Nanotech HBU and Pro-Clean were mixed together and applied to the surface working on one square meter at a time. The solution was rinsed, worked in with a Black scrubbing pad and then rinsed again before being extracted with a wet vacuum with clean water and then vacuumed away.

After carrying out the same procedure on the rest of the floor I then started the second procedure which was to apply Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up using wire wool to remove all the cement residues. Again, this was rinsed off with clean water and vacuumed away as I worked.

These two processes removed all the dirt and contaminants from the floor leaving the tiles clean, after a final rinse I used the wet vacuum again to get the tiles as dry as possible and ready for sealing the next day.

Sealing an Edwardian Mosaic Tiled Hallway Floor

The clients wanted a satin shine finish so after leaving the floor to dry overnight it was tested for moisture the next day and this confirmed the floor was dry enough for their desired sealer application.

The choice of sealer was Tile Doctor Seal & Go which produces a lovely satin finish and highlights the colours. Another advantage is being a water-based product it doesn’t leave a smell as it dries.

The floor responded really well to the treatments and I’m please to say the owners were delighted with the final result and eager to recommend Tile Doctor to their family and friends.

The sealer will protect the floor by ensuring dirt remains on the surface where it can be easily cleaned away using a sealer sensitive tile cleaner such as Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner.

Professional Restoration of an Edwardian Mosaic Floor Tiling in South Wales

The post Edwardian Geometric Mosaic Tile Restoration in Cardiff appeared first on South East Wales Tile Doctor.

Express Restoration of a Victorian Tiled Hallway floor in Camberley

Thu, 19 Sep 2024 09:18:10 +0000

A lady from Camberley had been asking me to restore her Victorian tiled hallway for over a year. This was not due to me I should mention, she’s a shift worker so it had been difficult to schedule a time to visit the property and survey the floor, also she didn’t want her husband to be there as the restoration of the floor was to be a surprise.

We did however mange to get that organised and I was able to inspect the floor. It was very dirty and well overdue a deep clean and seal, however, before that could happen it would be necessary to replace several broken tiles. Fortunately, she had a stash in her garden shed that were in reasonable condition which would do the job very nicely.

Happy with my quote the next hurdle was to agree a date for the work, so we had to delay until such time when the husband would be away.

Repairing and Cleaning a Victorian Tiled Hallway in Camberley

When I finally came to do the work, I started by removing all the broken tiles. I used a serrated edge power chisel for this work taking care not to disturb the adjacent tiles. The holes that are left have to be totally cleared out so the new tiles can slot straight in. Annoyingly the replacement tiles were slightly thicker than the existing ones, so I had to dig down a couple of millimetres to ensure a level floor.

The next step was to clean the floor using Tile Doctor Acid Gel. This is an excellent product that removes ingrained dirt. I brushed it over the floor with a soft brush and left for twenty minutes while I had my lunch in the van. Being a gel it is very easy to control and more importantly you don’t use much water during the process, this means the floor dries quicker and it won’t exacerbate any potential damp issues. This is always a consideration with old Victorian tiled floors as they don’t have a damp proof membrane underneath.

I then sprinkled a covering of water to keep it damp while I introduced a weighted buffer machine to scrub the floor. Attached to the machine was a 100-grit diamond pad. This removes surface dirt leaving a very clean tile. A small amount of water is used to help lubricate the process and all waste was removed with a wet vacuum cleaner.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway

The work needed to be done in a day, so I used floor fans and a heater to get the floor dry and ready for sealing.

During this time the replacement tiles were slotted into place sticking them down with rapid set adhesive. Another little job that needed doing was to address a gap between the skirting board and the tiles which the client asked my advice over. Always happy to help, I agreed to fill it with transparent mastic.

Once the tiles were dry, I sealed them with Tile Doctor Seal and Go Extra. This gives a sheen finish that enhances colour and last years.

Before leaving I took time to discuss aftercare cleaning and recommended the use of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner, it is a gentle but effective product that won’t harm the sealer.

I never got to find out what her husband thought of the the floor, but my client was certainly happy with the transformation once I had finished.

Professional Restoration of a Victorian Tiled Hallway in West Surrey

The post Express Restoration of a Victorian Tiled Hallway floor in Camberley appeared first on West Surrey Tile Doctor.

Victorian Tiled Chancel Renovated St Marys Church Coatbridge

Mon, 02 Sep 2024 10:14:18 +0000

The pictures below were taken at St Marys Church in Coatbridge where I was asked to renovate an area of original Victorian tiles in front of the altar. The church was opened in 1893 and at some point since then the tiled chancel floor had been covered with carpet. Many years later the carpet was worn and rather than replacing it they decided to have the tiles renovated.

Renovating the tiles was the best way forward as old floors like this don’t have the benefit of a damp proof membrane (DPM) and so shouldn’t be covered up. You need to allow for moisture from under the floor to rise through the tile and evaporate at the surface otherwise the moisture can reach out to the walls and cause other problems.

Fortunately, by the time I was asked to survey the floor the carpet had been removed from the chancel and the intricate Victorian tiling work was now on display for the parishioners to appreciate. This had given then the tiles plenty of opportunity to breathe and allow any trapped moisture to evaporate.

Over the years the tiles had been subject to lots of traffic, paint, general wear and then of course hidden under a carpet. The tiles were part of the 150-year-old churches history and were crying out to be restored and shown off. Paint, stains, cement and carpet glue were found on the tiles when the carpet was lifted.

To work out the best way to effectively remove all the staining I conducted a test clean in a small area of the tiling. As it was a floor without a DPM I chose to use gel cleaning products with a low water content. This was done in-order to avoid exacerbating any inherent dampness in the floor that might lead to efflorescence salt problems later.

The test clean came out well and encouraged the floor was in safe hands and happy with my quotation I was awarded the contact to restore the floor.

Deep Cleaning a Victorian Tiled Church Chancel

I returned some weeks later to start on the restoration of the whole floor and began with the application of Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel which is a strong alkaline Gel cleaner that as mentioned earlier has a low moisture content.

Working in sections Oxy-Gel was applied with a brush and left on the tiles to soak in for about fifteen minutes. This gives the product time to break down the ingrained dirt, paint and cement residue. The Gel was the scrubbed into each tile using a coarse 200-grit pad fitted to a rotary floor buffer. Once the clean had been completed the now soiled Gel solution was removed with a wet vacuum. After this the tiles were rinsed with water and then dried with the wet vacuum.

The next stage of the clean was to treat the tiles to an acid rinse using Tile Doctor Acid Gel which was applied neat with a brush. Acid Gel does several things to improve the tiles including neutralising the pH level of the tiles and dissolving any efflorescent salts in the floor. After using a black pad to work the gel into the tiles the soiled Gel was extracted with the wet vacuum and then rinsed again using water before being dried again with the wet vacuum.

The floor was then left for a couple of days allowing plenty of time for the floor to dry out following the cleaning and to give any efflorescence salts trapped in the tiles had time to show up.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Church Chancel

On my return a damp meter was used to confirm the floor was dry and the tiles inspected for efflorescence salts. All was well so I was able to begin the final stage of the renovation which involves applying a sealer to the tiles which will enhance their appearance and protect them from staining.

Tile Doctor Colour Grow was chosen to seal the tiles, it’s a hard-wearing impregnator that soaks into the tile occupying the pores and thereby preventing dirt from becoming ingrained there. This ensures dirt remains on the surface where it can easily be cleaned away. Colour Grow also contains a colour enhancer which lifts the beautiful colours in the Victorian tile and really helps them to stand out.

After the first coat had been on for 5 minutes any excess sealer was removed using a dry clean White cotton cloth. The second coat was applied after 30 minutes and again any excess sealer was removed with a cloth after 5 minutes.

After application the tiles were left to dry for two hours and then a water test was carried out to determine if the tiles needed a further coat.

Once complete the tiles looked totally transformed and took time to discuss aftercare cleaning. Its important to use the right product when cleaning a sealed tiled floor as anything bleach based will strip the sealer off with use leaving it vulnerable to ingrained dirt. In this case I recommended Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is a mild but effective tile cleaner that’s ideal for sealed floors.

Professional Renovation of a Victorian Tiled Chancel Church Floor in Lanarkshire

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Acid Etched Limestone Tiled Floor Renovated in Coggeshall

Tue, 27 Aug 2024 02:12:32 +0000

This Limestone tiled floor covered the entire ground floor of this house in the town of Coggeshall. The owner had matching tiles installed in an extension and realised that the tiler had not managed to polish off all the grout which had left them dull.

This is a common problem known as grout haze and after researching it online he decided to try cleaning off the grout with an acidic product. This is a common solution for more robust stone or tiles; however, Limestone is acid sensitive so instead of removing the grout haze he made the problem worse by etching the stone tiles instead.

The second problem he had was the grout on the original floor had darkened overtime with dirt being washed into the grout line whereas the grout on the new floor was much cleaner. You can see from the photos how odd this looked especially when moving between the two areas.

I was asked to deep clean the original grout, remove the grout haze on the new floor and then get the two floors to match as much as possible by polishing both floors (which would also remove the etching) and applying a fresh sealer. I worked out a quote based on three days’ work along with the necessary products, given the size of the floor I asked Bruce who is the Suffolk Tile Doctor to assist.

Grout and Limestone Tile Cleaning

To remove the old sealer and clean up the grout on the original floor, a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean was applied to the tiles and worked in with a black scrubbing pad fitted to a rotary floor machine. The grout was then scrubbed by hand with more Tile Doctor Pro-Clean and the slurry rinsed off with water. There was a lot of grout lines to cover and in-total we used around five litres of Pro-Clean in the process.

Both original and new sections of floor were then burnished with diamond pads to blend the two floors together and remove the etching on the newly laid tiles in the process. This was done with a set of Tile Doctor Burnishing Pads starting with 400-grit and working up to 1500-grit, water is used for lubrication and then the floor rinsed and extracted after each pad. The floor was left for a short while to dry out.

Again, this was a large area but with two Tile Doctors on the job we managed to get through it.

Sealing a Limestone Tiled Ground Floor

To seal the Limestone the owner was happy to go with my recommendation of applying Tile Doctor Colour Grow. This product contains a colour intensifying formula which brings out the different colours and fossils in the stone. It’s also an impregnator which works by soaking into the pores of the Limestone, filling up the spaces and thereby preventing dirt from becoming ingrained in the stone. Put simply, the sealer will ensure any dirt remains on the surface where it can be easily cleaned away. It was a large area so we used five litres of Colour Grow to seal the floor.

The work took both of us three days to complete and once done my client was amazed by the transformation and was so happy that the two floors now looked the same. For aftercare I left them with a free bottle of Tile Doctor Neutral Cleaner to maintain their floor. This product is a gentle yet effective tile cleaner that won’t harm the newly applied sealer which can be an issue with stronger products.

Professional Restoration of a Limestone Tiled Ground Floor in Noth Essex

The post Acid Etched Limestone Tiled Floor Renovated in Coggeshall appeared first on North Essex Tile Doctor.

Dirty Limestone Kitchen Floor Cleaned, Polished and Sealed in South Ockendon

Thu, 22 Aug 2024 11:03:27 +0000

Pictures below of another Limestone floor that I recently renovated, this time in the open plan kitchen and dining area of a home in South Ockendon. Originally installed over ten years ago it had never been sealed and over time dirt had worked its way into the stone leaving it looking dull and flat.

Stone floors need to be sealed if you want them to look their best, sealing ensures the dirt remains on the surface where it can be easily cleaned away. Sealers can also enhance the appearance of the stone and improve colour; the only downside is they do wear off with use but a good sealer can last three years or more if maintained correctly.

I went over to the property to survey and measure the floor to be able to give them an accurate quote for deep cleaning, polishing and then sealing the stone. I could see it would be a straight-forward job with little complications so I worked out a quote based around two days work and products needed to bring the Limestone back to life.

Cleaning and Polishing a Limestone Tiled Floor

The cleaning process was a repeat of a similar job I recently completed in Leigh-on-Sea and involved cleaning out all the dirt trapped in the pores of the stone by working in a 1:4 dilution of Pro-Clean using a coarse 200-grit pad. These coarse pads are fitted to a buffing machine and run over each tile several times to open up the pores of the stone allowing the dirt to be flushed out, they also remove minor scratches, sealers, and ingrained dirt.

The floor was then rinsed and soiling extracted with a wet vacuum before applying the next coarse pad which was a 400-grit. This process was then repeated with a medium 800-grit and fine 1500-grit pad which close the pores and refine the appearance of the Limestone.

Next step was to scrub the grout lines using more Tile Doctor Pro-Clean. I find this is best done by hand as the pads struggle to reach into the recesses of the grout line. Once done the floor was rinsed and extracted several times to neutralise the floor and remove any trace of product.

The floor was then left to dry off and I returned a few days later to give the floor plenty of time to dry.

Sealing Limestone Floor Tiles

On my return I started with the application of an extra fine 3000-grit burning pad, this is applied dry to the floor using only a little water sprayed onto the tile a process we call a Spray Burnish. It leaves the floor nice and dry and is the last step in the polishing process leaving the stone with a nice subtle sheen.

As mentioned earlier sealers protect the floor and some will improve colour and for Limestone, I find Tile Doctor Colour Grow works well. The product contains a colour enhancing formula that really brings out the best in Limestone. Its also an impregnator which works by occupying the pores in the stone thus preventing dirt from becoming ingrained there. Only two coats of Colour Grow were needed to fully seal the stone.

The Limestone floor responded well to the process transforming the space from dull and un-inspiring to one that was very appealing and inviting. The stone and grout looked so much lighter and cleaner with a subtle polish that made the owners very happy.

For the aftercare cleaning of a polished stone floor like this we recommend using Tile Doctor Stone Soap. It’s a gentle yet effective cleaner that helps maintain the patina and won’t damage the sealer ensuring it lasts a long time.

Professional Limestone Floor Cleaning and Polishing in Essex

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Renovating a Victorian Tiled Floor at The Bell Inn Pub St Johns, Worcester

Wed, 21 Aug 2024 08:47:13 +0000

If you would like to see an example of my work why not pay a visit to the Bell Inn Public House in St John’s, Worcester where I recently renovated a Victorian tiled floor. The request actually came through a recommendation from a previous client for who I also restored a Victorian floor. It’s a traditional pub which hosts many regulars throughout the week, so the tiles do get a fair bit of regular wear.

I arranged an initial assessment and after visiting the pub I realised the Victorian floor had been covered in several coats of sealer. The sealer had worn thin in the high traffic areas and this had allowed dirt to penetrate leaving them dull and uninviting. I suspect the cleaners had been using a strong cleaning product on the tiles and this had also impacted the sealer reducing its life.

The solution would be to strip off what was left of the sealer throughout, deep clean the tiles and then re-seal. A quote was sent and accepted and then the job was arranged to include very early starts so work could happen before the pub opened.

Deep Cleaning a Victorian Tiled Public House Floor

The first stage on my 7am start was to weaken and remove what was left of the sealer. I started by spraying the tiles with a strong 50:50 dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean and then followed this up with a coating of Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel leaving both products to dwell for sixty minutes. Old floors like this don’t a damp proof membrane under the floor so I wanted to keep the use of water to a minimum to reduce drying times.

On returning I checked if the sealer was loosening which it was. I then proceeded to work the solution into the tiles using a black scrubbing pad fitted to a rotary machine. After several passes the floor was clear and the slurry extracted using a wet vacuum. The floor was then checked and any stubborn areas re-treated. The floor was given a quick rinse and then dried as much as possible with the very vacuum in time for the pub opening.

The second day was another early start and began with the application of coarse diamond pads worked into the tiles using more Oxy-Gel. This would further clean the floor to ensure all the sealer and dirt was removed, the pads also refine and improve the surface of the worn tiles. The soiling was rinsed and removed as before with the wet vacuum.

Last step in the cleaning process was to give the tiles an acid rinse using Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up which is acidic. This product further cleans up the tiles countering any dormant salts in the tiles and neutralises the pH level of the tiles after the use of the use of strong alkaline cleaning products earlier.
After a final rinse and extraction with the wet vacuum I wiped the floor with micro fibre cloths and clean water so it would be ready for sealing the following day when the pub was due to closed most of the day.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Public House Floor

The landlord had requested a satin finish, so Tile Doctor Seal and Go Extra was chosen to seal the tiles and it leaves a lovely subtle sheen, it’s also breathable so fine to use on old floor like this one.

Before starting the moisture levels in the floor were checked with a damp meter and this confirmed it was dry and ready for sealing. The first coat was applied leaving an hour between coats to allow for drying. In total four coats were applied which left durable protection and a sheen finish.

Once done the landlord commented on how good the floor looked and I understand it’s also been remarked on by a few of the regulars.

For aftercare cleaning I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner, this is a gentle yet effective cleaner that will ensure they get maximum life out of the new sealer.

Professional Restoration of a Victorian Tiled Public House Floor in Worcestershire

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Renovating Multiple Travertine Tiled Floors in Bolton

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 09:42:17 +0000

This homeowner from Bolton contacted us due to problems they were having with their Travertine tiled floor which ran through most of the ground floor. They had previously had some work done by a ‘cleaner’, but the results were not great. Hoping to do better they also had a go themselves without much improvement.

They were ready to give up on the floor but due to the huge cost of replacement decided to look at alternatives. Researching the subject on-line they came across the reviews and transformative pictures on our website and decided to get in touch.

I paid a visit to the property to survey the floor and could see the Travertine had clearly had a lot of unknown treatments in the past. Having assessed the floor I came up with a comprehensive plan that would restore the appearance of the travertine and grout. Happy with my quote we agreed a date for the work to start.

Deep Cleaning Travertine Tiles

The first step was to apply a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go and left it to soak for ten minutes before working it in to the stone using a 240-grit carbide brush. Once done the floor was rinsed with water and the soiling extracted using a wet vacuum. I had to repeat this process on stubborn areas but gradually the floor was stripped of old sealers and marks leaving it clean.

To deal with the grout I applied Tile Doctor Pro-Clean and left it to dwell for fifteen minutes to give it time to breakdown the soils. It was then scrubbed into the grout lines by hand using a stiff brush. The floor was then rinsed again, and the waste removed.

With the floor clean of dirt, it became apparent some of the dirt had masked cracks and holes in the stone. So, although this was not listed on the quote, I spent time filling them in to enhance the overall finish.

Work then moved onto burnishing the Travertine to restore its polished appearance. This starts with the application of a coarse 400-grit pad. Using water to lubricate the pad as its run over each tile several times to give the stone a very deep clean. The floor was then rinsed and extracted, before moving onto the finer 800-grit and 1500-grit pads which start building the polish on the stone.

The floor was left to dry off overnight and the next the burnishing process continued using a very fine 3000-grit pad which is applied dry to the floor using only a little water sprayed onto the tile. This leaves a lovely, honed finish on the stone.

Sealing a Travertine Tiled Kitchen, Utility, WC and Hallway

To seal the stone a coat of Tile Doctor Ultra Seal was applied to retain the light colour the client liked and cloth off before applying a White Pad to remove any excess sealer and further bring up the polished appearance of the Travertine. Ultra-Seal is an impregnator that soaks into the pores of the stone adding protection from within, it’s also a natural look sealer that is almost invisible and doesn’t darken the colour of the stone.

The process transformed the appearance of the floor and my client was delighted. So much so they left the following glowing review:

“Kevin contacted me and quoted for the job after I had sent him pictures of my Travertine Floor which needed deep cleaning and sealing. I confirmed I was happy with the quotation, and he sent me a list of products to purchase from the Tile Doctor which would be required to do the job. Kevin explained it could be a 2-3 day job dependant on how the floor reacted to the cleaning process. Kevin completed the work in 2 days and I am highly delighted with the result and I will be taking Kevins advice on keeping it clean with the products he left me. I would highly recommend Kevin and will be using him again in the coming years.”

For the aftercare cleaning of their polished stone floor, I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Stone Soap. It’s a gentle yet effective floor cleaning product with a formula that enhances the patina on the stone.

Professional Renovation of Travertine Floor Tiles in Greater Manchester

The post Renovating Multiple Travertine Tiled Floors in Bolton appeared first on South Lancashire Tile Doctor.

Stripping, Cleaning and Sealing a Riven Indian Sandstone Floor in Ingham

Thu, 15 Aug 2024 06:18:45 +0000

Here we have a heavily riven Indian Sandstone slab floor in the kitchen of a large property in Ingham on the Norfolk Broads. It was a lovely location to work being only a mile from the market town of Stalham and about 2 miles from the Norfolk coast.

The Sandstone floor was laid by the client’s late husband whose took great pride in it. Unfortunately, the riven nature of the Sandstone had trapped a lot of dirt and particularly along the sand and cement pointing. The floor had been sealed previously with a colour enhancing impregnator however it hadn’t been properly cleaned before sealing, so dirt and contaminants were trapped under the matt finish. As a result, no end of mopping could ever get the floor clean.

To rectify the problem, we recommended removing the sealer, deep cleaning the Sandstone and then re-seal. The challenge was to ensure all the old sealer was stripped away completely along with the soiling both on the surface and ingrained in the stone. I provided them with a quote for the works which they were happy to go ahead with.

Stripping and Deep Cleaning an Indian Sandstone Tiled Kitchen Floor

We returned to the property a few weeks later to start the cleaning. Working in sections this began with the application of Tile Doctor Remove & Go initially sprayed along the grout lines and left to soak in for ten minutes. The whole floor was then sprayed with more Remove and Go and the stone and pointing scrubbed with a heavy 17″ Klindex Rotary machine. The machine was fitted with an extra 10kg weight to increase traction and a 120-grit silicone carbide brush.

Once done the floor was then rinsed and the slurry was then extracted with a high powered 3-stage wet vacuum. The floor was then checked and the process repeated in a few stubborn areas.

When I was happy the floor was clean it was given an acid rinse using a dilution of Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up which was scrubbed into the stone and rinsed off and then extracted as before. This process further cleans up the stone, removing old grout smears and also neutralised the PH level of the floor after the use of Remove and Go which is an alkaline cleaner.

The floor was then left to dry off overnight so it would be ready for sealing the next day.

Sealing an Indian Sandstone Tiled Kitchen

The sandstone floor was sealed using five coats of Tile Doctor Seal & Go applied by hand with split-filament microfibre cloths. We selected this sealer because it provides durable stain protection and results in an attractive low sheen finish. This sealer is perfect for sandstone which is very porous in its nature and did well to bring out the natural features and colours in the stone.

My client was amazed that we had managed to renovate the floor to a higher standard than it had ever been – she said her husband would have been absolutely delighted.

For aftercare I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is a gentle yet effective cleaner that won’t impact the sealer. Strong bleach-based cleaners need to be avoided as they will strip the sealer off the stone prematurely.

Professional Restoration of an Indian Sandstone Kitchen in Norfolk

The post Stripping, Cleaning and Sealing a Riven Indian Sandstone Floor in Ingham appeared first on Norfolk Tile Doctor.

Renovating a 12-Year Old Limestone Hallway Floor in Leigh-on-Sea

Tue, 13 Aug 2024 10:49:32 +0000

The Limestone floor in the picture below was actually installed by the homeowner in the hallway of their property in Leigh-on-Sea twelve years ago. They had managed to do a good job maintaining it however overtime dirt had accumulated in the pores of the stone and they realised it was time to have it professionally cleaned.

I visited the property to survey the floor and provided them with a quote to deep clean the Limestone tile and grout, hone the stone to bring up the polish and then seal to protect it going forward. Happy with the quote we set a date for my return.

Cleaning and Polishing a Limestone Tiled Floor

On arrival the first task was to clean out all the dirt trapped in the pores of the stone. To do this I ran a coarse 200-grit pad over the floor assisted with a dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean. The coarse pads are fitted to a buffing machine and run over each tile several times to remove minor scratches, sealers, and ingrained dirt.

The floor was then rinsed and soiling extracted with a wet vacuum before applying the next coarse pad which was a 400-grit. This process was then repeated with a medium 800-grit and fine 1500-grit pad which are the first stages in bringing up the polish on the Limestone.

The floor was then left to dry off overnight.

Sealing a Polished Limestone Tiled Floor

The next day I gave the tiles a spray burnish using an extra fine 3000-grit burning pad, this is applied dry to the floor using only a little water sprayed onto the tile. It leaves the floor nice and dry and is the last step in the polishing process.

To get the best out of the colour in the Limestone I recommended sealing it with Tile Doctor Colour Grow, which as its name implies contains a colour enhancing formula. Its also an impregnator which works by occupying the pores in the stone thus preventing dirt from becoming ingrained there. Two coats were applied and this ensures dirt remains on the surface where it can be easily removed with regular cleaning.

Once done the Limestone tile and grout looked so much lighter and cleaner making the owners very happy. For the aftercare cleaning of a polished stone floor like this we recommend using Tile Doctor Stone Soap. It’s a gentle yet effective cleaner that helps maintain the patina and won’t damage the sealer ensuring it lasts a long time.

Professional Limestone Floor Polishing in Essex

The post Renovating a 12-Year Old Limestone Hallway Floor in Leigh-on-Sea appeared first on South Essex Tile Doctor.

Maintaining a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor in Dursley

Mon, 12 Aug 2024 12:58:03 +0000

A homeowner in my local town of Dursley got in touch about their Terracotta tiled kitchen floor. The tiles had become dull and lost had lost their appeal, unhappy with the way it looked they booked me into to pop round and take a look.

Being so local it wasn’t long before I was able to pay them a visit and survey the floor. Whilst there I conducted a cleaning test to work out which products would work the best and they were surprised about how well it came up.

I diagnosed that the sealer on the Terracotta had been worn away and was not allowing dirt to become ingrained in the tile. I worked out a quote for deep cleaning the tile and then re-sealing it, which they were happy with and I was booked into to do the whole floor.

Deep Cleaning a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor

Prior to my arrival I had worked out which products I would need to renovate the floor and they ordered these directly from Tile Doctor so everything would be ready for work to start.

A lot of water is used during the cleaning process so before starting work protective tape was applied to all the kitchen units and adjacent carpets covered with dust sheets. Then to get the tiles clean a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean was applied to the tiles and left to soak in for fifteen minutes, this gives it time to break down the soils. The floor was then scrubbed with a Black pad fitted to a rotary machine, to lift the dirt out of the tiles. The grout lines were also cleaned using more Pro-Clean and a stiff brush.

The soils were then rinsed off with more water and extracted with a wet vacuum twice but I moved onto giving the floor an acid rinse. This is done with a dilution of Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up which is brushed into the floor and then extracted. This is a further step to clean the floor but it also neutralises the floor after the use of Pro-Clean which is a strong alkaline cleaner.

After another rinse the floor was dried as much as possible using the wet vacuum and then dried with air blowers prior to covering with dust sheets. The floor needed time to dry out so this will keep the floor clean before I return to apply the sealer.

Sealing a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor

A lot of water was used during the cleaning process and Terracotta is notoriously porous so I left the floor to dry out for three days before returning. The dust sheets were removed and the floor given a sweep before starting on the application of the sealer.

Having discussed choice of sealer with the customer earlier we chosen Tile Doctor Seal and Go Extra to seal the floor with, it works really well on Terracotta and adds a nice subtle sheen to the tile. As mentioned, Terracotta is very porous so it took the application of seven coats before I was satisfied the tiles were fully sealed.

My customer was delighted with the result and commented it looked like a new floor. I certainly thought so; however, my pictures were not the best this time round and don’t really do the floor justice.

For aftercare I recommended they should use Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is a mild but effective cleaner that’s sealer safe and designed for cleaning sealed tile and stone.

Professional Renovation of a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen in Gloucestershire

The post Maintaining a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor in Dursley appeared first on Gloucester Tile Doctor.

Leaking Ceramic Tiled Bathroom Renovated in Woking

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 06:26:25 +0000

The tiles in this Ceramic tiled bathroom in Woking are a great example of bad maintenance. I say this as I often get asked to refresh bathrooms and showers regularly and unfortunately this also involves rectifying previous mistakes, bodges and corner cutting.

This customer asked me to investigate a water leak in his bathroom that had resulted in a growing brown mark on the kitchen ceiling directly below. While I cannot guarantee 100% with a leak that’s location is not obvious, I can guarantee to resolve cracked grout, holed tiles and missing mastic that may be the cause. Between asking me to quote and deciding to proceed with the work the customer had also asked the opinion of a plumber. He had removed the bath panel and then did something weird with white mastic on a tile. I didn’t ask how much they charged for this utter mess but can only assume he had diagnosed the grouting around this tile as the source of the leak.

I visited the property to review the tile and grout and could see that although the main issue was the poorly installed mastic sealant the grout also needed a deep clean. The best way to deal with the mastic would be to strip it all out and then replace it with new, some of it had attracted mould and turned Black in places anyway. The Ceramic tiles were in good condition and except for a little limescale I was confident they would clean up quite easily.

A quote was worked out to renovate the bathroom tiling which included cleaning the Tile and Grout and replacing the mastic sealant. Once complete I was confident this would resolve the leak and leave the bathroom looking like a new installation.

Renovating Ceramic Bathroom Tile and Grout

Arriving at 8:30am I spent the next four hours cutting, picking and scrapping out the abundance of white mastic smeared over the bath, tiles, floor and bath side. It was a fiddley job but all the old mastic had to go to achieve a smooth finish.

I then cleaned the Grout and Tile with Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up. I don’t usually use this product for this type of work but its acid-based and works well on limescale that’s prevalent in the South of England. Some of the grout was falling out so I filled in with some stock I always keep in the van. Once dry I sprayed the grout with an aerosol tile and grout sealer to offer further protection. Once applied the water literally just runs off the tile and grout.

Next, I removed the bath panel to investigate where the leak might be coming from. There was only one obvious location which was in the far corner so I dried it out with a heat gun. Later I would fill the area with mastic to make it watertight.

The plumber had done something odd at the bath end that required a re-build. I suspect they may have used grout as adhesive. This will never work so I took it all apart, cleaned it up and stuck it back together with tile adhesive.

For the next couple of hours, I applied carefully replaced the mastic starting with the two verticals. I used transparent mastic behind the shower door as it’s much more subtle and I think that too much White can often look like go-faster stripes.

As a final courtesy I cleaned the bath and shower glass before presenting the finished bathroom which had been completely transformed by the work. For aftercare cleaning I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Aqua-Pro which is a gentle spray-on shower tile cleaner. Its best to use something like this as more aggressive products can prematurely the erode the sealer I sprayed on earlier.

Professional Renovation of a Ceramic Tiled Bathroom in West Surrey

The post Leaking Ceramic Tiled Bathroom Renovated in Woking appeared first on West Surrey Tile Doctor.

Ceramic Kitchen Floor Tile and Grout Renovated in Dedham Essex

Fri, 26 Jul 2024 12:53:05 +0000

A homeowner from the village of Dedham near Colchester asked me to visit regarding their Ceramic tiled kitchen floor. The client was tired of the dirty looking Ceramic tile and grout and having tried all the general household cleaners on the market were frustrated that it still didn’t look clean. It was bringing down the overall appearance of the kitchen and decided it was time to call in some professional help.

I visited the property to inspect the floor and confident we could make a significant difference discussed with them the options. They were happy to go ahead with my quote and we arranged a suitable date a few weeks later to carry out the work, which would just take a day.

Cleaning a Ceramic Tiled Kitchen

Work started with cleaning the floor using a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is a powerful alkaline tile and grout cleaner. I like to leave it to soak into the tiles first for about ten minutes before working it into the tiles and grout with a black scrubbing pad fitted to a rotary floor machine. I also like to give the grout a good scrub by hand as the pads can struggle to reach into the recesses of the grout lines. A few areas were particularly stubborn, so we reapplied and scrubbed again.

Once done the floor was rinsed with water and all the liquids and soiling removed with a wet vacuum. After inspecting the floor for further cleaning, I noticed a few areas that had missing grout. we always keep some grout on the van, so it was not a problem to replace it.

Once the floor and grout were dry, a further inspection was carried out and although the grout was much cleaner some areas has deep seated staining that no end of scrubbing could shift. I had discussed this possibility with the owner earlier and so it was agreed to colour the grout using a Tile Doctor Grout Colourant in Limestone.

Grout Colouring is a straightforward process using a small brush to paint the colourant onto the grout. This forms a barrier over the grout giving it a uniform appearance whilst protecting it going forward. This gave the floor a clean fresh appearance that really uplifted the look of the kitchen, it was definitely the best solution.

Sealing Ceramic Tiled Kitchen Floor

Ceramic tiles have a glazed surface so there is no need to apply any type of sealant to protect them. However, for aftercare cleaning we left a free bottle of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner for the client to use to maintain their floor. This is preferable to the stronger acidic household cleaners which she had been using previously.

Once done the floor looked great, and my client was very happy that the kitchen now looked as it should.

Professional Renovation of a Ceramic Tiled Kitchen Floor in Essex

The post Ceramic Kitchen Floor Tile and Grout Renovated in Dedham Essex appeared first on North Essex Tile Doctor.

Sticky Linseed Oil Removed from a Terracotta Kitchen Floor in Brentwood

Wed, 17 Jul 2024 04:17:46 +0000

This is a Terracotta tiled floor at a property in Brentwood that had been recently installed. Unfortunately, the tilers decided to seal the terracotta with a linseed-based sealer that hadn’t gone off and was still tacky to the touch causing it to trap dirt. I suspect they simply put too much down; however, I was surprised they used linseed as this is a very old-fashioned method of sealing terracotta when modern sealers offer far better performance.

The solution I offered was to strip the linseed off the floor, give the tiles a good clean and then re-seal with a modern based sealer designed for the job. Happy with my quote and relieved the problem could be resolved, we agreed a date to complete the work.

Cleaning a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen

To strip off the Linseed Oil I applied a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go which is a powerful alkaline coatings remover. It was left to work breaking down the linseed for about ten minutes and then scrubbed in using a rotary machine fitted with a black 17″ pad. The soiling was then rinsed away with water extracted using a wet vacuum. This process had to be repeated several times before the floor was clear and I used several pads in the process.

The grout was then hand scrubbed using Tile Doctor Pro-Clean, these were small terracotta tiles so there was a lot of grouting to cover. Afterwards the soiling was rinsed off and extracted as before using the wet vacuum.

The last step in the cleaning process was to give the floor an acid rinse using a dilution of Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up. It was scrubbed in with a deck brush to remove excess grout smears and neutralise the pH level of the floor following the use of alkaline cleaners. Once done it was rinsed away and extracted as before.

Sealing a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen

I left the floor to dry out for a couple of days, before returning to apply a new sealer which for this floor we had chosen Tile Doctor Colour Grow. This is an impregnating sealer that soaks into the pores of the tile preventing dirt from becoming lodged there and thereby protecting it from within. Colour Grow as its name suggests includes a colour enhancing formula that improves the lovely orange/red colours so ideal for Terracotta.

Made from clay, Terracotta is a porous material and so does need quite a few coats before its fully sealed. For this floor I needed to apply give coats of Colour Grow, allowing for each coat to dry before applying the next. This is a low sheen sealer which will give the floor a much more hardwearing surface and it really brought out the natural colours in the Terracotta.

My client was very happy with the difference and left the following 5-star review.

“Matthew was a pleasure to work with and did a fantastic job on a tricky terracotta renovation.”

For aftercare I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner, which is a pH neutral tile cleaner, it’s a gentle yet effective product that won’t impact the sealer.

Professional Restoration of a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor in Essex

The post Sticky Linseed Oil Removed from a Terracotta Kitchen Floor in Brentwood appeared first on South Essex Tile Doctor.

Victorian Tiled Hallway Renovated in Stourbridge

Tue, 16 Jul 2024 03:58:16 +0000

A customer from Stourbridge requested a visit to see what could be done about their Victorian tiled floor in the hallway. Changes to the property had required the installation of a gas pipe under the Victorian tiled floor in the hallway and so the beautiful tiles had been removed and a trench gouged out of the floor for the pipe. Naturally the owner now wanted to the tiled floor restoring to its original state.

I went over to assess the damage and informed the customer the gas pipe would need lowering by a gas safe engineer to enable me to install a new screed and continue the pattern. They agreed to get this organised and I worked out a price to restore the floor.

Happy with the quote they requested I track down the replacement tiles needed for the job and would be in touch once the gas pipe had been lowered.

Deep Cleaning a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

Once that work was done, I returned to install a new screed level with the height of the existing base and left it to set for a few days. I had managed to source some reclaimed tiles that would match nicely so I ordered these up and returned to the property once they had arrived.

The tiles were then cut to shape and fixed in place to match the original pattern. Once set they were grouted in making sure to get a close to original match with the original floor as possible.

Once the floor has set, I was able to move onto cleaning the whole floor. To do this I applied Tile Doctor Acid Gel cleaner and scrubbed it in with a coarse 100-grit diamond pad. Being a gel, this product is more controllable and results in faster drying times. Gel cleaners are idea for Victorian floors which were installed before the invention of the damp proof membrane, their low moisture content ensures we don’t exacerbate any issues with dampness in the floor.

The gel was then rinsed off the floor using a little water and rapidly extracted using a wet vacuum. The process was then repeated using a 200-grit diamond pad to further clean and improve the surface of the tiles.

Once done the floor was inspected and stubborn stains spot cleaned by hand.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

To seal the Victorian tiles, I applied a couple of coats of Tile Doctor Seal & Go Extra, this is a modern breathable sealer that improves colour and adds an appealing sheen finish. The new sealer helps blend in the replacement tiles and will protect the floor going forward ensuring any dirt remains on the surface where it can easily be cleaned away.

The customer was very pleased with the transformed floor and was especially happy with the tiling work which even if I do say myself worked out very well. I bet you can’t tell where the replacement tiles are in the finished photos.

For aftercare cleaning I left them with a bottle of Tile Doctor Neutral Cleaner which is specially formulated for cleaning sealed tiles. We don’t recommend tile cleaning products you find on supermarket shelves as the are usually too strong and can strip a sealer off the floor prematurely. If your choosing another product to clean your floor always read the label to make sure its compatible.

Victorian Hallway Floor Deep Cleaned and Sealed in Merseyside

The post Victorian Tiled Hallway Renovated in Stourbridge appeared first on Worcestershire Tile Doctor.

Builders Clean of an Original Victorian Tiled Kitchen Floor at Grade II Manor House in Melton Constable

Mon, 15 Jul 2024 13:23:47 +0000

A client in the town of Melton Constable contacted us about the Victorian tiled kitchen floor following a recommendation from one of our past clients. They had only recently purchased the property which was a Grade II listed manor house and were keen to restore as many original features as possible. The Kitchen floor was tiled with Red and Black tiles laid in a diamond pattern and was in a very worn state.

The entire property was undergoing significant renovation and unfortunately the building contractors working in the property had ignored the delicate nature of the kitchen floor. Without any robust protection sheeting the tiles had become heavily coated with various types of construction contaminants particularly plaster and paint.

In an attempt to clean the floor one of the building contractors had tried to renovate the tiles using a lightweight hired buffing machine but had made virtually no improvement. Disappointed with the lack of improvement it was decided it was time to call in a specialist.

On my visit to the property, I was able to reassure the client that this would not be a problem and I was confident that restorative cleaning processes would remove all the contaminants and transform the floor to its former condition.

I produced a quotation for the renovation which would be done over two days, the first to deep-clean and the second to apply the appropriately approved sealing product. The client was happy with our costings so a pair of dates were scheduled for our return which was to happen the following month once the construction work in the kitchen had been completed.

Deep Cleaning a Victorian Tiled Floor in Melton Constable

Before starting the renovation of the floor, our first job was to protect the newly plastered walls and skirting boards with masking film to prevent potential damage from the strong cleaning products and processes required for this type of renovation.

Next, concentrating on removal of the paint splatters, a generous quantity of Tile Doctor Remove & Go was sprayed onto the tiles and left to dwell for fifteen minutes so that it could get to work breaking down the oil and water-based paint products. Then, using a black nylon stripping pad fitted to our heavy Klindex rotary machine, the product was scrubbed into the surface to remove as many of the building contaminants as possible. This process would also take care of any remaining sealer. Once done, the resulting slurry was extracted using our 3-stage high performance wet vacuum machine.

The next step was to treat the floor with a concentrated acidic scrub using Tile Doctor Acid Gel which was applied and left for five minutes before working in with a fairly coarse 200 grit diamond pad. This treatment has a lot of benefits for porous tiled floors and is very efficient at removing old cement, grout smears and other contaminants such as efflorescence salt deposits. Being acidic it also neutralises the pH of the tiles following the earlier use of high-alkaline Remove and Go stripper. The floor surface was then wet vacuumed again and the process repeated with a finer 400-grit diamond pad.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Floor in Melton Constable

The floor was then left to dry out completely overnight and the next morning it was tested extensively with a digital damp meter. This is to test that the moisture introduced during the cleaning processes had evaporated and the tiles were now ready for sealing. The moisture readings were acceptable so we were happy to proceed to the next step of sealing the floor.

Prior to producing our quotation for the renovation, we had discussed sealer options with the client and because there was a requirement in the Grade II listing for the use of a breathable sealing product, Tile Doctor Seal & Go Extra was the preferred choice. This is a fully breathable exterior-grade product which provides excellent stain resistance and is perfect for high traffic areas such as food preparation areas and hallways. It improves the intensity of the colour in the tiles and has a low sheen finish so does not make the floor look overly shiny once fully cured. Five coats were applied allowing each one to dry completely before applying the next.

On completion of our work, the client was extremely impressed with the overall finish we had achieved and was greatly relieved that the building contractor had not permanently damaged it through his inexperience.

For aftercare maintenance, I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Neutral Cleaner which is a highly effective yet gentle tile cleaning product that won’t impact the sealer.

Professional Victorian Tiled Kitchen Floor Renovation in Norfolk

The post Builders Clean of an Original Victorian Tiled Kitchen Floor at Grade II Manor House in Melton Constable appeared first on Norfolk Tile Doctor.

Bathroom Tiling Refresh at Bedminster Rental Property

Fri, 12 Jul 2024 04:26:13 +0000

A local letting agent was in touch earlier this year regarding the renovation of bathroom tiling at a rental property in Bedminster in Bristol. The one-bedroom flat had just become vacant and the landlord had agreed to have the work done in order to improve its prospects on the rental market.

The grout around the ceramic tiles over the bath had become very stained, and the silicone was mouldy and needed replacing. I had carried out previous work like this for the letting agent, so they recommended me without hesitation. I supplied a quote and the client agreed. Luckily, I was able to carry out the job that week while it was still empty, so the property could quickly be re-let.

Renovating Bathroom Ceramic Tile and Grout

I started by spraying the grout with Tile Doctor Duo Clean as this is brilliant at removing grime, mould, build-up of cleaning products that accumulate over time in the shower. The grout however had areas of deep-seated staining and would need more work.

The quickest way of renovating stained grout is to apply a grout colourant which is also much cheaper than re-grouting. Before applying the colourant, I started by scrubbing in a Pre-Treater to the grout. This prepares the surface for the colour itself and creates a surface that it can bond to. After 5-10 minutes scrubbing the grout, water was applied to remove the pre-treatment. I then removed the stained silicone around the bath, shower screen and corner wall area.

Once the grout was dry, two coats of Grout Colourant were applied by painting it onto the grout cleaning away any left behind on the tile as I went. In this case we went with a White colourant but there are 11 different colours to choose from including several shades of grey.

Once the Grout Colourant was applied, I moved onto the last step of applying a new strip of mould resistant silicone between the bath and tiling. Again, this product is available in numerous colours and in this case, I went with White to match the grout.

The works were completed in less than a day and I think you will agree the bathroom now looked a lot more appealing. Unfortunately, tenants do not always keep the properties as clean as they should but the new grout colourant will make the grout so much easier to clean going forward.

I understand from the agent that viewings took place the next day and the property was quickly re-let.

Professional Restoration of a Ceramic Tiled Bathroom in Bristol

The post Bathroom Tiling Refresh at Bedminster Rental Property appeared first on Bristol Tile Doctor.

Restoration of Victorian Hallway Tiles in Chorley

Thu, 11 Jul 2024 10:01:40 +0000

Joanna contacted us with regard her late Victorian (1893) L shaped tiled hallway at their large family home in Chorley, .

They had discovered the floor under carpet during renovation work some years ago and had some work done to replace damaged and missing tiles. However, the floor had not had a deep clean an and therefore much of the floor had ingrained dirt so never looked clean. Having lived with this the problem which had only got worse over time we were asked to finish the renovation.

I went over to property to survey the floor and work out a plan to restore it. Whilst there I realised the property had a cellar and was concerned that water from the vigorous cleaning process may seep downstairs resulting in staining to the ceiling. To avoid this, I realised I would need to complete the cleaning using low moisture gel-based products. Whilst there I also took several moisture readings with a damp meter which indicated that it would be best to use a fully breathable non acrylic sealer to protect the floor.

Following the survey, I was able to work out a comprehensive plan for restoring the floor and provide the owner with an accurate quote for the work which was accepted.

Deep Cleaning a Victorian Tiled Hallway

Working in sections work commenced with a layer of Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel which was left to dwell before working it in with a low-speed weighted buffer fitted with a coarse 100-grit milling pad. The slurry generated was then vacuumed away before giving the floor a light rinse, working in small sections, and quickly vacuuming away the waste.

To further clean the tiles a thin layer of Tile Doctor Remove and Go was then applied and after five minutes scrubbed in using a 200-grit coarse milling pad, vacuuming the waste away afterwards.

With the floor showing great improvement we set about tidying up the edges using a set of diamond hand burnishing blocks. A scraper and a hand brush were used to remove paint splashes, carpet adhesive and dirt already loosened by the main clean. This was followed with the application of a 400-grit burnishing pad, again working in small areas to minimise water getting into the floor

Last step of the restorative cleaning process was to treat the tiles to an acid rinse using Tile Doctor Acid Gel. This was allowed to dwell for around five to ten minutes before being worked in with a Black scrubbing pad. The acidic nature of the product neutralises the alkaline cleaners used earlier and dissolves alkaline salts built up in the tiles which is a common problem on these older floors. The soiled solution was extracted as before and rinsed thoroughly with cloths and water to minimise moisture levels, vacuuming away the waste as I went.

The floor was allowed to dry thoroughly, and a damp meter reading confirmed the moisture levels back to where they started. A quick dry burnish using an 800-grit burnishing pad with dust vacuumed away was the final preparation before sealing could commence.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway

After testing sealers, the preference was to revive the colours in the tile and give the floor a subtle sheen. Based on this I applied Tile Doctor X-Tra Seal which was ideal for as first coat revived the colours in the tile and the second coat added a very subtle sheen finish.

After allowing the floor to partially dry, a light burnish with a soft white pad was the final part of the process.

Joanna stated she was very pleased with the results, and we discussed aftercare using Tile Doctor’s pH Neutral cleaner to prolong the life of the sealer. She also later gave a 5 Star review along with the following comment:

“Kevin was excellent. He responded promptly to my enquiry and answered all my questions. Delighted with my lovely clean floor!”

Professional Renovation of a Victorian Tiled Hallway in Lancashire

The post Restoration of Victorian Hallway Tiles in Chorley appeared first on South Lancashire Tile Doctor.

Black and White Victorian Tiled Path Restored in Ewell

Tue, 09 Jul 2024 16:28:04 +0000

Having seen some of my other work this client contacted me about the restoration of their Victorian tiled path at their property in Ewell . It had various issues that would need resolving and although I was happy to restore it, I advised that it would be best to wait until the weather improved.

In the meantime, I went over to the property to survey the path, work out a restoration plan and provide a quote for the work. I could see It wasn’t the best of installations, it appeared to be built on mud as some of the edging had become unattached. It was dirty, having never been deep cleaned and about 30 tiles had been broken. All that being said it was definitely restorable so I gave them a price for the work, and they were happy to go ahead.

Cleaning and Repairing a Victorian Tiled Pathway

Having found a reasonable weather window, I was able to make a start on the structural issues. First, I needed to fully remove the detached edging which proved more difficult than expected resulting in the need to use a crowbar. With the edging removed the base was cleaned up and backfilled with self-levelling compound which takes three to four hours to set.

It was a warm day and I had plenty of other work to do while I waited, including removing the broken tiles with a power chisel being careful not to chip the surrounding ones. The detached edging had to be cleaned up with a tile cutter. I also prepped the tiles over the remaining pathway by soaking them in Tile Doctor Patio Cleaner. This would gradually seep into the tiles and remove any dirt.

After lunch the tiling was hand scrubbing with a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean. This took some time as they were small and fiddly. Once done the tiles were rinsed with water.

Once the self-levelling compound had set, I was able to start rebuilding the path using the original tiles setting them back in place to match the original pattern using a quick setting adhesive.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Pathway

Time was marching on and eventually the client’s children would start returning home from school, so I was keen to get the path completed before they arrived. Fortunately, it was a warm day and the tiles had dried so I moved onto applying a protective sealer.

For this I used Tile Doctor X-Tra Seal which is an oil-based product rated for external use, the oil also helps to restore colour to the Black tiles. Before leaving I taped up the area, to ensure nobody walked on the tiles whilst the sealer was drying.

My client was very happy with the work I had carried out, the pathway now looked complete and provided a much more inviting entrance to the property. The new sealer would ensure dirt remains on the surface where it can be easily cleaned away for which I recommended using Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner.

Professional Restoration of a Victorian Tiled Pathway in West Surrey

The post Black and White Victorian Tiled Path Restored in Ewell appeared first on West Surrey Tile Doctor.

Badly Stained Travertine Table Polished to New Condition in Newbury

Thu, 04 Jul 2024 11:33:30 +0000

We were recently asked to renovate a Travertine tabletop at a property in the market town of Newbury. This post follows on from a previous article I published about the renovation of their garden room floor tiles where the table was situated. If you haven’t seen that post do take a minute to take a look using the following link: Terracotta Tiled Garden Room Floor Deep Cleaned and Sealed in Newbury.

If you recall the client asked me to do something to improve the condition of the stone table that had sat in the conservatory for many years and was stained with water stains, ring marks and the dirt from the many plants that had been sat on it.

Cleaning and restoring a Travertine Tiled Tabletop

The travertine table had been cracked and was heavily stained due to years of standing water from various pots. So, after cleaning the conservatory floor I turned my attention to the table and started the renovation process using a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean so I could see the full extent of damage. Being a tabletop, this had to be done by hand, allowing the solution to soak in and then scrubbing it in with a scrubbing brush. Due to the height of the table, it was a bit awkward to use the hot water encapsulation system to extract the dirt after cleaning, but I managed.

The next job was to fill the crack using a two-part epoxy resin designed especially for this sort of work and colour matched to the table. This was then allowed to set before smoothing out with a set of handheld burnishing blocks of different grits.

Sealing a Travertine Tiled Tabletop

Once the resin had dried hard the table was burnished using an extended set of diamond encrusted pads starting from a coarse 100-grit all the way to a fine 3000-grit leaving the table with a polished look. Naturally I couldn’t use my floor buffer for this, so I had to use smaller 6-inch pads fitted to a hand buffer. The pads are applied with water for lubrication and the soiling rinsed off as before using the encapsulation system.

Once the Travertine had dried out, I sealed it with Tile Doctor Colour Grow to enhance the colours and textures of the stone. This is an impregnating sealer that works by soaking into the stone occupying the pores and thereby keeping any dirt or liquids on the surface where they can be easily cleaned away.

The Travertine table was completely transformed by the cleaning and polishing and needless to say my client was very happy with the outcome and was sure his friends would be impressed! For maintenance of the table I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Stone Patina Spray. This is a spray-and-buff cleaner that is designed to enhance the natural beauty and lustre of polished stone.

Professional Restoration of a Travertine Tabletop in Berkshire

The post Badly Stained Travertine Table Polished to New Condition in Newbury appeared first on Berkshire Tile Doctor.

Restoration of Victorian Tiled Hallway in Wigan

Mon, 01 Jul 2024 10:35:08 +0000

Lyndsey and Mick from Wigan contacted Tile Doctor earlier this year after uncovering a beautiful Victorian tiled floor in their hallway. Keen to have it restored as an original feature they requested a quote to get a restorative deep clean, some minor essential repairs and sealing.

I went over to the property to survey the floor and provide a quote for its restoration. I could see that the previous owners had glued carpet and underlay directly onto the tiles and though the new owners had managed to get a lot of that off there were some stubborn areas remaining. On top of that the tiles were very grubby and in need of a good deep clean. Finally, some loose tiles needed fixing, and they wanted the worst of the broken tiles sorted whilst retaining as much original floor and character as possible.

After discussing expectations, it was agreed to accept the history and disturb the original screed and fixed tiles as little as possible simply re-fixing where needed, replacing the missing and shattered ones, then cleaning and sealing to give an attractive, serviceable and useable floor in keeping with the age of property.

The quotation was to carry out a deep restorative clean of the hallway tiles to remove heavy soil and strip old sealers using both low moisture gels and a weighted low speed mechanical buffing machine fitted with suitable pads. All soiled gel being removed with a wet vacuum system. The edging was to be hand finished as necessary and the floor is then to be neutralised to prepare for sealing. The hall had a small number of broken/loose tiles that are to be reset or replaced (precise details to be provided by client). Once fully dry the floor would be protected with a breathable sealer to protect and enhance the floors colours.

Happy with the detailed quote and much encouraged that their hallway floor was going to be restored the quote was accepted and a date set for the work to begin.

Cleaning and Repairing a Victorian Tiled Hallway

Having unloaded our equipment, we started the cleaning process with the application of a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go. This product is a coatings remover which will breakdown the glue and other contaminants. It was left to soak into the tiles for ten minutes before carefully scraping the worst of the glue off with hand scrapers.

This work continued with a 100-grit soft milling pad fitted to a weighted buffing machine running at slow speed. A wet vacuum was used to remove the waste generated and then it was followed up with an application of Tile Doctor Oxy Gel. This product was allowed to dwell for a little longer before buffing with a 200-grit soft milling pad and extracting as before.

The pads can struggle to reach into the perimeters so the edges and corners were cleaned by hand with diamond blocks as needed. Again, vacuuming away the waste afterwards.

Next, the floor was treated to an acid rinse using Tile Doctor Acid Gel to further clean the tiles and neutralise the floor after the use of alkaline cleaning products. As before it was left to soak in for a short time before being scrubbed in with a black pad. The floor was then rinsed with water, working in small areas and quickly vacuuming away the waste to minimise the moisture.

Next, the floor was dried before carrying out a small number of tile resets and some repairs to the doorway. The floor was then left to dry off overnight.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway

The following morning, I wanted to make sure the tiles were dry enough to take a sealer so several moisture readings were taken with a damp meter to confirm. The readings were fine so we were good to go.

The Victorian tiles were then sealed with Tile Doctor X-Tra Seal with the sealer applied in sections working through the hallway until complete. X-Tra seal is an oil-based impregnator that improves colour and works well on Victorian tiles, its also rated for external use so ideal for hallways.

Once touch dry a second coat was applied to give the floor a nice sheen. The final step was to gently buff the floor using a white pad to remove excess sealer and bring up the appearance. A couple of hours later we inspected the floor before leaving a very happy customer.

Lyndsey commented:

Great work, just finished sealing our floor, but it looks fantastic already. Kevin has been very informative along the way as well and I would recommend him, and this company, to anyone else who is thinking of having similar work.

For aftercare of sealed Victorian tiles, I recommend Neutral Tile Cleaner, it’s a gentle yet effective tile cleaner that’s safe to use on sealed tiles.

Professional Restoration of a Victorian Tiled Hallway in Lancashire

The post Restoration of Victorian Tiled Hallway in Wigan appeared first on South Lancashire Tile Doctor.

Carpet Covered Quarry Tiled Kitchen Floor Renovated in Pentlow

Thu, 27 Jun 2024 10:04:03 +0000

The pictures below are of a Quarry tiled floor at a property in Pentlow village, North of Braintree. The tiles had been covered in carpet for many years and it was now looking stained and worse for wear. Unsurprisingly the owner had decided it was time to get rid of the carpet and make the best of the Quarry tiled floor underneath which extended all the way into the dining room.

I surveyed the floor and could see the carpet had been fixed in place with adhesive which had stained the tiles and would need removing. The grout was also in a bad state with deep seated stains which I doubted would clean up to a consistent standard. With all this in mind I created a quote to deep clean the Quarry tile and grout and then sealing, I also added in an option to colour the grout which would be a lot easier than re-grouting.

Happy with my quote the owner gave the go ahead and a date was booked to start the work.

Deep Cleaning a Quarry Tiled Kitchen Floor in Pentlow

First, I removed the carpet to reveal the whole floor, the kickboards below the kitchen units were also removed and tape applied everywhere else to protect the wood from the cleaning products we would be using.

With the woodwork protected I set about the deep clean with the application of a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go and left to soak in for roughly ten minutes. This product is a coatings remover and tile cleaner which breaks down or softens the carpet glue and other soiling making it easier to remove.

Next a Black scrubbing pad was fitted to a rotary buffing machine and was slowly worked over the floor to scrub the solution into the Tile and Grout. I also ran a stiff brush along the
grout lines to get them clean. After the whole floor had been scrubbed the soiling was rinsed off with water and extracted with a wet vacuum.

The floor was then inspected and the process repeated where required and spot treated in some areas to remove the glue by hand with a scraper. In total two litres of Tile Doctor Remove and Go was used during the cleaning.

The next step was to give the floor and acid rinse using Tile Doctor Acid Gel which further cleans up the tile and grout. Another advantage of this is the acidic nature of the product microscopically etches the grout to provide a stronger bond with a grout colourant, it also neutralises the pH level of the floor following the use of Remove and Go which is a strong alkaline product.

Applying Natural Grey Grout Colourant in Pentlow

The Quarry tiles were now clean but although the grout was now cleaner it was still stained in places. The solution was as suspected to apply a grout colourant. Available in eleven colours the Tile Doctor colourants are not like those grout pens you buy in DIY stores; they are made from a waterproof epoxy that adds a barrier over the grout.

Once the grout was clean and dry, I applied the colourant with a small brush wiping off any excess that got on the Quarry tiles quickly afterwards, I find a wet wipe is good for this. The floor consisted of small format square tiles which meant a lot of grout to cover. It’s a tedious process that has to be done by hand however the result was transformative.

Sealing a Quarry Tiled Kitchen Floor in Pentlow

The floor was left to dry out overnight and the following morning, I used the damp meter to check the floors moisture readings. I was pleased to see the readings were acceptable and the tiles could be sealed. If the floor was still damp the seal may not cure properly so this is an important step.

To seal the Quarry tile and grout looked like a new I applied three coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow. This is an impregnating sealer that works by soaking into the tile occupying the pores and thereby ensuring dirt remains on the surface where it can be easily cleaned away.

The Quarry tile and grout responded very well to the treatment and if you didn’t know you would think it was a new floor. The new sealer will make the floor easy to maintain and my client was very pleased with the transformation.

On the topic of maintenance, I left the owner with a complimentary bottle of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner. This is a pH neutral product which will not compromise the newly applied seal, which can be the problem with many household cleaning products which are simply too strong for use on a sealed floor. This will ensure the longevity of the seal and will make the floor easy to maintain which is of course a bonus.

Professional Renovation of a Quarry Tiled Kitchen Floor In North Essex

The post Carpet Covered Quarry Tiled Kitchen Floor Renovated in Pentlow appeared first on North Essex Tile Doctor.

Polished Black Marble Foor Polished in Barrow in Furness

Tue, 25 Jun 2024 08:51:34 +0000

This client from Barrow in Furness contacted Tile Doctor about their polished black marble floor which had been installed 20 years ago. Its polished appearance had diminished with use over that time, and they had wasted money on different products sourced from DIY shops and the internet to rectify it.

Many of these products were unsuitable for this type of tile and as such the top surface was quite tacky to walk on and had done nothing to improve its appearance. Happy I could resolve the problem they accepted my quote to re-polish the floor and a date was agreed to commence the work.

Cleaning a Polished Black Marble Dining Room

My first task was to protect the woodwork by applying a bead of clear waterproof mastic between the wood and the floor, this prevents water being soaked into the wood through capillary action, this can cause water staining and worst-case blow MDF skirting and doors.

Once done work started on polishing the marble floor using a 200-grit 17-inch diamond pad fitted to a rotary floor machine. This pad removes encrusted sealers, old polish and other products that were upsetting the stone finish. Applied with water for lubrication this pad does a good job of cleaning up the stone but leaves it looking dull with a matt finish.

To bring back the finish, finer grit diamond Burnishing pads are applied in sequence starting with 400 then 800 and 1500-grit. These pads clean and rebuild the polish on the Marble slowly brings the stone back to life again. The floor is rinsed off with water after each pad and the soiling extracted with a wet vacuum. The edges were then completed with a small handheld machine using smaller pads of the same grits.

After this work, I started on the grout lines which were scrubbed by hand using Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is an alkaline cleaner and will not upset the marble. I find it best to do this work by hand as the pads can struggle to reach into the recesses of the grout line.

A final rinse with clean water which was then extracted with the wet vacuum and the floor left to dry off overnight.

I called back the next day and started work by checking the stone and grout was nice and dry and ready for a final polish using a 3000-grit diamond pad. This pad brings up the polish on the floor even further and is applied using a tiny amount of water from a spray bottle which aids in the final polish.

Sealing a Polished Black Marble Dining Room

Once the whole floor was polished including all the corners and edges it was time to start applying the sealer. With this being a Black Marble floor with more than a few marks on it from the wear and tear over the last twenty years, I opted to use a sealer normally designed for outside areas called Tile Doctor X-Tra Seal. This is an oil based breathable sealer that soaks into the pores of the stone protecting it from within and ensuring any dirt remains on the surface.

We don’t normally recommend X-Tra Seal for polished surfaces as the oil takes a lot to cloth off, however in this case I felt the extra work would be justified as the oil works well on Black stone.

Once done the Marble tiles were transformed by the work much to the relief of the owner who had really struggled to maintain the floor. Before leaving I made sure to spend time discussing future cleaning and recommended, they use Tile Doctor Stone Soap going forward. This is a mild but effective cleaner which helps maintain the patina on the Marble.

Professional Renovation of a Polished Black Marble Floor in South Cumbria

The post Polished Black Marble Foor Polished in Barrow in Furness appeared first on South Cumbria Tile Doctor.

Dirty Travertine Kitchen Floor Tiles Renovated in Gidea Park Romford

Mon, 24 Jun 2024 09:56:00 +0000

These photographs are of a Travertine kitchen floor at a property in Gidea Park near Romford. The floor was approximately 20m2 and had been laid 20 years ago. Although it had been sealed the client had been cleaning the floor with the wrong products and that had stripped the sealer off the floor. As a result, dirt had become ingrained into the pores of the stone making it look very dirty.

My client was so unhappy with its appearance they were seriously considering taking the Travertine tiles up and replacing it with something more manageable, as they could never get it to look clean. You can imagine their relief after I visited and advised them that the floor could indeed be recovered.

After surveying the stone floor, I worked out a plan for its renovation and provided them with a quote which they were happy to go ahead with.

Cleaning a Travertine Tiled Kitchen

I started the cleaning with the grout lines which had darkened with accumulated dirt. To do this I applied a 4:1 dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean along the grout lines and left it to soak in for ten minutes. The grout lines where then scrubbed by hand until their original colour returned. Although harder work, I find this method works better than using pads with a machine as the pads can struggle to reach into the recesses of the grout lines.

To get the ingrained dirt out of the stone and restore the beautiful appearance of the Travertine I used a set of Tile Doctor Burnishing pads. These are applied with a rotary buffing machine starting with the coarse 400-grit pad and worked into the stone with more Tile Doctor Pro-Clean.

After rinsing and extracting I then moved onto the 800 and 1500-grit pads, using only water this time for lubrication and rinsing and extracting after each pad. The last 3000-grit pad was applied with a little water sprayed onto the tiles to bring up a polish on the stone.

Sealing a Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor

The floor was left to dry overnight, and I returned the next day to seal it using two coats of Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal sealer to give it a nice sheen. This will give the floor hardwearing protection by ensuring dirt remains on the surface where it is much easier to remove with regular cleaning.

My client was very happy with her new floor and relieved that the new sealer would make it much easier to keep clean going forward. She also left a 5-star review and commented:

“GOOD JOB….PLEASED”

On the topic of cleaning, I recommended Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is a pH neutral cleaner. It will not strip the sealer like the previous products she had been using and should ensure the floor is kept in this condition for many years to come. Obviously, we are on hand in the future if she has any further problems.

Professional Renovation of a Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor in South Essex

The post Dirty Travertine Kitchen Floor Tiles Renovated in Gidea Park Romford appeared first on South Essex Tile Doctor.

Terrazzo floor restoration in Cardiff

Thu, 20 Jun 2024 03:01:42 +0000

This owner of this property is an architect living close to myself in the centre of Cardiff. He approached Tile Doctor late last year about the restoration of a Terrazzo hallway floor. Having recently purchased the property which was built around 1910 with an aim to restore the whole house back to its original condition and he wanted to preserve as many original features as possible.

I went over to the property to survey the floor and carried out a cleaning test on a small part of the flooring to show him the potential result I could achieve. Whilst I was there, I measured up the Terrazzo which extended throughout the downstairs hallway and through to a matching section at the front of the property.

Happy with the result of the test clean I worked out a quote for restoring the whole floor, which was accepted, and a date set for the new year. The floor was one of many projects being caried out at the property which was unhabitable at the time so it would be just a question of picking up the keys and letting myself in.

Cleaning and Repairing a Terrazzo Tiled Hallway

My first task was to remove as much plaster and paint from the floor as possible with a sharp bladed scraper. Then I started scrubbing the floor with a very coarse 50-grit pad fitted to a rotary machine. The pad is applied with water for lubrication and run over each part of the floor several times. The floor is rinsed and extracted with a wet vacuum and the whole process repeated with a finer 100-grit pad and then a 200-grit pad.

Moving up the grits the next stage was to scrub the floor to remove staining with a 400-grit burnishing pad using a strong 50:50 dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean. The pad was applied as before, rinsing and extracting once done and then moving up to the 800 and then 1500 grit pad.

As the floor became cleaner the cracks and damage to the terrazzo became clearly visible and so I started on repairing the cracks with a colour matched filler designed for this type of work. This was left to dry hard and sanded lightly until level with the floor.

The floor was then left to dry overnight, and I returned the next day to apply the last burnishing pad which was a very fine 3000-grit polishing pad to achieve the desired shine, also to polish out any light marks.

Sealing a Terrazzo Tiled Hallway in Cardiff

The sealer we selected was Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an impregnator that soaks into the Terrazzo occupying the pores and preventing dirt from residing there. The sealer achieves a durable hardwearing finish and enhances the natural colours in the stone chippings it also ensures the dirt will remain on the surface where its easily cleaned away.

Once done I returned the keys, and the architect contacted me later to congratulate me on the restoration of the finished floor. For after care cleaning of polished Terrazzo I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Stone Soap which is a mild but effective floor cleaning solution that helps maintain the patina.

Professional Restoration of a Terrazzo Tiled Hallway in South Wales

The post Terrazzo floor restoration in Cardiff appeared first on South East Wales Tile Doctor.

Neglected Victorian Tiled Hallway Renovated in Formby

Mon, 17 Jun 2024 07:18:57 +0000

This client from Formby got in touch about the Victorian tiled floor in a property they were renovating. As you can see from the photographs the flooring had been completely neglected and had seen a lot of wear resulting in years of ingrained dirt.

I went over to Formby to survey the floor and come up with a plan for its restoration which I calculated would take two days. The first day to deep clean the tiles several times to extract all the dirt and the second to apply a protective sealer that would keep the dirt out of the floor and ensure it maintained its restored appearance.

Happy with my quote we agreed a date for the work to start.

Deep Cleaning a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

Due to the deep-seated dirt I decided to start with a very strong cleaning concoction by combing Tile Doctor Remove and Go and Tile Doctor Pro-Clean. This makes a very powerful alkaline cleaning/stripping agent that should deal with the staining and break down the ingrained dirt.

The solution was mopped onto the hallway floor and left to dwell for twenty minutes before being scrubbed in using a black pad fitted to a weighted buffing machine. Water was added to increase lubrication and the extra weights added to the buffer ensured increased traction with the tiles.

The process released the dirt from the pores and surface of the tile into the solution which was then removed with a wet vacuum. Once done, I inspected the floor and then spot treated any areas that needed more work using the same process.

The initial clean removed the paint splashes and dirt and to further improve the condition of the tiles even further I decided to give the floor an acid rinse using Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up. This is brushed into the removing old cement residue and dissolves any efflorescence in the floor which can be an issue with old Victorian tiled floors that don’t have the benefit of a damp proof membrane. After another rinse with water and extraction with the wet vacuum the floor was then left to dry off overnight.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

The next morning, I took several moisture readings with a damp meter to make sure the floor was sufficiently dry and ready to seal. For this floor I had chosen to use Tile Doctor X-Tra Seal which is an oil based breathable impregnating sealer that is rated for external use and therefore ideal for a hallway. Two coats of X-Tra Seal were applied, the first coat revives the colour in the tiles and the second adds a nice subtle sheen to the tile.

The floor was completely transformed by the work and on returning home after work the customer sent me a message to say the hallway had made a great finishing touch and was the final part of the house renovation.

For aftercare cleaning I left them with a bottle of Tile Doctor Neutral Cleaner which is specially formulated for cleaning sealed tiles. We don’t recommend tile cleaning products you find on supermarket shelves as the are usually too strong and can strip a sealer off the floor prematurely. If your choosing another product to clean your floor always read the label to make sure its compatible.

Victorian Hallway Floor Deep Cleaned and Renovated in Merseyside

The post Neglected Victorian Tiled Hallway Renovated in Formby appeared first on Merseyside Tile Doctor.

Planked Effect Porcelain Floor Renovated after Water Damage in Leigh

Tue, 11 Jun 2024 16:36:33 +0000

I was originally called to this home in Leigh to deep clean approx. 100m2 of porcelain floor tiles in the living area after recent works, but plans changed somewhat when I arrived.

On my arrival the owners informed me that since my last visit to quote for cleaning the Porcelain floor a leak had come through the ceiling. This had left the previously dark grout in the textured ‘plank’ effect porcelain looking washed out and, leaving the floor in need of a refresh. I strongly suspect it wasn’t the leak that caused the problem, but the use of strong cleaning products used afterwards to clean up the mess, a lot of these cleaning products contain bleach, and this can wash the colour out of grout.

Out of interest the main issue we encounter with this type of flooring is grout haze, which occurs when the installer doesn’t manage to remove all the grout. This results in a thin film of grout on the surface which detracts from the final appearance. This probably happens with all installations but is certainly very evident on porcelain. The solution is to give the floor an acid wash using Tile Doctor Grout Clean Up, but most tilers don’t bother.

After discussion it was agreed to re-focus the time, we had available on the grout. However, after a deep clean it became clear the grout would need recolouring to look it’s best.

Grout Colouring Porcelain Floor Tiles with Chocolate Grout Colouring

Applying a Tile Doctor Grout Colourant in Chocolate colour was the ideal solution and after an urgent call to Tile Doctor HQ I set up a delivery to ensure it would be with us the next morning.

In the meantime, I continued the preparation of the grout and cleaning of the tiles using Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up which not only removes the grout haze but will also etch the surface of the grout to ensure a superior bond with the colourant.

That afternoon we also discussed the high gloss porcelain floor in the hallway, the owners had spent a lot of time polishing it themselves since installation and were not completely happy with it. I setup a floor buffer fitted with a 3000-grit pad and dry burnished a small section in the hallway. The difference was obvious, and they could see an immediate improvement, as a result they decided to rebook me to do a day polishing as well once the living room was completed.

I returned on day two to find the colourant had arrived and so started the process of recolouring the grout with the chocolate colourant. This is a straightforward process but very time consuming as with these thin planks there were a lot of grout lines to cover.

Afterwards the tiles were gently buffed with a White pad before leaving to dry. The owners were very pleased with the result commenting we had done a “brilliant job in the front room.” Later he added the following feedback:

“Kevin was excellent and did a fantastic job at the house.”

They also booked us in to do the polish on the next available date, but I’ll discuss that in a separate post.

Professional Restoration of a Porcelain Planked Tiled Living Area in Greater Manchester

The post Planked Effect Porcelain Floor Renovated after Water Damage in Leigh appeared first on South Lancashire Tile Doctor.