cleaning services

Flagstone Floor Cookham After Cleaning

Revitalising a Slate and Flag Stone floor in Cookham

Details below of a tired Slate and Flag Stone floor installed in a house in Cookham, Berkshire; the client was actually the son of an existing client whose floor we had also cleaned recently. The existing sealer had been wearing away over time and the floor had becoming increasingly ingrained with dirt making it difficult to keep clean, the solution was to strip the floor back and re-seal it.

Flagstone Floor Cookham Before Cleaning Slate Floor Cookham Before Cleaning

Stone Floor Cleaning

To clean and strip the tiles of the remaining sealer the floor was soaked in a solution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean and scrubbed in using a weighted rotary machine to help loosen the soils and break down the sealers. The soiled solution was removed and it was clear some areas of the floor needed further attention to remove the sealer so an application of Tile Doctor Remove and Go was applied which was left to soak in for a while to assist in breaking down the sealer before being scrubbed again. Once the floor was clean and the sealer was gone the floor was rinsed using our hot truck mounted extraction system and was then allowed to dry for 36 hours.

Stone Floor Sealing

When we returned I checked to make sure the floor was dry and ready to seal, all was well so I then sealed both the Slate and Flagstone floors with six coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go using a paint pad applicator.

Slate Floor Cookham After Cleaning Flagstone Floor Cookham After Cleaning

The floor looked much improved when finished I took time to explain how to clean the floor using a Neutral Cleaner that will extend the life of the sealer, the customer was pleased with the service and left the following comment on the Tile Doctor feedback system.

“We are very pleased with the results.
Peter Young, Cookham

Stone Floor Cleaned and Sealed in Berkshire

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Dirty Tile and Grout Resolved in Maidenhead After

Grout Colouring Porcelain Tiled Kitchen Floor in Maidenhead

A customer near Maidenhead asked us to take a look at their dirty porcelain floor tile and grout which had degenerated following ten years of traffic from children and pets. Domestic cleaning products were proving ineffective and professional help was now required to get the floor looking healthy again.

Dirty Tile and Grout Resolved in Maidenhead Before Cleaning

Deep Cleaning Porcelain Tiles

To get the dirt out of the tiles they were cleaned with a very mild hot water dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which was spread over the tiles and left to soak into the tiles for twenty minutes, during this time the solution was scrubbed into the grout lines using a stiff brush.

The next step was to connect up our van mounted high pressure hot water clean and capture system (see photo below) and rinse the tiles and grout. This system produces very little water or spray because of its unique recovery system to a waste tank in our van. It also neutralises cleaning solutions and the high pressure penetrates into the pores of the tile removing all the soiling and pollutants.

Dirty Tile and Grout Resolved in Maidenhead During Cleaning

Applying Grout Colourant

The powerful pressure cleaning worked well on the tiles but unfortunately the grout lines had absorbed too much soiling and staining over the years which had become ingrained to a depth which could not be removed without replacing the grout. Fortunately there was another option which was to apply a Grout Colourant. Tile Doctor has a range of epoxy based colourant’s available in different colours which are relatively easy to apply and form a barrier over the existing grout to provide a uniform look and durable protection against future staining and discolouration

Dirty Tile and Grout Resolved in Maidenhead During Grout Colouring
The floor was ready for surface traffic in a few hours and I think you will agree the final result has restored this dirty and tired floor to a fresh, revitalised as new finish

Dirty Tile and Grout Resolved in Maidenhead After
My customer was very happy with the results and left the following testimonial:

Hi Tim, Many thanks for the amazing results you achieved with my Kitchen/Conservatory floor, I was blown away by the finish – it looks like new! Thank you for care instructions, we will make every effort to follow carefully.
Best wishes and thank you again. Ms. J Walker

Grout Colouring in Maidenhead, Berkshire

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Waterleak Stains on Limestone Tiles Slough After Cleaning

Stained Limestone Tiled Floor Stripped and Sealed in Slough

This 50 m2 Limestone tiled floor at an old thatched cottage in Slough had unfortunately been stained following a radiator system leak which covered the tiles in dirty radiator water and sludge. The limestone tiles had been laid on a floor without a screed damp proofing membrane which resulted in the release of efflorescent mineral salts rising up through the stone from the soil beneath. This left a constant layer of reforming fine salt on the surface of the stone which looked like fine dust. The water had also damaged the surface of the stone leaving patches of dull etched stone next to clean polished areas.

Waterleak Stains on Limestone Tiles Slough Before Cleaning Waterleak Stains on Limestone Tiles Slough Before Cleaning

Stripping the Limestone Tiled Floor

To encourage the stone to dry out thoroughly we left a number of dehumidifiers in the room for a week and increased the room temperature. Once the stone was dry, it stopped releasing effloresce salts and we were able to restore the surface polish by burnishing the floor.

Waterleak Stains on Limestone Tiles Slough During Cleaning
Burnishing involves stripping back the Limestone surface using a set of burnishing pads, these diamond encrusted pads come in a number of grades and each one does a different job. I started with the coarse pad together with water removed the slurry with a wet vacuum, rinsed the floor and then carried on with the medium, fine and super fine pads using the same processes until the surface was polished again. Finally when I had dried the floor I used a green buffing pad to buff the floor up.

Sealing the Limestone Floor

The next step was to seal the Limestone with a couple of coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which will provide a durable protective sealer against future staining. The result was an even, polished limestone tiled floor with a durable sealing to protect against future soiling and staining.

Waterleak Stains on Limestone Tiles Slough After Cleaning Waterleak Stains on Limestone Tiles Slough After Cleaning

 

Water damaged Limestone floor restored in Berkshire

Stained Limestone Tiled Floor Stripped and Sealed in Slough Read More »

Porcelain Marble Effect Floor After Cleaning in Maidenhead

Porcelain Marble Effect Floor Cleaned in Maidenhead

We were asked to take a look at these Marble effect Porcelain floor tiles installed in the Kitchen of a house in Maidenhead. Porcelain are a very robust tile which unlike natural stone does not normally need a sealer; they can still become surface stained however especially in a kitchen but the grout is more likely to become stained than the tile which was certainly the case with this floor.

Porcelain Marble Effect Floor Cleaned in Maidenhead Before Porcelain Marble Effect Floor Cleaned in Maidenhead Before

Cleaning black Porcelain floor tiles

To get the Tile and Grout clean we applied a mild dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which was left to dwell and soak into the tile and grout for twenty to thirty minutes to help break down the oils, grease, skin fats, food fats and other soils which are found in the kitchen and stain the floor. The solution was then worked into the tile using a heavy rotary machine fitted with a white pad and also manually into the grout using a stiff grout scrubbing brush.

Porcelain Marble Effect Floor Cleaned in Maidenhead During
The next step was to remove the soiled cleaning solution and give the floor a good rinse and for this we have invested in a high pressure, hot water, vacuum system that has been installed in our van. This tile and grout cleaning machine simultaneously extracts dirty solutions from the floor whilst blasting engrained soiling away from the grout and tiles.

Porcelain Marble Effect Floor Cleaned in Maidenhead During
After deep cleaning and extraction the floor was allowed to dry for a period of 1 hour and an air mover was introduce to help encourage drying.

Grout Colouring

The Porcelain tiles were now looking fantastic and the grout improved however the trouble with grout is that it is porous, and so gets dirty quickly and is difficult to clean. So to get the Grout back to the colour it once was we applied a Grout Colourant to the grout lines which not only restored the uniform appearance of the grout but also adds an impervious layer to the grout protecting it from staining and making it easy to clean going forward.

Porcelain Marble Effect Floor Grout Colouring in Maidenhead
Like a sealer the grout colourant can be damaged through the use of aggressive cleaning products and heavy scrubbing so for aftercare I recommended the use of a mild cleaning solution such as Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner applied with a microfiber cloth to simply wipe the grout lines clean again.

Porcelain Marble Effect Floor After Cleaning in Maidenhead Porcelain Marble Effect Floor After Cleaning in Maidenhead

 

Restoring the look of a Porcelain tiled floor

Porcelain Marble Effect Floor Cleaned in Maidenhead Read More »

Antalya Limestone After Cleaning

Cleaning Antalya Limestone Tiles in Reading

I don’t mind a few stairs but these Antalya Limestone tiles were installed in a flat at the top of a three storey residential block in Reading with no lift. The sealer had worn down over time which was making the floor hard to clean and always looking dirty.

Cleaning a Limestone Tiled Floor

To clean the floor we applied a solution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is a heavy duty alkaline cleaning product specially designed for cleaning stone floors. This was left to dwell for a while and then agitated using a rotary machine fitted with a Black Scrubbing pad. The soiled solution was then removed using a wet vacuum and the floor was then rinsed down with fresh clean water.

Antalya Limestone During Cleaning

Limestone Tiled Floor Polishing

We used a set of diamond encrusted Twister Burnishing Pads fitted to a rotary buffing machine to polish the Limestone floor. These pads are ideal for restoring the shine on hard stone surfaces such as Limestone and Marble, the come in a set of four and you start with the Red pad together with plain water and this cuts through and removes surface grime and any surface seal. You then progress through one by one until you get to the final Green pad which provides a high polish.

Sealing Limestone Tiles

Once the floor was dry I sealed it using two coats of Tile Doctor Pro-Seal which is a penetrating sealer that provides a natural look and will help protect the floor going forward.

Antalya Limestone After Cleaning
 

Restoring Antalya Limestone Tile in Berkshire

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