Limestone Floor Tile and Grout Renovation Southam

Soiled Limestone Floor Tile and Grout Renovated in Southam

Details below of an impressive Limestone Floor installed at a large county house in the historic market town of Southam. I had been asked to deep clean the limestone floor tiles and grout lines in the kitchen and adjacent hallway. They had been previously cleaned by another company a few years ago and they now needed doing again.

Limestone Floor Tile and Grout Before Cleaning Southam

I went over to survey the tiles and provide a quote as requested. The stone was dirty but in good shape, I could see the previous sealer had started to fail in the busiest areas and this was now letting dirt become trapped in the pores of the stone. The main problem though was the grout which had a very rough surface and was heavy contaminated with acrylic sealer.

Limestone Floor Tile Grout Before Cleaning Southam

Cleaning and Burnishing Limestone Tiles

Before beginning the work, I took the precaution of adding a clear silicone sealant between the kitchen units and tile. This is needed to prevent any water used during the cleaning process from soaking into the woodwork and damaging it.

Limestone Floor Tile and Grout During Preparation Southam

Once that was done work started on talking the grout which had to be rubbed back using handheld diamond blocks which was able to cut through and remove the acrylic sealer and dirt along with it. All the grout lines had been treated in this way and so realising it was going to be a tough job I had arranged for Steve Carpenter from Nottinghamshire Tile Doctor to lend me a hand for two days.

After resolving the grout issues, I moved on to restoring the appearance of the Limestone tiles themselves. This was done coarse diamond encrusted Burnishing Pads. Each pad has a different level of grit to grind away the dirt from the stone and build up the polished appearance. The process effectively resurfaces the stone leaving it looking new and fresh.

The process started with the application of a coarse 200-grit pad, fitted to a rotary machine, to grind away any excess muck and sealant lubricated with a little water and Stone Soap cleaning fluid. The resultant slurry was rinsed away and I followed up with the application of the 400-grit pad again with a small amount of water and Stone Soap.

Sealing Limestone Tiles

The last step was to seal the floor and after discussing this with the owner previously it was clear they wanted the Limestone to keep its light appearance and look as natural as possible. With that requirement in mind, we sealed the floor using a couple of coats of Tile Doctor Ultra Seal which is a premium impregnating sealer that is almost invisible and doesn’t alter the look of the stone. It works by soaking into the stone, occupying the pores, and thereby preventing dirt from becoming lodged there, this keeps the dirt on the surface where it can be easily cleaned away. Ultra-seal is also an excellent grout sealer.

Limestone Floor Tile and Grout After Cleaning Southam

Limestone Floor Tile and Grout After Sealing Southam

After three days of hard work by the team working the Limestone and Grout was looking so much better and was a massive improvement. The new sealer will also ensure the stone and the grout is much easier to maintain going forward.

My customer was very happy with the floor and pleased it would be easier to clean from now on. Regarding cleaning, I recommended they use Tile Doctor Stone Soap which is a gentle yet effective tile cleaner that won’t impact the sealer.

Professional Cleaning of a Limestone Tiled Floor in Warwickshire

Soiled Limestone Floor Tile and Grout Renovated in Southam Read More »

Acid Damaged Limestone Tiles Before After Restoration Stratford-Upon-Avon

Black Limestone Floor Ruined by Descaling Solution in Stratford upon Avon

1 Comment / Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Stratford-upon-Avon Tile Cleaning, Work History / Mick Gayton

I really felt for this customer who was mortified after accidentally spilling limescale descaling solution on their beautiful Black Limestone floor in Stratford upon Avon. The problem started when attempting to descale a coffee making machine in the kitchen, unfortunately the bottle fell out of his hands and onto the Black Limestone floor, the subsequent attempt to mop it up spread the problem across the floor.

Acid Damaged Limestone Kitchen Floor Tile Before Restoration Stratford Upon Avon

Descaling solutions contain strong acids that dissolve the minerals in limescale so they can be easily removed. Limestone being of a similar structure is equally effected however in this case the product was removed quickly and didn’t have time to etch the stone. Unfortunately, the descaler did have time to upset the factory polish leaving a right mess and ruining the appearance of the stone.

I went over to survey the floor and reassured my customer the floor could be restored. There are several products and methods that can be applied to resurface and polish stone floors, so I knew the problem was repairable, it was just a question of finding the best solution for the customer.

Stripping Sealer from Black Limestone Flooring

I reasoned that the underlying stone was not etched by the acid, it was the wax-based factory finish that had been upset so the best course of action would be to strip back the entire floor to the bare stone and then reapply a new sealer that would provide a similar appearance.

To do this I started with the application of Tile Doctor Remove and Go across the whole floor. This product is a coatings remover that is specially designed for use on Tile and Stone, it was sprayed onto the floor and after ten minutes scrubbed in using a rotary machine fitted with a scrubbing pad. The resultant slurry was then rinsed off with water and extracted using a wet vacuum. This process was repeated until I was confident that the factory polish had been removed.

Next step was to strip the stone of the black dry added by the factory by giving it an acid wash using Tile Doctor Acid Gel. This was necessary to rebalance the appearance of the stone across the entire floor and would result in a consistent appearance one resealed. The Acid Gel was scrubbed into the Limestone, then rinsed off and extracted using the same procedure as before.

After a final rinse the floor was left to dry off overnight.

Sealing Black Limestone Floor Tiles

The next day I first checked the floor was dry using a damp meter, there were no excess moisture issues so I able to go ahead and seal the stone using a product that would bring back the colour and add protection against dirt and staining.

The best product for this was Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an impregnating sealer that seeps into the pores of the stone protecting it from within and enhancing natural colour at the same time. The only disadvantage of this product is it leaves a matt finish whereas my customer wanted the shiny, easy to clean appearance of the original tile. To resolve I recommended we leave the floor to settle for a while and if no issues develop, I would add a couple of coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go which is compatible with Colour Grow and would give the desired finish.

Acid Damaged Limestone Kitchen Floor Tile After Restoration Stratford Upon Avon

Due to various commitments on both our parts it was six weeks until I was able to return and top up the sealer with Seal and Go. It was worth waiting for and much to the relief of the owner his Black Limestone floor has been transformed to new again.

Limestone Kitchen Floor Tiles Restored in Stratford upon Avon

Black Limestone Floor Ruined by Descaling Solution in Stratford upon Avon Read More »

Limestone Patio Tiles Deep Cleaned in Nuneaton

1 Comment / Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Nuneaton Tile Cleaning, Work History / Mick Gayton

This beautiful Limestone patio had been installed in the back garden of a house in Nuneaton and then covered with some form of acrylic coating to protect it. Unfortunately the coating wasn’t able to defend against the ravages of the UK weather and had become loose leaving the Limestone exposed to the elements where it soon became very grimy.

Limestone Patio Before Cleaning Nuneaton

Stripping acrylic coatings from Limestone tiles

The acrylic coating had to be removed which was done using a combination of manual scraping using a fine blade and then with a 1:4 dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean was mopped onto the tiles and left for ten minutes to dwell before being scrubbed with a buffing machine fitted with a black pad. This process brought out the dirt that had become ingrained into the stone, there were some stubborn areas and these were treated with Tile Doctor Remove and Gof which is a stronger product. The resultant slurry was removed using a wet vacuum and the patio left to dry overnight.

Limestone Patio During Cleaning Nuneaton

Sealing a Limestone patio

I came back the second day to seal the patio checking first that it was suitably dry. Two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow were applied which is a colour enhancing impregnating sealer that can be used internally and externally, it works really on Limestone and did well to bring out the natural colours in the stone.

Stone patio stripped, cleaned and sealed in Warwickshire

Limestone Patio Tiles Deep Cleaned in Nuneaton Read More »

Black Limestone After Cleaning Pillerton Hersay

Restoring a new laid black Limestone floor in Pillerton Hersey

1 Comment / Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Stratford-upon-Avon Tile Cleaning, Work History / Mick Gayton

This is the second black limestone tiled floor we have dealt with this year where the tiler struggled to get the right finish. In this case the floor tiles were newly fitted but unfortunately the tiler had decided not to seal the tiles prior to grouting which resulted in grout becoming trapped on the tile surface (aka Grout Haze). To remedy this problem brick acid was used which removed the grout but this stripped off the black finish turning the tiles grey then in a further attempt to improve the appearance the tiles were covered in boiled linseed oil which just sat on top locking in the grout haze. Linseed oil is a traditional method of sealing stone tiles and is normally used with Terracotta tiles but it’s not ideal and does not have the performance of a modern sealer, certainly in this case it didn’t help at all.

Black Limestone Before Cleaning Pillerton Hersay

Removing Oil and Grout from Limestone Tiles

To resolve the problems with the floor it had to be fully stripped back to remove the linseed oil so the grout haze problem could be tackled. This was done by applying a solution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go which was mopped on to the floor and left to soak in for a while before being scrubbed using a rotary machine fitted with a black pad. This process lifted the linseed oil off the tiles and was removed using a wet vacuum.

Once the Linseed oil was gone I could get to work on the grout haze and for that we have a special product called Grout Clean-Up, it’s a very strong acid based product and normally you would need to be very careful using it on stone as it can damage the stone, in this case however the surface of the Limestone had already been damaged by the brick acid. Once the floor was free of coatings and the grout haze problem had been treated I gave the floor a thorough rinse down to make sure all trace of products had been removed from the floor before the next step.

Sealing Limestone Floor Tiles

There was a lot of Limestone to cover so on the first day I focused on the kitchen and on day two the lounge, hallway and toilet. On the third day I went over the whole area applying Tile Doctor Stone Oil to restore the black colour of the Limestone that had been damaged by the brick acid.

Black Limestone During Cleaning Pillerton Hersay

By the third day the Grout Haze was gone but was still looking washed out. To restore the colour back into the black limestone it was treated with stone oil which as you can see turned the tiles back to their original colour. Stone Oil is an interesting product, if you check the tin it will tell you it’s “an easy to apply pre-polish impregnating sealer, ideal for low porosity stone and terracotta designed to enhance the colour and texture of floors and improve mechanical strength once cured”. Certainly from the customer’s point of view the floor now looks how it was intended and they were much relieved.

Resolving Limestone installation problems in Warwickshire

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Limestone Tiled Floor After Cleaning and Polishing

Resolving a Dull and Scratched Limestone Tiled Floor

1 Comment / Coventry Tile Cleaning, Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Work History / Mick Gayton

This Limestone Tiled Floor was installed in the hall and kitchen of a residence in Coventry. The floor had scratch damage in the middle of the kitchen and was dull from the previous use of the wrong cleaning products, the house had recently been sold and the new owners wanted the damage removed and Limestone sealed and polished so it looked new again.

Cleaning Limestone and Grout

The first task was to give the floor a general clean using a dilution Tile Doctor Pro-Clean with the focus on the ensuring the grout lines were given a good scrub to get them looking clean again. The dirty solution was then removed from the floor using a wet vacuum and rinsed with clean water.

Limestone like Marble and Granite is a very hard stone and needs to be cutback with burnishing pads to get it looking good again; the pads fit a rotary buffing machine and applied with a little water. Tile Doctor supplies a four pad Burnishing set for this purpose and you start off using a coarse pad to cut back the dirt from the floor and then move through the pads until you get to the last one which is very fine and polishes up the stone.

Sealing Limestone Floor Tiles

To protect the floor it was sealed with two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is designed to lift the natural colours in the stone and will protect the tile from stains in future.

Limstone Tiled Floor After Cleaning and Polishing3

Limstone Tiled Floor After Cleaning and Polishing

In total the floor took eight hours to clean and re-polish, the scratch was gone and the floor now looks new again, just what the customer wanted.

Limestone Tiles Cleaned and Polished in Coventry

Resolving a Dull and Scratched Limestone Tiled Floor Read More »

Resolving installation issues with a black Limestone tiled floor

2 Comments / Grout Cleaning, Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Whitnash Tile Cleaning, Work History / Mick Gayton

This client had recently had a black limestone tiled floor installed in the kitchen and dining area in his home on the northern border of Warwickshire. Unfortunately however the tiler had not sealed the tiles prior and struggled to remove the grout smears from the Limestone surface. The tiles were then sealed trapping the grout haze under the sealer; naturally the client was far from happy and was instructed to remove the grout using an acid wash.

The acid things turned the floor grey removing the oils in the floor from the factory and also caused the natural salts within the tile to rise to the surface. The tiles were then sealed with an external patio sealant without removing the existing surface sealer. All this compounded the problems in the floor causing it to mark easily and lose its colour; on top of that it had big cloudy white patches all over from the trapped salts.

Stripping sealer from a Limestone Floor Tiles

To resolve the problems with the floor it had to be fully stripped back and cleaned of all sealants and salt etc. which was done by applying a solution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go combined with Nanotech UltraClean mopped on to the floor in two square metres at a time. The solution was allowed to soak into the floor for thirty minutes to allow the chemicals break down and then scrubbed using a rotary machine fitted with a black pad. The soiled solution was then extracted from the floor using a wet vacuum. This process was repeated across the entire floor until all the sealer had been removed.

Removing Salts from Limestone Tiles

To remove the salts and remaining grout haze the floor was treated with Grout Clean-up which is an acid based cleaning product that is designed to penetrate below the surface and remove light grout smears (grout haze) as well as mineral deposits such as salts and efflorescence, again this treatment was applied two square meters at a time, quickly worked into the floor and removed with the wet vacuum. Once this process was complete the whole floor was washed at high pressure rinse three times to ensure all trace of chemicals had been removed.

The floor was left to dry and when we came back the second day it was noticed that there were still some salts coming through to the surface of the Limestone, these areas were re-treated and the floor washed down again and left to dry as before.

Sealing Limestone Floor Tiles

The floor looked much improved on the third day although it was still looking washed out. To put the colour back into the black limestone it was treated with stone oil with turns the floor back to black and then sealed with two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which will protect the tile going forward.

The floor now looks how it was intended and certainly the customer was pleased and left the following comment on our feedback system.

“We are so pleased with the work carried out by the tile doctor to our kitchen, utility and family room. The floor now looks exactly how we hoped it would look when we originally purchased it. We’ve struggled to get it looking right since then and now we feel we finally have a floor we can enjoy at last! We also found Mick to be professional and highly knowledgeable on our floor. He has given us really good advice and has been really easy to contact and has also been happy to give us further help and advice over the phone even when the job’s been completed. L. Nash”

Limestone Kitchen Floor After Cleaning and Sealing

Limestone installation problems resolved in Warwickshire

Resolving installation issues with a black Limestone tiled floor Read More »

Removing Marks from a Limestone Tiled Floor in Stourbridge

Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Stratford-upon-Avon Tile Cleaning, Work History / Mick Gayton

We often get called to sort out problems left behind by Tilers and this case was no exception. This Limestone tiled floor in the kitchen of a house in the historic town of Stourbridge had been sealed using a cloth and resulted in visible wipe marks being left behind in the top surface seal.

Removing the Sealer from Limestone Tiles

To resolve we had to cut back the surface using a set of twister burnishing pads, these diamond encrusted pads come in a number of different colours each one does a different job from scrubbing to polishing.

Polishing and Sealing the Limestone Floor

The next step was to re-seal the floor which was done using one coat of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which really brings out the colour in a stone floor. This was followed by the application of Tile Doctor Shine Powder which is a crystallising powder that leaves a very high shine and tough durable finish.

The job took a whole day to complete and the owner was so pleased with the results she left the following comments:

Mick was very professional and so enthusiastic about his work. He was genuinely determined to the very best job and has transformed our dull lifeless limestone floor. We are delighted with the results. Nothing was too much trouble for him and he went beyond our expectations. I have booked him in for next week to clean our slate hall floor. Excellent!

Mrs Schwartz, Stourbridge

Limestone Tiled Floor Restoration in Stourbridge

Removing Marks from a Limestone Tiled Floor in Stourbridge Read More »

Before and After photos of a Polished Limestone Floor Tiles

Limestone Floor Tiles Polished

1 Comment / Coventry Tile Cleaning, Grout Cleaning, Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Work History / Mick Gayton

Limestone Floor Tiles Polished to a deep shine

Great photograph below of a Limestone floor in the kitchen of a house near Coventry. The Limestone had lost it’s shine after the application of a surface sealing “Clean and Shine” type product; the problem was akin to the application of a wax finish which in turn had been contaminated with cleaning product and soil underneath. The grout line has also become heavily soiled through everyday use.

Cleaning Limestone Floor Tile

First the Limestone tiled floor was dry vacuumed to remove loose grit; we also took to opportunity to remove the kitchen unit kick boards. This was followed by a good clean with a 1:5 mix of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which was left to dwell for 15 minutes before the application of a stiff grout brush on on the grout lines followed by the use of a slow speed buffing machine to break up the surface wax on the tile. The whole are was rinsed down using high pressure clean water via a spinner tool which removed any left over dirt from the grout lines.

The next step was to use the diamond encrusted burnishing pads system to prepare and condition the limestone floor tiles prior to polishing.

Adding that deep shine to Limestone Tiled Floors

We then applied Tile Doctor Shine Powder using a White buffing pad to provide that extra deep shine you can see in the photograph, it also provides and tough durable finish.

Limestone Tiled Floor Cleaning and Polishing

Limestone Floor Tiles Polished Read More »

Limestone Floor Restoration

1 Comment / Coventry Tile Cleaning, Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Work History / Mick Gayton

Limestone Floor Restoration

Some photographs below of a Limestone floor in a property in the West Midlands. The property had just been sold and the new owners wanted the Limestone floor, which was heavy damaged from pets and the application of the wrong cleaning products, restored back to its original condition. Owners of stone floors really need to take care not to use acidic products to clean their floors as this slowly eats away at the stone; you get the same problem from pet urine which contains Uric acid.

Limestone floor before restoration by Tile Doctor Warwickshire — Limestone floor before restoration

I cleaned the floor using Tile Doctor Pro-Clean along with the diamond coated burnishing pad system and then sealed with Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is great for bringing out the colours in stone.

After sealing we polished the floor with Tile Doctor Shine which is a crystallising powder that provides a very high deep shine and tough durable finish.

Limestone Kitchen Floor After Restoration

All in the entire Limestone Floor restoration took two long 12 hour days however our efforts were rewarded by the look on the faces of the new owners who were over the moon with the finished job.

Limestone Floor Restoration Read More »

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Warwickshire Tile Doctor

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