tile maintenance

Limestone Tile Before and After Burnishing Gainsborough

60m2 Limestone floor tiles restored in Gainsborough

1 Comment / Gainsborough Tile Cleaning, Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Work History /

This was a large 60m2 Limestone tiled floor installed in the entrance hall and kitchen of a residence in the town of Gainsborough. The Limestone tiles had lost their shine and cracks had appeared in a number of tiles which was due to the floor settling after it had been built, any previous sealer was failing and the tiles were getting very dirty with visible staining.

Limestone Tile Before Cleaning Gainsborough Limestone Tile Before Cleaning Gainsborough

Burnishing Limestone Tiles

To clean the floor and remove the stains Limestone needs to be stripped back to the original tile with burnishing pads removing the old sealer along the way. To do this a set of diamond encrusted burnishing pads are applied in sequence along with a little water. The pads come is a setup of four and you start with the coarse pad which fitted to a buffing machine running on slow speed, the coarse pad removes old sealers and then you move onto the medium, fine and very fine pads until the Limestone is cleaned and polished again. In-between pads we filled in the cracks that needed attention with Limestone flexible filler which does a great job of hiding the unsightly lines, the burnishing of the tile then makes the filler blend in and become invisible. Once the burnishing was finished the floor was rinsed down with clean water and then left to dry.

Limestone Tile During Cleaning Gainsborough

Limestone Tile Sealing

On the 2nd day the floor was dry and we applied the two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow sealer to the tiles, the sealer fills the pores of the stone making it water and resistant and will protect it from stains in the years to come, this particular sealer has a natural matt finish and as its name suggests add a subtle lift to the natural colours in the stone.

Limestone Tile After Burnishing Gainsborough Limestone Tile After Burnishing Gainsborough

To demonstrate the floor was sealed we carried out a small test in front of the customer where she could choose any tile on which to pour water and simply watch the water form a bead and dance across the tile surface and not mark or be absorbed into the tile in any way. Even after a few minutes it just simply wipes away with no sign of a darker area visible. This shows the seal is doing its job of sealing and protecting the Limestone. She was delighted with the result so much that she is now reconsidering putting the house up for sale and staying there for another year.

Limestone Tiled Floor resurfaced and polished in Gainsborough

60m2 Limestone floor tiles restored in Gainsborough Read More »

Terracotta Horncastle Before and After Sealing

Terracotta Kitchen Floor Cleaned and Sealed in Horncastle

1 Comment / Louth Tile Cleaning, Terracotta Tile Cleaning, Work History /

This Terracotta tiled floor was laid in the kitchen of a property located in Horncastle, Lincolnshire. The tiles were well maintained and in reasonable condition compared to some floors I have worked on but they had started to look tired and dull in some areas and so the customer wanted them deep cleaned and resealed.

Terracotta Horncastle Before Cleaning

Cleaning Terracotta Tiles

I began the job using a strong solution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean, which is a heavy duty alkaline product ideal for cleaning natural products such as Terracotta and stripping off old sealers, this was scrubbed in with a black pad fitted to a rotary machine. We repeated the process a couple of times and also used a stiff hand brushes along the grout lines where the pads can often struggle to reach. Once happy the floor was clean it was given a thorough rinse to remove any remaining chemical and left it to dry.

Terracotta Horncastle Before Sealing

Sealing Terracotta Tile

We left the floor to dry and then returned then next day to re-seal it. Tile Doctor Seal and Go was used to seal the floor, it’s a topical water based sealer that doesn’t give off an odour when it’s drying and also offers durable stain protection together with a low sheen finish which I think you will agree has added a nice shine to the floor. Terracotta is very porous and this floor actually took five coats of sealer before it was fully sealed. Applying a sealer does take a long time to apply as you have to wait for it to dry before applying the next coat.

Terracotta Horncastle After Sealing
The work took two days in all, you can see the difference for yourself.

Kitchen Terracotta Floor Cleaned and Sealed in Lincolnshire

Terracotta Kitchen Floor Cleaned and Sealed in Horncastle Read More »

Victorian Floor Before and After Cleaning and Sealing

Victorian Floor Tile Restoration in Lincoln

Lincoln Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning, Work History /

We asked to restore a hallway of very dull Victorian floor tile at a house in Lincoln. The customer had already called in another company and paid to have the floor acid cleaned and then sealed with a type of polish, you can see from the before photograph below the results were not very satisfactory and did not achieve the finish the client wanted.

Victorian Floor Before Cleaning

Victorian Tile Cleaning

Adding a new sealer on top of an existing product simply wouldn’t work and so we had to remove the old sealer first, this we managed to do with a strong 2 to 1 dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean with water (2 Parts water); it’s a flexible yet effective alkaline product that can be used for stripping sealers, degreasing as well as cleaning.

Victorian Floor Tile Sealing

To seal the Victorian Floor tile we recommend Tile Doctor Seal and Go, it’s a breathable water based product which gave a much deeper shine to the tiles; also being water based it doesn’t give off any chemicals vapours and so it’s much nicer to work with. Victorian Tiles usually require around 4 to 5 coats, so it can take time to apply as you need to wait for it to dry before applying the next coat.

Victorian Floor After Cleaning and Sealing

The client was delighted with the results and has in fact booked us in to re-do their Quarry tile floors which they were happy with previously until they realised the results possible from our Tile Doctor Sealer.

Restoration of Victorian floor tile in Lincoln

Victorian Floor Tile Restoration in Lincoln Read More »

Slate Floor Before and After Cleaning and Sealing

Riven Slate Floor Cleaning in Lincoln

Lincoln Tile Cleaning, Slate Tile Cleaning, Work History /

Riven Slate Floor Cleaning in Lincoln

Slate floors especially riven slate can be a nightmare to keep clean as the uneven surface of a riven tile traps dirt and makes it difficult to clean. Our client in Lincoln had this issue, however as you will see from the pictures below we managed to get it looking like new again.

Slate Floor Cleaning

The Slate Floor Cleaning process involved a good cleaning with Tile Doctor Pro-Clean Tile and Grout cleaner, it’s an alkaline rather than acidic product that doesn’t harm the surface of the stone but is very effective at cleaning. We left the product to dwell for a while before giving the tile a good scrub to lift the soil and dirt trapped into the pores of the riven slate floor tile. Once the slate tile and grout were looking clean we gave the floor a good wash down to remove any remaining chemical and neutralise the floor.

Slate Floor Before Cleaning and Sealing Slate Floor Before Cleaning and Sealing
Slate Floor Before Cleaning and Sealing

Sealing the cleaned Slate Floor

We left the floor to dry overnight and came back the next day to seal it using Tile Doctor Pro-Seal which is gives the floor a natural look and really lifts and reveals the colours in the slate. You can see from the photographs the difference and how amazing the colours are.

Slate Floor After Cleaning and Sealing Slate Floor After Cleaning and Sealing
Slate Floor After Cleaning and Sealing

The client was so pleased he has booked us in to return and do some more work for him.

Slate Floor Cleaning in Lincoln

Riven Slate Floor Cleaning in Lincoln Read More »

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