berkshire

Travertine Table Repair and Renovation Swallowfield Reading

Repairing a Stone Table for Repeat Client in Swallowfield Reading

I received a rather fraught text message followed by a bunch of pictures from a client in Swallowfield regarding a broken stone table. My client lets out properties in the Thames Valley and Berkshire areas so over time we have built a nice relationship as maintenance work is constantly needed within these properties.

Damaged Stone Table Before Repair Reading Damaged Stone Table Before Repair Reading

Unfortunately, my client and his son dropped the large stone table while preparing the property for new tenants causing significant damage to one corner. Time was of the essence as the new tenants were due to move in the following weekend.

Having reviewed the pictures and discussed the damage in detail over the phone I was confident I could significantly improve the damage, so we booked in a date that was mutually convenience. Fortunately, they had the good sense to collect the pieces of broken table which would make the task easier.

Repairing and Cleaning a Travertine Stone Table

My first job was to reconstruct the puzzle of broken pieces to ensure the table would all fix together again. Happy I had all the parts I began the reconstruction using a two-part epoxy resin that binds rock hard in about 15-30 minutes, clamping each part in place while the resin hardened.

Once I was happy with the repair, I gave the table a deep clean using Tile Doctor Pro-Clean, this product is a strong alkaline cleaner that breaks down dirt, grease, and contaminations. After scrubbing in a strong dilution by hand it was then rinsed off with water and the table was left to dry.

Sealing a Travertine Stone Table

I returned later that day and happy it was thoroughly dry I applied two coats of Tile Doctor Ultra Seal which is an impregnating sealer that works by occupying the pores in the stone thereby preventing dirt from taking up residence there. This ensures contaminates remain on the surface where they can easily be wiped away. This product is almost invisible and so doesn’t change the appearance of the stone, so it keeps its natural appearance.

They were impressed with the repair work and as you can see from the pictures there is very little evidence of the previous damage. They were also relieved that it could be repaired as a piece like this is expensive to replace. More importantly the property was also ready for the new tenant to move in.

Damaged Stone Table After Repair Reading Damaged Stone Table After Repair Reading

We have already carried out lots of work for this client previously, maintaining the various tiled floors that they have in the various properties, floors you wouldn’t want to trust with a standard cleaning service.

 

Professional Repair and Renovation of a Stone Table in Berkshire

Repairing a Stone Table for Repeat Client in Swallowfield Reading Read More »

Silver Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor Cleaning Sealing Spencers Wood Reading

Dirty Silver Travertine Kitchen floor in Spencer’s Wood, Reading

This client in Spencer’s Wood, a small civil parish village located south of Reading within Berkshire, had a spectacular Silver Travertine tiled floor that had become grimy, stained and generally dull from use. Unhappy with how it now looked I was asked to quote for renovating it.

I called in to survey the floor and I could see how the grout had become badly stained and the natural pits in the travertine had trapped a lot of dirt which had accumulated over time. Kitchen floors are generally the busiest in any house and with a build-up of dirt, grease and other soils ingrained into the pores of the travertine.

Silver Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor Before Cleaning Spencers Wood Reading

It was clear any sealer that had once protected the stone was no longer effective. Though the kitchen was the worse effected area the client wanted the whole tiled area cleaned which included the hallway and cloakroom. I worked out a quote for doing the work, which was accepted and a date was booked in.

Silver Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor Before Cleaning Spencers Wood Reading Silver Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor Before Cleaning Spencers Wood Reading

Cleaning a Silver Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor

On arrival I applied a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which was left to dwell for ten minutes so it could soak into the pores and break down the dirt, grease, and any remaining sealer. For best results I then went over the floor with a rotary buffing machine fitted with a nylon scrubbing brush. Personally, I find nylon brushing perfect for cleaning grout and pitted travertine as the brush gets into the depressions releasing the contaminations. The resulting slurry was then vacuumed off the floor using a wet vacuum, the floor was then rinsed with water and vacuumed again.

To improve the appearance of the Travertine and remove any potential imperfections caused by wear and tear, it was given a light burnish using a 400-grit then 800-grit burnishing pads this left the floor with a gentle satin sheen. We could then improve the shine further by adding a 1500-grit followed by 3000-grit however, it was the client’s request that they didn’t want the floor to look “too shiny”.

The burnishing pads are attached to the rotary machine and then run over each tile several times using only water for lubrication. After another rinse and extraction to remove the slurry, the floor was left to dry off overnight.

Sealing a Silver Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor

Returning the next day, the floor had dried out and looked stunning. I damp meter was used to test the floor for moisture and after confirming it was dry, I proceeded to seal the Travertine using two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow.

Tile Doctor Colour Grow is an impregnating sealer that enhances and improves the colour and texture of natural travertine whilst providing durable protection.

Silver Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor After Cleaning Spencers Wood Reading

The client was thrilled with the outcome of the floor and was glad to have it back to how they remembered it. Before leaving I took time to discuss aftercare and recommended the client to use Tile Doctor Stone Soap as a maintenance cleaner.

Silver Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor After Cleaning Spencers Wood Reading Silver Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor After Cleaning Spencers Wood Reading

 

Professional Restoration of a Silver Travertine Tiled Kitchen in Berkshire

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Renovating Brick Steps in Ascot

Dishevelled Brick steps Deep Cleaned in Ascot

I received an enquiry regarding a set of Brick Steps at a property in Ascot that had fallen victim to the elements and had become ingrained in years of ingrained dirt, algae, and lichen. As the entrance to the property the brick steps were making it look uninviting and dishevelled. My client emailed over a couple of photographs, and I was confident that with our variety of cleaning products we could vastly improve the appearance.

I visited the site in to take a closer look and conducted a test clean to demonstrate what could be achieved. I discussed the process with the client and provided a quote for the work. Happy with the results of the test clean and the quote a date was booked into the diary for my return.

Brick Steps Before Renovation Ascot

Deep Cleaning a Brick Stepped Entrance in Ascott

To start I removed any moss and loose soil with an industrial scraping tool and a wire brush, this would allow the cleaning product, Tile Doctor Brick and Patio Cleaner to have full contact with the brick and mortar. This product is a very strong fast acting cleaner designed to remove black spot, algae and lichens from external concrete paving and brick driveways.

I applied the product neat using a pump-up sprayer and allowed the product to dwell for thirty minutes, scrubbing every so often and keeping the surface damp to ensure the brick and patio cleaner didn’t dry out. With this product the longer you leave it the better the result. In this case I let the bricks and mortar soak for about an hour before scrubbing it in further and then rinsing off with water. Some areas were more stubborn than others and needed more work by once I was happy with the results, I gave the steps a thorough rinsing with plenty of water.

Brick Steps Before Renovation Ascot

The results were so noticeable that the client’s friend and neighbour “not wanting to be outdone” also wanted their smaller steps deep cleaned. Thankfully I had the time needed so I was more than happy to oblige.

Brick Steps Before Renovation Ascot Brick Steps Before Renovation Ascot

Sealing a Brick Stepped Entrance

I discussed the benefits of having the steps sealed, however my client was happy with how they looked and opted to have me back each spring to keep on top of things. There are several products we have available for sealing outdoor bricks and patios, Tile Doctor Colour Grow, Ultra Seal and X-Tra Seal, all of these will provide protection to the area by preventing dirt from becoming ingrained into the brick.

 

Professional Restoration of a Brick Stepped Entrance in Berkshire

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Jerusalem limestone Floor Polishing Mortimer Common Reading

Pitted Jerusalem Limestone Floor Renovated in Mortimer Common

I was called out to a property in Mortimer Common, which is a few miles West of Reading to survey a Jerusalem Limestone floor that had been installed quite some time ago when an extension was added to the property.

Jerusalem Limestone Before Cleaning Polishing Mortimer Common Reading

Over time their once beautiful Jerusalem limestone floor had become dirty, dull and in areas chemically damaged. In an attempt to freshen up the stone floor the customer brought some sealer from a local trade store and applied it to the floor, however the product she purchased was actually a topical sealer (Polish) which left the floor looking worse, in her words made the natural stone looking “artificial”. On very rare occasions topical sealers can be used on honed/polished floors but can easily go wrong that’s why we recommended using impregnated sealers when working on this type of material.

Jerusalem Limestone Before Cleaning Polishing Mortimer Common Reading

Limestone is also acid sensitive so best to avoid the use of strong acidic cleaning products such as bleach which will etch into the stone with use and in some cases open naturally forming cavities in the stone itself, a problem we often refer to as pitting.

Jerusalem Limestone Before Cleaning Polishing Mortimer Common Reading

Cleaning a Jerusalem Limestone Tiled Floor

My first task was to remove the topical seal that was recently applied and deep clean the dirt filled pits and grout. To do this I used a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go left it to soak in for ten minutes and then agitating using a combination of a stiff nylon brush and a Black stripping pad fitted to a rotary machine. I made sure to go over any pits in the stone multiple times to release the trapped dirt. The resultant slurry was vacuumed up as I went along and the floor given a rinse with water afterwards.

Once clean I addresses the small pits in some of the tiles by backfilling them with a rapid setting filling compound that I colour matched with various shades of brown and cream.

Jerusalem limestone Before Filling Mortimer Common Reading Jerusalem limestone After Filling Polishing Mortimer Common Reading

With the old sealer removed and the holes/pits taken care of I continued with the restoration of the floor by moving onto the burnishing process which cleans and polishes the stone. This involves honing the Limestone with a set of burnishing pads starting with a course 400-grit and finishing with a fine 3000-grit. The pads are applied to the floor with a heavy floor buffing machine using water to lubricate the process. The pad is run over each tile around five times and the chalky slurry this process generates is rinsed off afterwards with water and then extracted with a wet vacuum. You then move onto the 800-grit and then 1500-grit slowly building back the appearance of the stone.

Once each of the three pads had been run over the floor it was given a final rinse and then dried as much as possible with the wet vacuum before leaving it to dry off fully overnight.

Sealing a Jerusalem Limestone Tiled Floor

We returned to the property the following day, by which time the floor had dried completely. I finished the burnishing process with the fine 3000-grit burnishing pad which is brings up the polish even further and is only applied using a little water sprayed onto the tiles.

Jerusalem Limestone After Cleaning Polishing Mortimer Common Reading

Once done I moved onto applying the sealer which for this floor, I chose Tile Doctor Colour Grow. This is an impregnating sealer that soaks into the pores of the stone to provide durable protection whilst enhancing the natural colours in the stone. The customer was over the moon with the results and was stated the floor looked better than when it was installed all those years ago.

Jerusalem Limestone After Cleaning Polishing Mortimer Common Reading

For aftercare cleaning I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Stone Soap which is designed for maintaining the patina on polished stone floors.

Jerusalem Limestone After Cleaning Polishing Mortimer Common Reading

 

Professional Restoration of a Jerusalem Limestone Tiled Floor in Berkshire

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Limestone Kitchen Worktop Polishing Aldermaston

Removing a Large Scratch from Limestone Worktop in Aldermaston

Earlier this year I received a rather panicky call from a previous customer from Aldermaston for who I completed a floor tile refurbishment back in 2021. It seems that after hosting a New Year’s party with her family and friends she discovered a large scratch on her beautiful Limestone kitchen island worktop.

Limestone Worktop Before Scratch Removal Aldermaston

It was clear something heavy had been dragged across the worktop, and to make matters worse the unknown renegade had covered the affected area with a chopping board and tea towels. Fortunately, the methods and products we use to renovate stone floors can be used to restore stone worktops as well.

Limestone Worktop Before Scratch Removal Aldermaston

After surveying the damage, I could see other stains and marks from general use and so I recommend polishing the whole island worktop to ensure a uniform finish throughout. She was quite relieved to hear that it could be restored as the scratch was very noticeable. Happy with my suggestion and quote we agreed a date for my return.

Repairing a Limestone Scratched Worktop

I decided the best way to tackle the refurbishment would be to use a combination of hand resin blocks and diamond burnishing pads. The soft burnishing pads are particularly messy when working on islands, so my first task was to ensure the surrounding kitchen units and walls were protected with plastic sheeting.

Limestone Worktop During Renovation Aldermaston

To remove the large scratch, I opted to use a set of hand burnishing blocks starting with 60 grit and working up to 400 grit. The challenge was to be careful not to work too hard to avoid any dipping within the island. I could have used a set of 3-inch milling pads fitted to a hand machine but I find the hand block a lot more controlled even if it is a slower process.

Limestone Worktop During Renovation Aldermaston

Then the limestone was burnished with a set of six-inch burnishing pads fitted to a hand buffer. The pads come in different grades and are applied in sequence to the surface starting with coarse 400 grit and finishing with 1500 grit to leave a honed but not too shiny finish. Water is applied to help lubricate the burnishing process and I rinsed off residues with towels after each sequence. This was a slow process, but the end results were just what the customer was looking for.

Sealing a Limestone Island Worktop

I returned the next day to apply a sealer and although we were happy with the results, we noticed the island was slightly lighter shade than the surrounding kitchens worktops. So, after a brief discussion with the customer, we decided a colour enhancing impregnating sealer would be the best option when sealing.

Tile Doctor has a range of sealers including an impregnating Colour Enhancer called Colour Grow so that was chosen to seal the Limestone. Three coats of colour grow later and the island was finally restored back to what the client remembered.

Limestone Worktop After Renovation Aldermaston

For the aftercare of stone worktops, we recommend the use of Stone Patina Spray which is a spray-and-buff cleaner that is designed to enhance the natural beauty and lustre of polished stone as it cleans.

 

Professional Restoration of a Scratched Limestone Kitchen Worktop in Berkshire

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Terracotta Tiled Staircase Renovation Maidenhead

Renovating a Terracotta Tiled Staircase in Maidenhead

This customer in Maidenhead had contacted numerous companies about the renovation of their Terracotta tiled Steps but no one was interested in. Fortunately, he finally found Tile Doctor and this sort of work is exactly what we do.

I went over to take a good look at the problems and it turns out they had a long history and were only recently discovered during some improvement works. The property was Victorian and located on the banks of the river Thames, at some point the steps had been covered with both plywood and then carpet on top.

Terracotta Tiled Steps Before Renovation Maidenhead

Once removed it was clear the steps were in a sorry state and this may explain why they were covered up in the first place. Undeterred I ran a few cleaning tests and came up with a renovation plan and provided a quote for the work. Keen to have the steps restored my quote was accepted and we agreed a date for the work to start.

Terracotta Tiled Steps Before Renovation Maidenhead Terracotta Tiled Steps Before Renovation Maidenhead

Deep Cleaning a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor

Before starting I covered the paintwork to protect it during cleaning as we knew it was going to be a messy job. Next, we turned our attention to the steps and removed the remaining carpet clips, nails, and grippers.

Given the state of the Terracotta I knew I would need a very strong product so opted to apply Tile Doctor Remove and Go which is a coatings remover which I have used many times before to effectively remove old sealers, paint, and adhesives from tiles.

Remove and Go was applied neat to the steps and then covered with plastic sheeting so it could sweat the tile and not dry out too quickly. The steps were left like this for about thirty minutes so the Remove and Go could get to work breaking down the old carpet glue and adhesive. After this the plastic sheet was removed and the floor then scrubbed the tile and grout with a handheld rotary buffer fitted with a Black abrasive stripping pad and plenty of water.

The scrubbing action released the dirt and other contaminates from the tiles and the soil was extracted with a low-pressure extraction machine. The floor was inspected and I re-treated the areas that needed more work. The inspection also allowed me to see all the small holes that were left behind from the removal of nails and staples etc. I had anticipated this however and once the cleaning was completed, I moved on to filling the holes using Terracotta repair putty.

Terracotta being made from clay is known to be quite porous and I needed it to be dry before continuing with the next step of sealing so I left the tiles to dry out over the weekend.

Sealing Terracotta Tiled Steps

When I returned on the Monday I began by checking the moisture levels of the tiles by taking a few damp readings. Fortunately the weekend had been enough to get the tiles dry and I was able to proceed with the sealer application.

My customer wanted a soft sheen to the appearance of the tile so I applied Tile Doctor Seal and Go Extra. The Terracotta really soaked in the sealer so I applied a total of eight coats leaving roughly twenty minutes between each coat. Air movers were deployed around the room to help reduce the drying time.

Terracotta Tiled Steps After Renovation Maidenhead Terracotta Tiled Steps After Renovation Maidenhead

Once complete the dark and stained Terracotta steps looked fabulous and were completely transformed by the restoration. Before leaving I took time to discuss aftercare cleaning and as usual, I recommended they use Tile Doctor Neutral Floor Cleaner. This product has is pH neutral so will ensure the newly applied seals stay in place unlike many strong household cleaners you find in supermarkets that can strip the sealer from the tile.

Terracotta Tiled Steps After Renovation Maidenhead

 

Professional Renovation of Terracotta Tiled Steps in Berkshire

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Limestone Bathroom Tiles Deep Cleaned Sealed Windsor Berkshire

Mouldy Antalya Limestone Wall Tiles in Windsor Bathroom

I recently had a call out to an apartment in the town of Windsor on the river Thames, just west of London. The enquiry was to see if I could do anything with Antalya Limestone bathroom tiles that were ingrained with mould.

Mouldy Stained Antalya Limestone Bathroom Wall Tiles Before Cleaning Windsor

Antalya Limestone is a Beige/Cream stone that is quarried in Turkey, its notorious for being a soft stone that is hard to maintain and probably not the best choice for a bathroom. Reluctant to replace the bathroom tiling the landlord was looking for another option as he knew something had to be done before putting it back on the market to find a new tenant.

Mouldy Stained Antalya Limestone Bathroom Wall Tiles Before Cleaning Windsor Mouldy Stained Antalya Limestone Bathroom Wall Tiles Before Cleaning Windsor

The homeowner had rented the property out for several years and unfortunately the most recent tenant hadn’t looked after the property particularly well. One of the problems was that the tenant had forgotten to inform the landlord that both bathroom extraction fans hadn’t been working for some time.

The apartment was located in the basement of the apartment complex, the bathrooms had no windows so without an extraction fan to remove moisture bacterial growth thrived. Having surveyed the bathroom tile I provide a quote to completely refresh the bathroom tiling which included deep cleaning and the removal of the ingrained mould.

Cleaning Antalya Limestone Bathroom Tiles

Tile Doctor has a range of products that can be used to clean and remove ingrained soils, old sealers, grout haze and other unwanted contaminations. For bathroom tiles I use Tile Doctor Duo Clean which is designed to remove mould from tile and grout. Before starting work though I carefully removed the glass shower screens and other fittings.

To ensure the product could penetrate deep into the tiles I first had to open the pores of the stone, I did this using a soft 200 grit milling pad fitted to a handheld buffing machine. After saturating the affected areas in Tile Doctor Duo Clean and allowing it to dwell for well over an hour, we could see it starting to work. Though effective it was clear this was going to take some time to completely remove the mould, so I saturated the stone again with Tile Doctor Duo Clean and left it to work overnight. Thankfully the property was empty.

Returning the next morning the results were incredible, about 80% of the mould had been removed but I knew if we repeated the process, we could achieve an even better result. I continued with the same method as before and left it to work overnight again. Happy with results I could continue with the next stage which was closing the pours of the stone by using a set of finer burnishing pads.

The pads I use have a 6-inch diameter and fit a handheld buffer machine, they are applied to the Limestone tiles in sequence and applied with water for lubrication. The sequence runs from coarse 400 to very fine 3000 and you rinse with water to remove the soiling in between each pad.

Sealing an Antalya Limestone Tiled Bathroom Wall

The stone was then left to dry out before returning to seal. The sealant chosen was Tile Doctor Colour Grow which as its name suggests enhances the natural colours in the stone allowing its beauty to stand out. Two generous coats of sealer were applied allowing an hour between coats.

Mouldy Stained Antalya Limestone Bathroom Wall Tiles After Cleaning Windsor

With the tile and grout renovated all that was left to do was to re-fit the shower controls and shower glass after giving both a clean. The client was over the moon with the result, and his concerns over having to invest in a new shower room before letting the property out were gone.

Mouldy Stained Antalya Limestone Bathroom Wall Tiles After Cleaning Windsor Mouldy Stained Antalya Limestone Bathroom Wall Tiles After Cleaning Windsor

 

Professional Refresh of a Limestone Tiled Shower in Berkshire

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Semi-Riven Brazilian Slate Kitchen Floor Before After Cleaning Thatcham

Dirty Semi Riven Brazilian Slate Floor Renovated in Thatcham Berkshire

This customer in Thatcham, near Newbury in Berkshire had inherited a rare semi-riven Slate floor with their kitchen. However, years of dirt and contaminations had built up and left the Slate looking dull and the grout discoloured.

Semi-Riven Brazilian Slate Floor Before Renovation Thatcham

Slate is a very popular floor and wall tile due to its low porosity; there are many varieties and textures of slate available, it does need to be sealed though to keep the dirt from becoming ingrained in the stone. Unfortunately, the previous owners had not maintained the sealer and owning four dogs had probably used a strong acid cleaner on the floor which will have shortened its life. Inevitably time took its toll on the tiles and it was now overdue a deep clean and new sealer.

Semi-Riven Brazilian Slate Floor Before Renovation Thatcham

Cleaning a Semi-Riven Brazilian Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor

The first job was to apply a strong dilution of an alkaline detergent called Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which was applied and left to dwell for several minutes before agitating with a rotary floor buffer fitted with a scrubbing pad. A stiff brush was also run over the grout lines to get them clean.

I worked in sections and then used a hot water encapsulation system that is used a lot by carpet cleaners to remove the slurry and get the floor as clean as possible. After inspecting the floor, I could see a few stubborn areas than needed more work, so the process was repeated until I was satisfied the Slate tile and grout was as clean as it could be. The floor was then left to dry overnight

Sealing a Semi-Riven Brazilian Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor

The following morning, we returned, the floor looked nice and dry but I took several moisture readings with a damp meter just to be sure. All was in order, and I was able to progress onto the next step of applying a fresh sealer to the floor.

For this type of tile and conditions I chose to apply Tile Doctor Seal and Go which is a water-based sealer (no smell as it dries) that works really well on Slate. Multiple coats were required and each coat is left to dry before applying the next. The seal is very hard wearing, perfect for high traffic areas such as the kitchen and it leaves a lovely sheen without making the floor appear too shiny.

Semi-Riven Brazilian Slate Floor After Renovation Thatcham

The customer was very happy with the outcome and left the following feedback on our website:

“Extremely professional from point of contact till completion of the job, Dennis has done a magnificent job of my tiles. And I would highly recommend his services”

Before leaving made sure to leave a complimentary bottle of Tile Doctor Neutral Floor Cleaner to help maintain the floor going forward. This is a pH neutral product which makes maintenance of the floor easy and ensures that the newly applied sealant will stay in place and not be compromised. As mentioned before most people, including I suspect the previous owner, tend to use supermarket products which are far too harsh and break down the sealer taking them back to square one.

Semi-Riven Brazilian Slate Floor After Renovation Thatcham

 

Professional Restoration of a Brazilian Slate Tiled Kitchen in Berkshire

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Hotel Tesserae Stone Mosaic Tiled Floor Renovated in Taplow Maidenhead

Tesserae Stone Mosaic Floor Restored at Refurbished Hotel in Taplow

I was recently contracted to renovate a Tesserae Stone Mosaic floor as part of a hotel refurbishment project in Taplow near Maidenhead. Taplow house hotel has been undergoing a large refurbishment project and originally, they planned on laying new Marble floor throughout the entrance/reception area however when they lifted the carpet the discovered the original floor and they were keen to see if the old floor could be restored to some former glory.

Hotel Tesserae Stone Mosaic Tiled Floor Before Renovation Taplow

Taplow house was originally built in 1568, however the Manor House was involved in a devastating fire in 1660, destroying almost all the original building. The Georgian building that stands today was erected in 1751. Home to aristocracy, Taplow house was a private residence before turning into a hotel in 1958 and this is when we believe the floor was covered up with carpet.

Hotel Tesserae Stone Mosaic Tiled Floor Before Renovation Taplow

Removing Carpet Adhesive from a Tesserae Stone Mosaic Tiles in Taplow

The main issue raised was the floor was covered in old carpet glue and this would need to be removed before it could be deep cleaned and then protected with a sealer.

After reviewing the range of Tile Doctor cleaning products and problem solvers to determine which product would be the most effective at breaking down the residue. My first thought was to use Remove and Go which was developed as a coating’s remover and my go to product to remove old sealers, paint as well as adhesive contamination.

Hotel Tesserae Stone Mosaic Tiled Floor During Renovation Taplow

For maximum impact on the glue the Remove and Go was applied neat to the mosaic floor and then covered with plastic sheeting so it could sweat the tile and not dry prematurely. The floor was left to dwell for about 15 – 30 minutes, so it could get to work breaking down the old carpet glue and adhesive. After this the plastic sheet was removed and the floor then scrubbed with a rotary floor buffer fitted with a black stripping pad using plenty of water. This quickly broke up the adhesive from the tile allowing it to be removed from the tiles with a wet vacuum. It was a large area so as I was cleaning one section there was another section sweating under a plastic sheet.

Hotel Tesserae Stone Mosaic Tiled Floor During Renovation Taplow

Once the glue had been removed, I then treated the section to an acid rinse by cleaning the floor with a mild dilution of Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up which removes old grout smears and will neutralise any salts in the old floor that could result in efflorescence later. Being an acid, this product also neutralises the ph levels in the floor after the cleaning with Remove and Go which is an Alkaline product.

Once the floor was clean it needed time to dry out thoroughly before sealing, however being a busy construction site and the floor being the main walkway between rooms I agreed to do a quick ‘builders clean’ when I returned later.

Sealing Tesserae Stone Mosaic Tiles in Taplow

After my return I gave the floor a quick clean using a mild solution of Grout Clean-up scrubbed with a Nilon brush fitted to the rotary machine. Most of the contamination was plaster residues from ongoing work. After a light rinse and extraction with a wet vacuum the floor was left to dry off overnight ready for sealing the next day.

Hotel Tesserae Stone Mosaic Tiled Floor Before Renovation Taplow

To seal the tiles, I applied two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which as its name suggests is a colour enhancing sealer that works by impregnating the pores of the tile protecting it from within and enriching the colours in the process. This gave a lovely contrast in colour whilst providing a matt finish; another advantage of Colour Grow is it’s a fully breathable sealer which won’t trap moisture under the tile which is an important for these old floors which don’t have a damp membrane.

Hotel Tesserae Stone Mosaic Tiled Floor After Renovation Taplow

 

Professional Renovation of a Tesserae Stone Mosaic Tiled Floor in Berkshire

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Ceramic Kitchen Floor Before After Renovation in Sandhurst

Removing Grout Haze from Ceramic Tile and Grout in a Sandhurst Kitchen

I received an enquiry from a customer in Sandhurst regarding their Ceramic tiled kitchen floor that they were struggling to get “looking clean”. Ceramic tiles are glazed and usually very easy to keep clean so intrigued I arranged a time for me to pop over and assess the problem.

Upon arrival the customer explained to me they had recently moved from Lancaster to be closer to their family and had inherited the ceramic tiled floor with the property. They had tried various solutions, but nothing seemed to get them clean. The Ceramic tiles had a slight texture to them which improves grip and makes them a popular choice in kitchens where the floor can get wet. The trouble with rougher surfaces though is they can trap dirt and as it turns out the previous homeowner had three dogs which no doubt had been kept in the kitchen.

Ceramic Tiled Kitchen Floor Stained With Grout Haze Before Cleaning Sandhurst

After measuring and surveying the floor I ran some cleaning tests on the tiles to see which combination of product and cleaning method would have the most impact. During this I discovered the tiles had a thin layer of grout haze imbedded within the textured surface that had becoming imbedded with dirt, this would explain why they had struggled to get them clean. This must of happened when the floor was originally installed, the tiler didn’t polish off the grout thoroughly enough thereby leaving a thin layer of grout over the surface ruining their appearance. Happy with the demo a price was agreed, and the work was booked in.

Ceramic Tiled Kitchen Floor Stained With Grout Haze Before Cleaning Sandhurst

Removing Grout Haze from a Ceramic Tiled Kitchen Floor

Before starting I removed the kick boards from underneath the kitchen units and protected any exposed wooden areas with thin tape. Due to the previous cleaning tests, I knew exactly how to approach the floor and tackle the grout haze (aka grout smears).

Basically, to remove the thin layer of grout I applied a strong dilution of the aptly named Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up. It’s a mild acidic cleaner that breaks down the grout and allows it to be removed. The solution is applied to the floor and allowed five to ten minutes to dwell before being agitated using a black pad fitted to a buffing machine. The slurry was then rinsed off with water and vacuumed away using a wet vacuum. Some areas were worse than others so for heavy grout haze build up I used Tile Doctor Acid Gel which is a more powerful acidic cleaner that comes in gel form.

Applying a Light Grey Grout Colourant

Though everything cleaned up well the grout was still looking a little tired, the years of dirt had resulted in some deep staining which could not be removed and was letting down the overall appearance of the floor. To achieve a uniform finish throughout a light grey Tile Doctor Grout Colourant was carefully applied to each individual grout line, wiping away any excess that got onto the tiles. The colourant was left to dry for an hour before buffing the floor with a white pad. The colourant forms a permanent barrier over the grout sealing it in and making it much easier to clean.

Ceramic Tiled Kitchen Floor Stained With Grout Haze After Cleaning Sandhurst

One done the Ceramic tiles had never looked so good and the grout looked ever so fresh. As you can imagine my customer was very happy with the transformation achieved and left the following feedback:

“Dennis did an excellent job of cleaning our kitchen floor and restoring the grout to it its original colour. This really lifted the room. Dennis was courteous and professional and would use him again.”

Ceramic Tiled Kitchen Floor Stained With Grout Haze After Cleaning Sandhurst

Ceramic tiles are fairly robust and with the grout colourant providing a barrier over the grout the floor is set to stay looking good for some time to come. However, there are a lot of cleaners out there on the market, some of which are very strong and concerned they could have a negative impact on the grout colourant. As a result, I recommended they clean the floor with Tile Doctor Neutral Cleaner going forward, it’s sold as a concentrate, so a small amount goes a long way.

 

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Polishing Marble Floors Wokingham Berkshire

Marble Floor Repolished in Wokingham Show Home

I had a call out late last year to a property in the market town of Wokingham to survey a dull Marble floor which was installed throughout most of the ground floor. It turns out that the house was only built two years prior and had been the show home for a new development. The owner explained to me that to show off the potential of the new homes the developer had installed quality materials throughout, particularly the marble flooring, however the property had seen more than its fair share of foot traffic because of it.

Marble Floor Before Polishing Wokingham Marble Floor Before Polishing Wokingham

Two years of wear later and the owner was concerned with how dull the Marble floor was and the appearance of small circular stains which had appeared throughout. I explained that Marble which is made from calcium is easily etched by the use of acidic cleaning products and that most tile cleaners you purchase in supermarkets are really only for use on Ceramic or Vinyl floor tiles. I suspect any sealer used on the floor to protect the stone had also been worn away for the same reason resulting in the now dull appearance.

Marble Floor Before Polishing Wokingham Marble Floor Before Polishing Wokingham

After explaining the process, I would use for burnishing the Marble to deep clean and restore the shine I measured up and worked out a quotation. I received a message later that evening comforting they would like to go ahead, and a date was booked in.

Cleaning and Polishing a Marble Tiled Floor

I should mention that this job was carried out in compliance with the Covid-19 restrictions to ensure it was a safe working environment for both myself and the customer. This includes the wearing of full PPE equipment, increasing air circulation, and ensuring we kept our distance.

My first task was to protect the skirting and the fitted kitchen units from splashing by applying protective sheeting. Once this was done, I turned my attention to the grout which had become dark in places in accumulated dirt. To do this I used a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is a strong alkaline cleaner specifically designed to break down soils, grease and oils on Tile and Stone. The cleaner was sprayed onto the grout lines and left to soak in for a few minutes before being scrubbed in by hand. Some of the grout needed more attention than others and once done the soil was rinsed off the floor with water and extracted using a wet vacuum.

Now the grout was cleaned I moved onto polishing the Marble floor tiles. I did this using the Tile Doctor four stage diamond burnishing system. This consists of applying a sequence of four refinishing pads fitted to a weighed buffing machine. You start with a coarse 400-grit pad and working through to a fine 1500-grit pad, each time removing the stone slurry with a wet vacuum. This process removed the acidic etching and repolished the surface of the Marble to a nice shine. I worked in sections room by room and then left the floors to fully dry off overnight.

Sealing Marble Tiled Flooring

I returned the next day and using a damp meter took a few readings from the floor to check the moisture levels to ensure it was dry and ready to be sealed. Before sealing though I went over the floor with a very fine 3000-grit pad which is applied dry with a little water sprayed onto to the floor, this final pad further builds up the polish and achieve the appearance desired by the customer.

Marble Floor After Polishing Wokingham Marble Floor After Polishing Wokingham

Last step was to seal the floor with Tile Doctor Colour Grow, a colour enhancing seal designed to bring out the natural colours in the stone whilst adding protection from liquid and oil spills. Impregnating sealers like Colour Grow work by occupying the tiny pores in the stone thus preventing contaminates from becoming ingrained in them.

Marble Floor After Polishing Wokingham Marble Floor After Polishing Wokingham

The customer could not believe with how well the floor had come up and were pleased they finally had the floor they had been promised prior to moving in. For aftercare I left them with a complimentary bottle of Tile Doctor Neutral Cleaner which is designed for the regular cleaning of tiled floors.

 

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Travertine Floor Red Wine Stain Removal Swallowfield Reading

Red Wine Stains Removed from Travertine Floor in Swallowfield

Earlier this year I was contacted by a homeowner from the village of Swallowfield near Reading about the removal of Red Wine staining from their Travertine tiled floor. Normally these requests are related to a few slashes of wine following a party however in this case the problem was much bigger.

Travertine Floor Before Red Wine Stain Removal Swallowfield Reading

It turns out that their cottage was undergoing some renovations and had a variety of different trades working on various things throughout. After returning to the property following a weekend away it became apparent that an expensive wine rack had fallen over, and two bottles of red wine had been smashed in the process. Consequently, a litre and a half of red wine had spilt onto the Travertine tile and grout and rather than mopping up the spill the contractors threw over some kitchen roll and then left for the weekend.

If you have a Travertine floor you will appreciate that its best to clean up a mess like immediately, leaving it any longer increases the chance the stain will breach the sealer and stain the stone and grout. In this case it had been left far too long and the red wine had penetrated the tile darkening its appearance, understandably my Customer was not happy.

Travertine Floor Before Red Wine Stain Removal Swallowfield Reading Travertine Floor Before Red Wine Stain Removal Swallowfield Reading

One of the advantages of being part of a group like Tile Doctor is they have developed numerous products and techniques for dealing with all types of situations related to the cleaning of stone, tile, and grout. Whilst the most popular work we do relates to the cleaning and sealing of floors sometimes we get asked to resolve more unusual issues such as this. Long story short I was able to arrange a visit to the property where I completed a successful cleaning demonstration, happy with the result from the demo the work was booked in.

Removing Red Wine Staining from Travertine

The first task was to clean the tiles to remove any remaining residue wine, I did this using Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner rinsing with plenty of water and extracting the soil with a wet vacuum. Though this did improve the stain slightly it was obvious the wine had penetrated deep into the stone. At this time, the customer was quite concerned that it wasn’t going to budge however I reassured him this was only the first stage of the process and trick up my sleeve.

I mentioned earlier Tile Doctor have developed numerous products and techniques and this includes Tile Doctor Reduxa which is a specialised stain remover that’s sole purpose is to remove acidic stains from stone.

Travertine Floor During Red Wine Stain Removal Swallowfield Reading Travertine Floor During Red Wine Stain Removal Swallowfield Reading

Working in small sections Reduxa is sprayed onto the stain tile, left to soak in and the dried out using a heat gun. Each time the treated area is dried in this manner the heat causes the product to evaporate taking the stain with it. It sounds simple but the process needed to be repeated six to eight times until the stain was invisible to the eye.

Following the removal of the stain I needed to restore the finish of the stone in the affected area by applying a series of Burnishing Pads from 400 to 3000 grit. These pads remove old sealers and then re-build the finish on the Travertine. It’s necessary to lubricate with water and then rinse the floor and extract afterwards as the coarser grit pads do generates some soil.

Sealing a Travertine Tiled Floor

I returned the next day to reseal the stone however the floor needs to be dry before applying the sealer, so I checked the moisture levels first with a damp meter. Happily, the floor was dry, so I was able to move straight on to sealing by applying two good coats of Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal.

Travertine Floor After Red Wine Stain Removal Swallowfield Reading Travertine Floor After Red Wine Stain Removal Swallowfield Reading

Ultra-Seal is a no-sheen, natural-look penetrating sealer that provides maximum stain protection without darkening or changing the appearance of the stone. It’s also an excellent grout sealer.

Travertine Floor After Red Wine Stain Removal Swallowfield Reading

By the time I had finished the floor looked much fresher and any sign of the wine stain was now long gone, my customer was delighted and much relieved.

 

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Terracotta Tiled Floor Before After Renovation Crowthorne

Twenty Year Old Terracotta Floor Renovated in Crowthorne

I was asked to visit a property in Crowthorne near Sandhurst to take a look at a Terracotta tiled floor that was installed twenty years prior and had now become dull and dirty. The client had recently had the house redecorated and attempted to clean the terracotta tiles themselves, however they quickly discover the process was difficult and rather time consuming and thus got in touch with Tile Doctor.

Terracotta Tiled Floor Before Cleaning Crowthorne
As part of my visit I carried out a cleaning test on a small patch of Terracotta flooring which they could clearly see made a huge improvement. It was also an opportunity for me to see which products would work best on the tiles which is useful as it means I can create a more accurate quote for renovating the floor. This is specially useful when quoting for Terracotta floors as many are protected with wax coatings which can be a struggle to remove.

Terracotta Tiled Floor Before Cleaning Crowthorne
They were more than happy to go ahead with my quote, and a date was arranged to carry out the work. This was just before the COVID-19 epidemic broke out and I manged to get the work done before the lockdown started. Its worth knowing that we have now changed our working practices since then including risk assessments, new PPE and social distancing measures.

Deep Cleaning a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor

To clean the floor and remove old coatings such as sealers etc a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go was sprayed onto the tiles and allowed to dwell for ten minutes. The grout lines were then given a good manual scrub with a stiff grout brush before turning my attention to the Terracotta tiles which were scrubbed mechanically. For this we use a black pad fitted to a rotary buffing machine adding more water as needed to help lubricate the process.

Terracotta Tiled Floor During Cleaning Crowthorne
The scrubbing released the dirt from the tiles and the soil was extracted with a low-pressure extraction machine. The client was amazed how much dirt was coming out of the floor. Some of the grout lines and textured inserts needed double treatment due to heavy build-up of sealer. I continued this process until the floor was completely stripped back and clean.

Sealing a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor

Stripped back terracotta is very porous so I allowed the floor to dry out over the weekend to make sure it would be bone dry before sealing. Returning on the Monday I conducted a moisture test with a damp meter to check the floor was dry before starting to apply the sealer. Tile Doctor Seal and Go was used to seal the terracotta, a total of eight coats was applied leaving roughly twenty minutes between coats. Having air movers placed around the room helped with the drying time. Seal and Go is a water-based sealer so it doesn’t leave a smell as it dries, it works very well on Terracotta leaving a subtle sheen to the tile which puts new life in the floor.

Terracotta Tiled Floor After Cleaning Crowthorne
The client was delighted with their new floor and left a lovely testimonial which I have copied below:

“Dennis was punctual, professional and proficient. He was a pleasure to have around. We are delighted with the result of his work and we would have no hesitation in recommending him to friends and family “
Before leaving we discussed recommendations to keep the floor clean and what products to use. To this end a complimentary bottle of Tile Doctor Neutral Floor Cleaner was left for their use. This as its name implies is pH neutral so will ensure the newly applied seals stay in place unlike many acidic household cleaners that can strip the sealer from the floor. It is mild enough to use daily and has a nice fresh smell, so should ensure the integrity of the newly restored floor for some time to come.

Terracotta Tiled Floor After Cleaning Crowthorne
 

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Indian Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor Before and After Renovation Bradfield Reading

Stunning Indian Slate Floor Renovated in Bradfield Kitchen

Details below of a very heavily soiled Indian Slate floor at a property in the small village of Bradfield near Reading. The floor had been cleaned a couple of years before, but the client said they were never completely satisfied with the result and suspected the old seal hadn’t been removed completely before the new one was applied.

Multi Coloured Indian Slate Kitchen Floor Before Renovation Bradfield Multi Coloured Indian Slate Kitchen Floor Before Renovation Bradfield

I was quite sure I could improve the appearance significantly, so I arranged to call in and survey the floor. Whilst there I carried out a test clean on a small part of the floor which came up well. I provided a quote to complete the work, and they were happy with the price, so the work was booked in.

Multi Coloured Indian Slate Kitchen Floor Before Renovation Bradfield

Cleaning an Indian Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor

I started by applying a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which was left on the Slate for ten minutes before being scrubbed in with a rotary machine fitted with a black scrubbing pad. I used a strong dilution in order to strip the old sealer off the stone and during this part of the renovation I was able to confirm that the recent seal had been placed on top of the old discoloured seal. Tile Doctor Pro-Clean did a fantastic job on the first layer but I needed to use something stronger to remove the thicker layers of seal underneath.

I applied Tile Doctor Nanotech HBU Remover on a small area before covering with plastic sheeting, this allowed the product to slowly break away at the old seal. Some areas had to be treated twice. It was difficult work so I can see why the other company had given up, but I was determined to achieve a uniform look throughout the floor.

Once the old sealer was broken down, I added water and turned my attention to scrubbing the tiles and grout with a rotary machine this time fitted with a nylon brush. I then extracted the wet slurry with a truck mounted extraction system.

I slowly worked my way through the kitchen/diner and utility room until the whole area was stripped back and looked uniform. The floor looked completely different. The floor was left overnight to dry out before we could tackle the sealing process.

Sealing an Indian Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor

After reviewing pictures of previous slate renovations, I had completed my client selected Tile Doctor Seal and Go as the product to seal their floor. They were keen to use something that would allow the natural colours of the stone to shine through. Seal and Go works really well on Slate floors leaving the stone with a subtle satin finish as well as proving durable protection from staining.

I applied six coats of sealer using a combination of small rollers and an applicator pad allowing 30 minutes to dry between each coat. The roller was to ensure I got the seal within all the groves that semi riven slate has and smoothing it out with a paint application pad.

Multi Coloured Indian Slate Kitchen Floor after Renovation Bradfield Multi Coloured Indian Slate Kitchen Floor after Renovation Bradfield

Once completed the floor looked stunning and my customer was very pleased to say the least. They couldn’t believe how bright and colourful the slate had become so much so he left the following feedback

“Dennis did a wonderful job with our kitchen & utility room which is Indian Slate I might add it hadn’t been attended to for a number of years, so it was very challenging for Dennis and the result was outstanding we now have a new floor. What a great guy Dennis his client care was second to none and the dog liked him”

Multi Coloured Indian Slate Kitchen Floor after Renovation Bradfield

 

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Jerusalem Limestone Tiled Kitchen Floor Before After Renovation Twyford

Pitted Jerusalem Limestone Floor Renovated in Twyford

The owner of this recently purchased property in the Berkshire village of Twyford had inherited a Jerusalem limestone floor that had been installed throughout the ground floor including the Kitchen. The previous owner hadn’t maintained the stone floor very well and as a result it had become dull, patchy and the new owner was finding it impossible to keep clean. The floor was becoming a problem for them and they had been considering ripping it all up and getting it replaced. However due to the size of the floor and potential cost of replacing it they searched for other solutions and contacted Tile Doctor to see if it could be renovated.

Jerusalem Limestone Kitchen Floor Before Polishing in Twyford

I scheduled an appointment with the owners to survey the floor and it wasn’t long before I realised that we could achieve a great result by polishing the Limestone using a set of diamond burnishing pads. To prove how well I thought the floor would clean up I offered to complete a demo within the small utility room. This was arranged and completed a week later, as I expected once I had finished the demo the floor looked fantastic, more importantly the client was ecstatic with the results and couldn’t wait to book us in to complete the rest of the house.

Jerusalem Limestone Floor Before Polishing in Twyford

It was a large floor so I estimated the process would take 4-5 days to complete and would need to work in sections starting with the kitchen then progressing into the study and cloakroom, dining room and finishing off with the entrance hall. Thankfully I had an empty house to work in which helped as I could start sealing the area I worked on the prior day.

Cleaning a Jerusalem Limestone Tiled Floor

The limestone had become quite pitted in the high traffic area, these pits had filled up with soil and become unsightly. My first task was to deep clean the dirt filled pits and grout, to do this I used a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro Clean and a stiff nylon brush making sure I could get into the pits releasing the dirt, then vacuuming up all the chemical slurry as I went along.

The next task was to fill these pits I used a two-part epoxy filler that matched the colour of the stone. Once the filler had dried, I worked through the hand burnishing blocks from 100 grit to 400 and I smoothed out the areas that had been filled.

Now the holes/pits had been filled I continued with the restoration of the floor by moving onto the burnishing process using diamond encrusted floor burnishing pads. This involves honing the Limestone with a set of burnishing pads starting at 400-grit. The pads are applied to the floor with a heavy floor buffing machine using water to lubricate the process. The pad is run over each tile around three times and the fine slurry this process generates is rinsed off afterwards with water and then extracted with a wet vacuum. You then move onto the 800-grit and then 1500-grit slowly building back the appearance of the stone.

Sealing a Jerusalem Limestone Tiled Floor

As I had worked in sections/rooms at a time I was able to allow a full day drying time before sealing. Happy with the depth of colour from the pad system I opted to seal the floor with two coats of Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal. I had a range of sealers to choose from an in this case I felt Ultra-Seal would be most suited as it doesn’t change the natural appearance of the Limestone yet will provide years of protection and make it much easier to keep clean.

Jerusalem Limestone Floor After Polishing in Twyford

The owners were over the moon with how the limestone now looked and relieved that their problem floor had been restored. For aftercare cleaning I recommended Tile Doctor Stone Soap which is designed for maintaining the patina on polished stone floors.

Jerusalem Limestone Kitchen Floor After Polishing in Twyford

 

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Black Limestone Patio Before After Renovation Highclere

Black Limestone Patio Ruined with Brick Acid in Highclere Village

Black Limestone has become very popular in recent years, unfortunately however we find installers ruin its appearance with the use of unsuitable cleaning products. This was the case with this relatively new property in Highclere Village near Newbury in Berkshire.

Black Limestone had been installed throughout the exterior by a landscaping company, but the owner wasn’t satisfied with they had left the stone. It turns out they used brick acid to wash away the remaining residue that had been left from a messy installation. Limestone is acid sensitive, and this resulted in the stone being stripped of its natural oils that give it the rich black colour. The stone now looked very grey, bland and was extremely porous. It certainly wasn’t how the client expected the patio to look.

Black Limestone Paved Steps Before Renovation Highclere Village

I visited the house and conducted a test in a small inconspicuous area. Luckily the Limestone hadn’t been sealed which was fortunate as stripping back exterior stone sealers can be a very time-consuming process. After the demo was completed the client was very satisfied and a provisional date was booked in. The client was eager to have the Black Limestone patio looking lovely ready for the summer weather, but we would need a dry day to be able to complete the work.

Black Limestone Paving Before Renovation Highclere Village

Highclere is a village situated in the North Wessex Downs, an area of natural outstanding beauty. It is also home to Highclere Castle, which has been used in many films and TV series, including Downton Abbey.

Renovating Black Limestone Patio Tiles

The first job was to remove all the surface dirt that had built up on the surface of the stone since it had been laid. I did this using a cleaning and extraction system that’s run from my vehicle. It’s a high-pressure cleaner with long hoses that can clean and extract dirt keeping things as mess free as possible. Once the area was cleaned the stone was left to bake and dry out in the hot sun.

Later that afternoon I conducted several moisture tests with a damp meter. The readings were good so I was happy the stone was dry, and I could move onto the next stage of re-oiling the stone. I used Tile Doctor Stone Oil for this purpose, it’s a conditioning product that penetrates the stone and revives the colour. Two coats were applied throughout and any excess oil that hadn’t penetrated the stone was buffed off. The oil was then left to cure overnight.

Sealing a Black Limestone Patio

I returned the next day and was very pleased how the Limestone looked, the rich colour was now showing. The oil had cured, and the stone was ready to seal. Two coats of Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal were applied to seal the stone. Rated for external use Ultra-Seal works by occupying the pores in the stone thereby preventing dirt from become ingrained there. This product doesn’t change the appearance of the stone, resulting in a completely natural look.

Black Limestone Paving After Renovation Highclere Village

My client was over the moon with how her Black Limestone now looked and left the following feedback: “Dennis oiled and sealed our newly laid black limestone paving. He transformed it from grey and stained looking into a beautiful black even colour. He takes great pride in his work and I would recommend him highly.”

Black Limestone Paved Steps After Renovation Highclere Village

 

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Red Marble Patio Before After Renovation Newbury

Restoring a Large Red Marble Patio at a Newbury Villa

I recently had a call out to an unusual property in Newbury to renovate a large Red Marble Patio. The design of the house was clearly inspired by the Mediterranean and resembled a Spanish Villa. The UK winter had not been very kind to the large Red Marble patio and now looked faded and lifeless.

Marble Tiled Patio Before Renovation Newbury

I inspected the patio and could see that it had been previously sealed with a topical product that had deteriorated in parts over time leaving the stone looking patchy and dull. After having the same stone installed throughout the interior of the property she wanted to know if the exterior stone could be renovated to match.

To get a better idea of what it would take to complete the work and produce an accurate quote I ran some cleaning tests on a spare tile. The demonstration went very well, and it gave the client a good idea of the outcome they could expect. Happy with the potential result and my quote I was booked to return and complete the renovation.

Marble Tiled Patio Before Renovation Newbury

Cleaning a Red Marble Tiled Patio in Newbury

This was a large Patio to clean so I worked in sections and starting with brushing and vacuuming to remove all the surface dirt and debris that could impact the stone burnishing process. Then using water for lubrication, I started refinishing the Marble with a very coarse 100-grit diamond pad fitted to a weighted rotary machine. This pad cut through the layers of remaining topical sealant that had built up on the surface of the stone. After a rinse with more water I followed this with a less coarse 200-grit pad. I found that in some areas, such as along the edges of the tile, a thick build-up of old sealer needed to be weakened first using Tile Doctor Remove and Go before the pads could cut through.

Marble Tiled Patio During Renovation Newbury

Once the old seal had been removed, I could focus on burnishing the stone which is a polishing process that hones the stone and brings back its polished appearance. I did this using a set of diamond burnishing pads starting with a 400-grit pad and working my way through the sequence of pads with 800 and 1500-grit. The pads are applied using a rotary floor buffer and again lubricated with water, the stone is rinsed with water afterwards and the slurry picked up with a wet vacuum. The last pad to be applied is an extra fine 3000-grit pad which leaves the stone with a good sheen, the pad is applied dry with only a little water sprayed onto the tile.

Marble Tiled Patio Before Renovation Newbury

Sealing a Red Marble Tiled Patio

I returned the following morning to check the stone had thoroughly dried and could be sealed. Fortunately, the warm weather had persisted, and I was able to finish the stone with three coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow. This sealer is known for bringing out the natural colours in stone and it didn’t disappoint making the deep red colours in the Marble really stand out against the white veins. Colour grow is also an impregnating sealer that seeps into the pores of the stone protecting it from within and will fare much better protecting the stone in the UK elements.

Marble Tiled Patio After Renovation Newbury

This burnishing and sealing process was repeated in the numerous areas that made up the entire patio except for the stairs which had to be done using the same method but with a handheld polisher as the rotary machine was simply too large. Being external the work was weather dependant and so had to be done in stages as it rained between visits and the stone had to be left to dry out again before continuing. This slowed up the process, but we got there once the weather had improved.

Marble Tiled Patio Before Renovation Newbury Marble Tiled Patio During Renovation Newbury

Overall the client was very pleased with the work and was happy that both the newly installed interior and the rejuvenated old stone looked uniform.

For aftercare I recommended the use the Tile Doctor Stone Soap Cleaner which will clean and help maintain the patina on the stone, also it won’t prematurely erode the sealer like more aggressive cleaning products you find in supermarkets.

Marble Tiled Patio After Renovation Newbury

 

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Grout Colouring Porcelain Tiles in Binfield

Renovating Porcelain Tile and Grout in a Binfield Kitchen

A customer of mine was so impressed the transformation I had made to her marble shower tiles that she asked me to come back and work some magic on the Porcelain tiled floor in her Kitchen. The property was in Binfield which is situated close to Reading, between Bracknell and Wokingham. I had other jobs booked in at the time, so after working out a quote which included lightening the colour of the grout, I scheduled a date for a return visit.

Porcelain Tiled Kitchen Floor Before Renovation Binfield

The Porcelain tile itself wasn’t too old, roughly 5 years but had been sealed with a product that had failed to bond with the tile leaving it stained and dark. There are three types of Porcelain tile commonly available and only Micro-Porous Porcelain will take a sealer. So, suspect either these tiles were of the non-porous type or that the previous sealer wasn’t an impregnator which is typically thinner so it can soak into the pores.

Porcelain Tiled Kitchen Floor Before Renovation Binfield

Cleaning a Porcelain Tiled Kitchen Floor

Before starting I removed the kick boards from underneath the kitchen units. Then to strip off the old sealer and deep clean the tile and grout I applied a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean. This was allowed this to soak into the floor for approximately ten minutes before scrubbing the tile and grout lines with a stiff grout brush and a black abrasive scrubbing pad fitted to a rotary machine. The resulting slurry was rinsed off the floor using more water and a wet extraction machine. Once the whole area was cleaned, I left the floor to dry off.

Porcelain Tiled Kitchen Floor During Renovation Binfield

Although the grout was now clean it was still dark in appearance which made the room look smaller. I was ready for this however as part of the quote I had included colouring the grout with a white colourant which would dramatically affect the appearance of the floor and seal the grout to protecting it from future staining.

Applying White Grout Colourant

Returning from lunch the grout had dried and I was able to start the grout colouring process. I did this using a tube of White Tile Doctor Grout Colourant applied using a small brush, carefully wiping away any excess that had smeared onto the tile using a damp shammy. Once the product had dried, I gave the floor a buff with a white pad to remove any remaining residue.

The customer was delighted with the results and left positive feedback
“Yet again Dennis has made my tiles look new. In fact, they look even better than when they were first laid in the kitchen. Very impressed with the work and professionalism and would highly recommend his services.”

Porcelain Tiled Kitchen Floor After Renovation Binfield

Porcelain tiles are fairly robust and with the grout colourant providing a barrier over the grout the floor is set to stay looking good for some time to come. However there are a lot of cleaners out there on the market, some of which are very strong so for aftercare I recommended they use of Tile Doctor Neutral Cleaner. It a concentrated product so a small amount goes a long way.

Porcelain Tiled Kitchen Floor After Renovation Binfield

 

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Dirty Terracotta Tiled Floor Before After Cleaning Bucklebury Berkshire

Dirty Wax Sealed Quarry and Terracotta Floor Renovated in Bucklebury

I was recently asked to survey the floors at a substantial property in Bucklebury which used to be a school. At some point in the 1970’s there was a major makeover and the property was converted into two houses. During the conversion a combination of Terracotta and Quarry tiles were installed throughout the ground floor and then sealed with what we believed was a wax-based product. Although Wax was a traditional sealant for Terracotta there are better modern sealers available now that are designed for the job and so we don’t recommend it. In this case the wax had deteriorated over the years and left the tiles looking tired and dirty.

Quarry Tiled Kitchen Floor Bucklebury Before Cleaning Terracotta Tiled Floor Bucklebury Before Cleaning

After reviewing the flooring, I demonstrated cleaning the tile and grout which went well and impressed the customer who after living with the floor looking dirty for some time was eager for the job to be completed. I gave the customer a price for renovating the whole floor which was agreed, and we set a date for the work to commence.

Quarry Tiled Kitchen Floor Bucklebury Before Cleaning

Cleaning Dirty Quarry and Terracotta Tiles

My first job was to strip off what remained of the wax sealer using Tile Doctor Remove and Go and a new Tile Doctor product called Wax Away which has been specifically designed for dealing with wax. Both products had very similar effects and together striped off the old coating with little issue. Of the two products my preference to use Wax Away as it foamed less when wet extracting with a spinner tool.

Quarry Tiled Kitchen Floor Bucklebury During Cleaning

After applying the Wax Away, I left it to dwell for fifteen minutes re-applying more product when it began to dry out. Leaving it to dwell allows it to penetrate the wax and weaken it so it’s easier to remove. I then used a 17-inch black scrubbing pad fitted to a rotary floor machine to scrub the solution into the tiles. Finally, I used a spinner tool fitted to a hot water pressure extraction system that is housed in my van to rinsed away and extract the resulting slurry.

Quarry Tiled Kitchen Floor Bucklebury During Cleaning

After the floor was clean, I set to work on the grout lines that still had traces of embedded wax sealer. The floor pads can struggle to reach into the recesses of the grout, so the solution is to use a stiff grout brush and scrub them clean by hand assisted with Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is out go to grout cleaning product.

As a last step in the cleaning process I gave the floor and Acid Wash using Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up. I did this to further clean the floor and to neutralise Its pH after using so many high alkaline cleaning products.

Quarry Tiled Kitchen Floor Bucklebury After Cleaning Terracotta Tiled Floor Bucklebury During Cleaning

Sealing Quarry and Terracotta Tiles

I returned at the end of the week and checked that the moisture levels of the floor, we always do this to ensure the floor is dry before sealing and would not recommend sealing a damp floor as the results can be patchy. The readings were spot on, so I was able to get a started.

Quarry Tiled Kitchen Floor Bucklebury After Sealing

The customer wanted to keep the rich terracotta colours in the tile and wanted a sheen, so I selected Tile Doctor Seal and Go as the sealer. To fully seal the tiles, I used six coats on the smaller Quarry tiles and nine coats on the large Mexican Terracotta tiles. Seal and Go is a modern water-based acrylic sealer that provides both a stain resistant seal and a durable low-sheen finish, also being water based it doesn’t give off a smell as it dries.

Terracotta Tiled Floor Bucklebury After Sealing

The result was a huge improvement, needless to say my customer was very pleased and left the following feedback.

”I had a large quarry/terracotta tiled floor in kitchen/conservatory badly in need of cleaning. Dennis did an incredible job. He was very efficient and the result is outstanding, very happy to recommend”

 

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Quarry Tiled Conservatory Before After Renovation Basildon

Reclaimed Painted Quarry Tile Floor Basildon

We suspect that the Old Quarry tiles laid in the conservatory of this Victorian house in Basildon, had been reclaimed from other areas of the property as the age of the tile didn’t match the time the conservatory was installed. Not only were the quarry tiles old but they had been covered in layers of red tile paint by previous home owners. This had now begun to crack and chip and look unpleasant, so the customer wanted the old paint removed and the tiles sealed for a more natural look.

Reclaimed Painted Quarry Tile Basildon Before Restoration

I headed over to Basildon to take a look at the Quarry Tiled Floor; Basildon in Berkshire is not to be confused with the large town of Basildon in Essex, this Basildon is approximately 7 miles west of reading and is made up of the two small villages of Upper and Lower Basildon. Having taken a look at the tiles and run some tests I was confident that the floor could be restored successfully I gave them a quote for the work, which was accepted, and a date agreed for me to return and get the work done.

Reclaimed Painted Quarry Tile Basildon Before Restoration

Removing Tile Paint From a Quarry Tiled Conservatory Floor

The first job was to tackle the layers of tile paint. Fortunately for me the paint had weakened over time and was fairly flaky in places which meant I could carefully peel away the dry paint with a blade attached to a scraper. This was a slow process but reduced the amount of mess that would have been produced if I was to use chemicals from the start.

Reclaimed Painted Quarry Tile Basildon During Restoration

Once I had removed all I could by hand the remaining paint that had fallen into the grooves and grout joints had to be removed using a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go which is a coatings remover designed for use on tile, stone and grout. The process worked well but I had issues with the product drying out due to the sheer heat in the conservatory (must have been 30 degrees and above!). The Tile Doctor Remove and Go works best when it is left to dwell on the tiles for some time. To overcome this obstacle, I applied Tile Doctor Nanotech HBU Remover and covered it over with plastic sheeting to stop it drying out too quickly.

Reclaimed Painted Quarry Tile Basildon During Restoration

The HBU Remover which stands for Heavy Build Up, did the trick and after a couple of hours the tiles where ready to be cleaned using a black scrubbing pad fitted to a rotary machine and then rinsed off. The soiled water was then removed using a wet vacuum and after a further rinse was left to dry off overnight. Thankfully the high temperatures worked in our favour and helped dry the floor out and when I returned the next day it was ready to seal.

Sealing a Reclaimed Painted Quarry Tiled Conservatory Floor

The customer had decided on a matt finish, so I applied three coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is a impregnating sealer that leaves the desired finish and has the advantage of intensifying the natural colour of the quarry tiles.

Reclaimed Painted Quarry Tile Basildon After Restoration

Overall the customer was very happy with the outcome and left the following feedback:

“Very happy with the end product, the tiles came up very clean once the paint was removed. Dennis was very professional and kept the working area clean and tidy. He kept us informed throughout the work. Will certainly use again and recommend to friends”

Reclaimed Painted Quarry Tile Basildon After Restoration

 

Professional Restoration of a Painted Quarry Tiled Conservatory in Berkshire

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Yellow and Black Quarry Tiles before and after Cleaning Reading

Soiled Yellow and Black Victorian Quarry Tile Restoration

These Yellow and Black Quarry tiles are though to be original feature of this Victorian house in Reading and the owner was keen to get them renovated. The tiles were in basement of the house and over the years the tiles had suffered from water damage due to various small floods, they were now heavily soiled and the most challenging task would be to remove a large build up of mortar and cement.

Yellow and Black Quarry Tiles Before Cleaning Reading Yellow and Black Quarry Tiles Before Cleaning Reading

I ran a test clean in a corner of the smallest room to demonstrate the cleaning process and although confident I could significantly improve the appearance of the Quarry tiles. I had to explain to my customer that due to the years of neglect the outcome would not be perfect, however the test clean went well and the customer was happy with the outcome so booked me in to do the work.

Yellow and Black Quarry Tiles Before Cleaning Reading

Soiled Quarry Tile Cleaning

The first issue to tackle was to remove the dirt and ingrain soil which I did by scrubbing in a strong mix of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is a strong tile and grout cleaner. The solution was left to soak in before ten minutes before being agitated with a black scrubbing pad fitted to a rotary machine. I then rinsed off the now soiled cleaning solution off using a hot water truck mounted extraction system.

Yellow and Black Quarry Tiles During Cleaning Reading
Now the ingrained dirt was taken care of, the most difficult task was to remove the cement/mortar built up that was covering a high percentage of the tiles. I did this using a combination of Tile Doctor products including Grout Clean-Up, Acid Gel and 50,100 grit diamond pads. I started with Grout Clean-up but found that Acid Gel worked better on this occasion. To deal with stubborn areas I left the Acid Gel to dwell overnight covered with plastic sheeting so it wouldn’t dry out.

The Acid Gel worked wonders and I was able to complete the cleaning process when I came back the next day giving the floor another rinse with the hot water extraction system. With the quarry tiles now clear I able to do a final spot check and used hand held burnishing blocks and very coarse 50 grit milling pad followed by a 100 grit diamond pad and another rinse to finish it off.

Quarry Tile Sealing

After leaving the floor to dry out over the weekend it was ready to be sealed. We had agreed on giving the Quarry Tiles a matt finish so I used three coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is a fully breathable colour enhancing sealer that works well on old clay tiles.

Yellow and Black Quarry Tiles After Cleaning Reading Yellow and Black Quarry Tiles After Cleaning Reading

I’m happy to say the floor turned out very well considering its condition, certainly my customer was very happy with the outcome and left the following feed back on the Tile Doctor Feedback system.

“Fantastic job – completely revived our Victorian cellar tiles, the before and after photos accurately show the difference the work has made! Also impressed by Dennis’s communication and responsiveness to our needs with the work”.

Yellow and Black Quarry Tiles After Cleaning Reading
 

Professional Restoration of old Victorian Quarry Tiles in Berkshire

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Deep Cleaning and Sealing a Beautiful Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor in Spencer’s Wood

Slate tiles do look incredible but like any natural stone you really need to maintain the sealer if you want them to stay that way. Unfortunately it’s usually the case that the sealer wears off overtime especially in the high foot traffic areas such as Kitchens and within a few years the tiles become dull with ingrained dirt.

This process happens so gradually it goes un-noticed until the floor becomes difficult to keep clean and a decision is made to have it sorted out. This was certainly the case with this Semi Riven Multicoloured Slate tiled kitchen floor at a house in the Berkshire village of Spencer’s Wood. The floor had been installed about fifteen years prior and over the years the Slate had become soiled to the point where domestic cleaners weren’t having any effect.

Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor Before Cleaning Spencers Wood Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor Before Cleaning Spencers Wood

Cleaning Dirty Slate Kitchen Tiles

To begin the restoration I soaked the tiles in a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go and left it to dwell for about twenty minutes re-applying extra solution when it had dried. Remove and Go is our go to product for removing old coatings such as in this case sealers, although much of the old sealer had worn off it was still present in the less busy areas of the floor and to get an even final result I needed to ensure all of it was removed. Once the old sealer had started to weaken I agitated the product using a black pad fitted to a rotary buffing machine. The rotary pad struggles to reach into the recesses of the grout lines so I also made sure to scrub the solution into the grout with a grout brush.

Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor During Cleaning Spencers Wood Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor During Cleaning Spencers Wood

I suspect there were multiple layers of sealer on this floor that had been applied over the years as some areas were proving particularly stubborn. Something stronger was going to be needed particularly in the grout lines. So I applied Tile Doctor HBU remover; HBU stands for Heavy Build-Up and allowed this to dwell for thirty minutes while I cleaned other areas.

Once I was satisfied that the Slate and the Grout was clean and clear of old sealers I gave the whole floor a rinse with water using a wet extraction machine. One the soiled cleaning solutions were removed you could really see the difference that the combination of cleaning products had made.

Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor During Cleaning Spencers Wood

The final step in the cleaning process was to give the floor an Acid Wash using a mild solution of Grout Clean-up which removes any surface grout (aka grout smears) and other mineral deposits from the slate to ensure they true beauty of the stone will be visible. Once this was removed the whole floor was rinsed with water to remove any trace of product and then dried as much as possible. After a final inspection the floor was left overnight to dry off fully.

Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor During Cleaning Spencers Wood

Sealing Slate Kitchen Tiles

Returning to the property the next day, I ran some quick damp tests to check for any excess moisture that might have prevented me from sealing the floor. We will always do this as excess moisture can affect the sealer curing.

Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor During Sealing Spencers Wood

The customer was very happy with the clean and the floor was dry so we discussed sealer options to find out their preference for Matt or Satin finish. With the decision made to go with a Satin finish I began the application of the Tile Doctor Seal and Go which enhances the look of the stone with an aesthetically pleasing low-sheen finish, as well as providing on-going protection against ingrained dirt and staining.

Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor After Sealing Spencers Wood Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor After Sealing Spencers Wood

A total of five coats of Seal and Go were needed to seal the Slate tiles and as you can see from the photos the sealer really put the life back into the floor.
 
 

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Exterior Slate before and after Renovation Thatcham

Exterior Slate Patio Paving Tile Renovation in Thatcham

Details below of a job I completed earlier in the summer in the Berkshire town of Thatcham which is just east of Newbury. The customer had a lovely Slate Patio installed the year before which had not been sealed by the builder and it had since become dull, light grey and unpleasing to the eye. Additionally there was a haze on tiles from sand and cement that had been used to point between the paving which the customer couldn’t remove.

Exterior Slate Before Renovation Thatcham
I first went round there to take a look at the job and work out a price; we often get asked to quote over the phone but it’s really difficult to do that without look at the job as you never know how things are going to work out unless you do a test clean. In this case I was able to demonstrate the process to the customer on one of the paving tiles which you can easily pick out in the photographs below.

Exterior Slate Before Renovation Thatcham
Happy with the demonstration I was given the job to do the whole patio so I arranged to a date to come back and do the work.

Cleaning Slate Patio Paving

On my return the first job was to tackle the sand and cement haze that was covering much of the slate patio. Fortunately for me the builder had not sealed the tiles so this was just a straightforward case of applying a solution of Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up, leaving it to dwell for ten minutes and then scrubbing it into the paving with a mechanical scrubbing machine to release the sandy haze as well as breaking down the soils on the tiles.

You should be aware that Grout Clean-Up is an acid based product and Slate like most natural stone is acid sensitive so it’s important to remove it as soon as its done its job and rinse down the stone with water soon after.

To rinse the slate patio I used our specialist truck mounted systems which gently blasts the soils from the stone with hot pressurised water whilst simultaneously recapturing the waste back into a tank on the van. This action also neutralises the stones which is important before applying sealer. The Slate pavers were then allowed to dry and being a very hot day this only took a couple of hours.

Sealing a Slate Patio

After a long lunch I returned to find the Slate was dry but still looking rather grey so to restore the natural dark colours to the stone I applied a coating of Tile Doctor Stone Oil then after approximately 1 hour any excess stone oil was buffed off the tiles leaving it to fully dry off overnight.

The following day I returned to apply two liberal coats of Tile Doctor Ultra Seal which is a solvent based no-sheen, natural-look penetrating sealer that will provide the needed protection from the elements and make it easier to clean in future.

Exterior Slate After Renovation Thatcham
My customer was very pleased with the final results and left the following feedback on the Tile Doctor feedback system.

“I had my patio and path cleaned and sealed. The service from the whole team has been exemplary from start to finish and I am delighted with the work that has been carried out. My particular thanks to Dennis who was friendly, helpful and exceptionally professional. He explained everything he was going to do and why, kept me informed throughout and worked really hard to produce a fantastic finish on my patio and path. I’m really grateful and will most definitely be recommending to friends. Thank you”

Exterior Slate After Renovation Thatcham
 

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Victorian floor Covered in Lino Pangboune before and after Cleaning

Restoring Damaged and Stained Original Victorian Tiles in Pangbourne

Pangbourne is a large village situated on the River Thames, about 4 miles west of Reading. The village has a long, rich history – dating back to at least the 9th century. There are still quite a number of Victorian-style houses located in the village, including one that I visited recently to carry out a Victorian tiled floor restoration.

Victorian floor Covered in Lino Pangboune Before Cleaning
This floor had been hidden, unbeknownst to the property owner, under a linoleum covering for many years. Once the owner realised there was an original Victorian floor under the linoleum they were very keen to restore it as an original feature and stripped it off to expose the tiles, however, they were heavily covered in dirty, adhesive stains and other contaminants and we were asked to complete the job. You can see this in the photos below.

Victorian floor Covered in Lino Pangboune Before Cleaning
At Tile Doctor, we are very experienced in restoring original Victorian tiles, so I was more than happy to help this customer transform her floor.

Cleaning a Dirty and Stained Victorian Tiled Floor

As I’ve mentioned, the top layer of this original Victorian tiled floor was marked with all manner of staining, so I decided that it would be suitable to use a set of 100 and 200 grit coarse Diamond pads fitted to a weighted machine and lubricated with a little water to grind away the damaged surface and restore the surface of the tiles.

I then cleaned the tiles using Tile Doctor Pro Clean, which is our reliable alkaline-based cleaner for natural stone. This product really helped to break down and release the soils. Next, I rinsed the floor with hot water under low pressure to remove any remaining debris, dirt and contamination.

With the cleaning process completed, the floor was allowed to dry for a full 48 hours. In older properties like these dampness can be an issue as damp-proof membranes are a relatively modern invention and I didn’t want to take any chances.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Floor

Returning to the property two days later, I ran some moisture tests to ensure the stone was completely dry and could be sealed. It’s always important to run damp tests on any tiled floor before sealing, since a small amount of excess moisture can undermine the performance of the sealer, and thus expose the floor to ingrained dirt and stains.

Thankfully, the floor proved dry and I could seal it using Tile Doctor Seal and Go which, as a topical sealer, offers a robust surface seal and an aesthetically pleasing low-sheen finish. It’s also water based so it doesn’t give off a smell as it dries.

Victorian floor Covered in Lino Pangboune After Cleaning
As you can see from the after photos, the restoration returned the life and colour to this fantastic original Victorian tiled floor. The customer was absolutely thrilled with the result.

Victorian floor Covered in Lino Pangboune After Cleaning
 

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Slate Kitchen Floor before and after Restoration in Windsor

Rejuvenating a Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor in Windsor

If you’ve ever rented out a property for a long period of time, you’ll likely to have been concerned, at one point or another, about whether the tenant can be relied on to maintain the condition of carpets, walls and, of course, tiled floors.

This customer, who owns a property in Windsor (home to Windsor Castle, one of the official residences of the Royal Family) had encountered this very problem. The property had been rented out to a tenant for the last five years, but the Slate tiled floor in the kitchen, which was itself only 10 years old, had not been maintained correctly.

Consequently, the sealer on the tiles was worn out and no longer capable of protecting the stone against ingrained dirt and stains. There were also lots of efflorescent salts on the floor, predominantly contained in the high trafficked areas of the kitchen. I was contacted to correct the situation and restore the entire floor by providing a deep clean and seal.

Slate Kitchen Floor Before Restoration in Windsor

Cleaning Dirty Slate Kitchen Tiles

To begin the restoration, I mixed a strong solution of Tile Doctor Pro Clean and water. Pro Clean is a high alkaline cleaner capable of stripping away any old sealer and eradicating any soils and grease on the floor.

The solution was spread liberally across the entire floor and left to dwell for a short period of time before being agitated and worked into the stone using a scrubbing pad fitted to a rotary machine.

This process left the stone fresh and clean, but the grout lines were still suffering from efflorescent salts. Efflorescence is the deposit of salts on the surface of porous materials such as natural stone tiles as moisture rises through the floor, causing unsightly stains. These alkali salts were neutralised by acid washing the floor using Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up, which is a concentrated phosphoric acid cleaner.

Slate Kitchen Floor After Cleaning in Windsor
After deep cleaning the tiles, I left the floor to dry thoroughly for 24 hours, which is usually the minimum drying period that we would suggest.

Sealing Slate Kitchen Tiles

Returning to the property the next day, I ran some quick damp tests to check for any excess moisture that might have prevented me from sealing the floor. We will always do this as a precaution – especially with older floors that lack a damp proof membrane – because damp issues can damage the performance of the sealer and render it ineffectual.

Thankfully, the floor proved try and I sealed the floor with Tile Doctor Seal and Go, which is an acrylic polymer sealer that provides an aesthetically pleasing low-sheen finish, as well as, of course, strong stain and ingrained dirt protection.

Slate Kitchen Floor After Restoration in Windsor
As you can see from the photos above, the restoration really brought this Slate tiled floor back to life after five years of poor maintenance. The customer was very pleased to have it restored back to its optimum condition – ready for the property to be rented out again!

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Scratched Travertine Tiled Floor Repaired in Hunt Final

Dirty and Scratched Travertine Tiles Burnished in Hunt

Travertine, a form of Limestone, is a highly coveted stone that had been in use as a building and flooring material for hundreds of years. In fact, the Romans used Travertine to build the famous Colosseum, the largest building in the world that was built primarily from the material.

It is understandable, then, that anyone who owns a Travertine tiled floor would want to ensure its regular cleaning and maintenance, especially given that Travertine is a relatively soft stone in comparison with other stone, is easily damaged and is naturally pitted. This customer, who lives in the town of Hunt in Berkshire, was keen to have her Travertine tiles deep cleaned, several deep scratched removed and for the pitted holes to be filled.

Scratched travertine tiled floor before cleaning in Hunt

Burnishing and Cleaning a Scratched Travertine Tiled Floor

To clean the Travertine floor, I firstly used a hot clean and capture system, which essentially involves the application of hot water to the floor under high pressure. The system then captures the dirty water and transports it back to a tank on our van. It’s a highly efficient method for cleaning large areas in a short space of time, with great results.

Next, I treated the pitted holes in the Travertine were filled with a coloured matched resin. Pitting is a form of corrosion that occurs naturally in this type of stone, and can be quite unsightly if not treated. Additionally, it’s not unusual for pitting to be made worse by the constant use of weak acid cleaning products which can actually erode the calcium in the stone.

As mentioned, the tiles also suffered from deep scratches in parts, and these were removed using a process we call burnishing, which involves the application of diamond encrusted pads to polish the stone. The scratches were polished out using Coarse 100 and 200 grit diamond pads.

Scratched travertine tiled floor repaired in Hunt
The whole floor was then burnished using the four pad Tile Doctor burnishing system, starting with a Coarse pad and working through Medium, Fine and Extra Fine pads, with rinsing in between each pad and a final rinse at the end of the process.

I left the floor to dry off fully and retuned later to enhance the polish further using Tile Doctor Shine Powder, a crystallising powder product which provides a very durable and deep shine on the Travertine.

Sealing a Travertine Tiled Floor

Having successfully dealt with all the problems affecting the Travertine, my last job was to seal the whole floor using Tile Doctor Colour Grow. Colour Grow is an impregnating, colour enhancing sealer that we recommend highly on quality stone such as Travertine, Limestone, and Marble due to the fact that it provides excellent protection and emphasises the wonderful natural shades in the stone.

Scratched travertine tiled floor after restoration in Hunt
The customer was extremely happy with the results and sent over the following feedback for Dennis who worked on the floor:

“Dennis was brilliant – very professional and conscientious – he worked so hard and in 30+ degree temperatures! He has rejuvenated our Travertine flooring to a beautiful, almost mirror like effect – it is now more amazing than it was when it was first laid down.”

Scratched travertine tiled floor after restoration in Hunt
 

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Victorian Effect Marble Floor tiles after cleaning Steatley

Victorian Effect Marble Tiled Floor Restored in Streatley

Never judge a tiled floor by its appearance! On this particular occasion, I visited a client at a house in the village of Streatley which is a small village that sits alongside the River Thames as it runs through the county of Berkshire. The requirement was to take a look at a very old Marble floor which was initially believed to consist of Victorian, rather than Marble, tiles due to the pattern. My client simply could not get the white Marble tiles looking their best; many were a displeasing off-cream colour and naturally wanted them looking new again.

Victorian Effect Marble Floor tiles before cleaning Steatley
Before beginning the restoration, we confirmed that the stone was actually Marble. We did this by testing the tile with acid, which the tiles responded to since Marble is naturally acid-sensitive. Additionally, we could also see the veins running through the tiles, which you simply would not get with a Victorian tiles.

Burnishing a Marble tiled floor

Chemical cleaning had no effect on this floor, so it’s understandable that my client’s attempts at cleaning with everyday household products were unsuccessful. With this type of stone the only method would be to burnish the floor with a set of diamond encrusted pads.

I started off by using a Medium 800 Grit burnishing pad to no avail, followed by a Coarse 400 Grit burnishing pad, which was also unsuccessful. It was only when I used an even coarser 200 Grit pad that some improvement was shown, and it was a very abrasive 100 Grit pad that finally started to achieve the right results. After breaking down all of the dirt, I reverted back to a very fine 1500 grit pad to give the tiles an aesthetically pleasing, light sheen. You use the pads with a little water which lubricates and allows the resultant slurry to be rinsed away.

Restoring the Colour of Black Marble Tiles

The floor was then allowed to dry overnight and upon my return, I treated the black Marble Tiles with Tile Doctor Stone Oil, which gave the stone its deep black shine you can see in the photo.

Final step was to seal the Marble floor using two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an impregnating sealer that seeps into the pores of the tile enhancing colour and protecting the floor from staining from within.

Victorian Effect Marble Floor tiles after cleaning Steatley
The floor now looks fantastic and back to how it looked when it was first installed.

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Limestone Floor before and after Cleaning Maidenhead

Filthy Limestone Tiled Floor Restored in a Maidenhead Kitchen

Recently I visited a client in the town of Maidenhead, Berkshire who needed assistance restoring a very dirty pitted Limestone tiled floor which had suffered over the years due to poor maintenance choices. The pressures of a busy family life had, understandably, prevented my client from undertaking regular cleaning and the products and methods used for cleaning were by and large unsuitable for this type of natural stone. In addition, the pits in the tiles had been filled with grout; however, they were not flush to the tile and therefore a large amount of soil had collected in the pockets. The result was a Limestone tiled floor in considerably poor condition that was increasingly difficult to keep clean.

Limestone Floor Before Cleaning Maidenhead Limestone Floor Before Cleaning Maidenhead

My client had tried and tried to get the floor clean, using methods such as scrubbing with toothbrushes, steam cleaners, and mopping – but they weren’t getting anywhere! I explained to my client that steaming is, in fact, one of the worst cleaning systems to use on natural stone floors. Steam not only damages sealers, it also thins out greasy soils. Some of these soils are absorbed onto the domestic microfiber pads, however a lot of the soil becomes thinner allowing it to penetrate deeper into the pours of the stone and grout. This in itself starts the vicious circle to rapidly soiled and dirty tiles and grout. This happens because the grease soils magnetise dirt!

Solution: cleaning a Limestone tiled floor

My first task in the cleaning process was to mix a strong solution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean, which is a high alkaline cleaner. This solution was applied liberally across the entire Limestone tiled floor and grout. It was allowed to dwell for 30-40 minutes, giving it time to seep into the stone to get underneath and lift the ingrained dirt to the surface. During this time, I scrubbed the grout lines using a specialist stiff grout brush. The Limestone tiles were then scrubbed with heavy mechanical rotary agitation machine.

Limestone Floor During Cleaning Maidenhead Limestone Floor During Cleaning Maidenhead

I then gave the floor a thorough rinse using the latest in cleaning and capture technology, which involves firing hot water at high pressure in a spinning motion across the floor, in effect blasting away the ingrained soils from the grout and pitting in the limestone. The high pressure is delivered from a system mounted inside my van which also contains waste tanks to capture the extracted soiled water.

Solution: sealing a Limestone tiled floor

After being allowed to dry thoroughly for 24 hours, I returned to seal the floor with Tile Doctor Colour Grow which would have brought out the deep colours in the stone, however after discussing the options with the client it became clear that they wanted to keep the floor looking as light as possible so Tile Doctor Ultra Seal was applied. Ultra Seal is a natural look impregnating sealer that soaks into the pores of the stone and protects it from within.

Limestone Floor After Cleaning Maidenhead Limestone Floor After Cleaning Maidenhead

The floor now looks fantastic and the sealer should ensure it remains looking that way for some time to come and before leaving I made sure to provide my client with some professional maintenance advice.

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Terracotta Floor After Sealing in Fifield

Dirty Terracotta Tiles and Grout Cleaned and Sealed in Fifield

For this job, I travelled to a house in the town of Fifield, near the city of Windsor, Berkshire. My client’s problem was a heavily soiled Terracotta tiled floor. Terracotta tiles have been used for over two millennia, but are known to pick up dirt quite easily due to their porosity and a lack of natural surface glaze. This dirt can become ingrained if not removed quickly.

In this particular case, the tiles and grout lines were very dirty, with a small amount of grout haze blemishing some of the newly installed tiles. The affected area of the floor required a thorough clean. Additionally, most of the old sealer had worn away, further exposing the tiles to dirt and damage – this would need to be replaced.

Terracotta Floor Before Cleaning in Fifield

Cleaning dirty Terracotta tiles and grout lines

To clean the floor, I first used Tile Doctor Remove & Go, a strong multi-purpose stripper/cleaner which as its name suggests is designed to remove any old sealer left on the surface. Working in sections, I sprayed down a layer of Remove & Go, before leaving it dwell for roughly 5-10 minutes.

While Remove & Go was soaking into the Terracotta, I scrubbed the grout lines using a stiff grout brush. This helped to lift out the ingrained dirt and grout haze. After I was done with the grout my attention went back on the tiles, so I added a small amount of water to form a solution, which was then scrubbed into the affected area using a heavy weighted rotary machine and a stiff agitation pad.

Terracotta Floor Part Cleaned in Fifield Terracotta Floor Part Cleaned in Fifield

The floor was then rinsed using a high pressure hot water tile and grout cleaning extraction system to remove any remaining soils, pollutants, debris and old sealer. After cleaning, the floor was inspected to ensure all of the issues had been dealt with. Following this, it was treated to a final rinse.

Terracotta Floor After Cleaning in Fifield

Sealing Terracotta tiles and grout

The floor was then let to dry overnight. Thanks to the Aga cooker and damp proof membrane under the floor, the tiles and grout were clean and completely dry, ready for sealing the next day.

I sealed the floor with 6 coats of Tile Doctor Seal & Go to provide a healthy, durable seal, which also gave the tiles aesthetically pleasing sheen.

Terracotta Floor After Sealing in Fifield
As you can see from the photograph, the clean and seal made a marked improvement to the condition of the tiles and grout – and my client was very pleased!

Reconditioning the Terracotta Tiles

Dirty Terracotta Tiles and Grout Cleaned and Sealed in Fifield Read More »

Slate Floor Gents Toilets at Bowling Alley Sealing

Smelly Slate Toilet Floor Problems Resolved At Slough Bowling Complex

Although we do get a lot of residential work we also cover commercial properties such as this local bowling complex in Slough where complaints of a bad odour in the male toilets had been received. The owner of the bowling complex realised the problem was coming from the slate tiled floor and decided to call in their local Tile Doctor to identify and eliminate the odour.

Slate Floor Gents Toilets at Bowling Alley Inspection
Upon closer inspection, it was identified that the unsealed slate floor in the toilets had been contaminated by urine ingress. Urine ingress is a common problem for people who have small animals like cats or dogs as household pets, but it also quite often affects public toilets.

Slate Floor Gents Toilets at Bowling Alley Inspection
Urine ingress occurs because urine, after leaving the body as an acid, becomes a white alkali crystal salt as it dries. Using normal detergents (including bleaches) for cleaning will actually add to both the odour and the problem overall since they are alkaline-based cleaners. At the same time, neglecting to clean can also be damaging, as urine in its initial acidic form will start to eat away at the sealer if not removed quickly.

Cleaning Slate Tiles

Our first action was to use Tile Doctor Remove & Go, a tile and stone friendly stripper, which we applied liberally to the toilet floor. This particular solution is highly effective at removing protective sealers, whilst also drawing out ingrained stains and removing any heavy grease build-up. The solution was allowed to sit for a short period of about ten minutes. It is important not to leave the product to dwell on the surface for too long in case it dries completely. Next, we added a small amount of water to the Remove & Go, before employing a heavy weighted rotary with a nylon brush to carefully scrub the slate and grout lines.

Slate Floor Gents Toilets at Bowling Alley Stripping
After the soils and sealers had been successfully removed, the next task at hand was to neutralise the bad odour caused by urine ingress. This was achieved using a mild mix of the phosphoric acid-based detergent Tile Doctor Grout Clean Up, which was able to neutralise the alkali crystal salts back to a neutral state. The floor was then scrubbed again, before being thoroughly rinsed with plenty of fresh water.

Slate Floor Gents Toilets at Bowling Alley Stripping

Sealing a Slate Floor

As the bowling complex experiences high volumes of customers on a daily basis, it was essential to use a sealer which would provide the floor with durable protection. We advised our client that an impregnating sealer rather than a topical sealer would be the most suitable for use in this type of environment and recommended a combination of Tile Doctor Stone Oil and Ultra-Seal (suitable for use on all natural stone, including slate) be used instead.

Slate Floor Gents Toilets at Bowling Alley Sealing
We left the floor to dry overnight before applying the Stone Oil. Stone oil reconditions the Slate tile and enhances the colours within the stone. The product then needed a further period of time to dry before we applied two coats of Ultra-Seal impregnating sealer to the stone.

Slate Floor Gents Toilets at Bowling Alley Sealing
Why did we use an impregnation sealer instead of a topical sealer?
Impregnation sealers, such as Ultra-Seal and Colour Grow, are absorbed by the pores in the stone, offering both stain and soil resistance, and providing protection from within. In addition, they are usually solvent-based, and provide durable protection even in areas which experience high traffic. By comparison, topical sealers will essentially build up layers on top of the stone in order to offer protection. The downside to using this is that, in high traffic areas, the sealer can be effectively ‘kicked’ or walked off the surface of the stone.

You’ll notice in some of the photos that the grout appears to be a different colour after cleaning. That’s because the grout had been repaired by the bowling complex prior to our work on the floor. This mistake has been realised, however, as they have matched the grout in with the dirty discolouration, rather than the clean so addressing this issue will be another job on their list!

Slate Floor Gents Toilets at Bowling Alley Sealing
In summary I’m happy to report we were able to effectively clean the slate floor and eliminate the bad odour caused by urine ingress in the process; then due to the busy nature of the bowling complex a combination of sealing products were applied to the stone to provide long-lasting protection.

Overall, our client was left with a cleaner and more durable slate floor.

Elimination of Odour in the Toilet’s Slate Floor at a Bowling Complex in Slough

Smelly Slate Toilet Floor Problems Resolved At Slough Bowling Complex Read More »

Limestone Kitchen Floor in Crookham during cleaning

Soiled Limestone kitchen floor deep cleaned and sealed in Crookham

Recently, Berkshire tile doctor was asked to restore a pitted and heavily soiled limestone floor in the village of Crookham by a previous customer. I always like it when that happens as there’s no better testimonial that than being asked by a previous customer to do more work. This floor ran throughout the kitchen, utility and downstairs toilet and had a range of soils on the floor, especially in the kitchen. The floor had also lost its sheen and although the customer did not want a deep shine they did want the floor to have some reflection to it.

Limestone Kitchen Floor in Crookham before cleaning Limestone Kitchen Floor in Crookham before cleaning

Deep Cleaning the Limestone Tiled Floor

We used Tile Doctor Pro-Clean to get the floor clean again by applying a medium dilution which was spread liberally over the floor using a bucket and soft brush. The cleaning solution was allowed to dwell on the stone before being scrubbed into the tile and grout using a stiff brush and pad.

Limestone Kitchen Floor in Crookham during cleaning Limestone Kitchen Floor in Crookham during cleaning

A coarse diamond burnishing pad was then used to remove some surface soils and any remaining sealer from the surface of the limestone before giving the floor a rinse using our unique clean and capture system. This system combines, water, heat, pressure and powerful vacuum extraction and is highly effective at blasting away soils from the pits in the limestone. Once we were happy the floor was clean we set about restoring the finish to the stone with the medium, fine and very fine burnishing pads.

Limestone Kitchen Floor in Crookham during cleaning Limestone Kitchen Floor in Crookham during cleaning

The floor was given another rinse and the limestone left for 48 hours so it could thoroughly dry out before sealing.

Sealing the Limestone Floor

To seal the stone we applied a couple of coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is a durable sealer that impregnates the stone and enhances the deep natural colours in the stone.

Limestone Kitchen Floor in Crookham after cleaning
We believe it’s important to seal stone after deep cleaning and restoration as it helps prevent future soils and staining. There are many sealers available on the market for stealing stone, however, it’s important to recognise the importance of using a quality sealer and having used Tile Doctor products for some time now can confidently say they offer long term protection for your floor. We do however recommend an annual deep clean and touch up to ensure your floors stay looking as great as the day we leave and we offer a regular maintenance service to enable you achieve that.

Restoration of Solid Limestone Floor in Crookham

Soiled Limestone kitchen floor deep cleaned and sealed in Crookham Read More »

Limestone Kitchen Floor Stains After Sealing

Limestone Kitchen Floor refinished near Staines

This wonderful Limestone tiled floor was installed in the kitchen of a house near the town Staines where it had become dirty and tired, helped I might add by the customers dog who loved to swim in rivers and get muddy at every opportunity. The customer was struggling to clean the floor, the grout lines wouldn’t come clean and after spending hours scrubbing with a tooth brush and getting nowhere she called Tile Doctor.

Deep Cleaning the Limestone Tiled Floor

The floor was clearly in need of a deep clean and re-seal a very mild dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean applied liberally across the floor and allowed to dwell and penetrate through the soils engrained into the grout. The grout lines were scrubbed with a specialist grout brush to release the soil and a rotary machine with a nylon deck scrubbing brush was used to release the soils from the Limestone tiles.

Limestone Kitchen Floor Stains Before Cleaning Limestone Kitchen Floor Stains Before Cleaning

After approximately half an hour of scrubbing, the Limestone floor was extraction cleaned using our truck mounted clean and capture system. This system combines heat, pressure, and vacuum extraction to gently blast engrained soils away from the limestone and the grout lines.

Limestone Kitchen Floor Stains During Cleaning Limestone Kitchen Floor Stains High Pressure Machine

To get the Limestone really clean a two pad diamond burnishing process was used; normally we use four pads however the customer did not want the stone to be too shiny and reflection was already starting to happen after the second pad had been applied. Using diamonds to refinish calcium stone such as marble, travertine and limestone is the modern chemical free solution to restoring the surface of sedimentary stones.

Limestone Kitchen Floor Stains During Cleaning Limestone Kitchen Floor Stains During Cleaning

Sealing the Limestone Floor

After deep clean and refinishing the surface of the limestone, it was allowed to dry for a period of 36 hours, after this a liberal coat of Colour Grow which is a solvent based impregnator was applied to the stone. The sealer was allowed to sit on the surface of the stone for approximately 5 minutes before the excess was buffed away. Buffing the excess away is important to ensure a great, smear free finish.

Limestone Kitchen Floor Stains During Sealing Limestone Kitchen Floor Stains After Sealing

Before leaving we recommended a system to care for the floor to ensure is continues to look as good as the day we left. Also we recently contact the client to check everything was ok and I’m proud to confirm they are still really pleased with the floor and after professional cleaning and sealing is now finding the floor is much easier to clean and maintain herself.

Deep Cleaning Limestone Floor Near Stains

Limestone Kitchen Floor refinished near Staines Read More »

Limestone sign after cleaning reading

Limestone Sign Wall Cleaning at Reading Business Park

This was an unusual request to clean a large Limestone wall used to mount a sign at a Reading Business Park that had been installed approximately 8 to 10 years prior and never cleaned. The old sign had been removed from the stone which had exposed the unprotected areas of stone leaving a shadow. Pollutants, carbon soils, road dirt and weathering had discoloured the Limestone and the client was unable to get it satisfactorily clean. You can see from the photo below how obviously dirty the stone had become.

Limestone sign before cleaning reading

Deep Cleaning a Limestone Wall

To get the Limestone cleaned I applied a liberal 50:50 dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean with a roller brush and allowed it to dwell for on the stone for around twenty minutes.

Limestone sign during cleaning reading
The chemicals got to work on the dirt whilst I set up our truck mounted medium pressure hot water clean and capture system which uses a twin rotary jet system to fire hot water at 90 degrees at 1200psi onto the stone in a circular spinning motion. It’s a great tool that immediately vacuums the waste water away to a separate tank in the van. This mess free clean and capture system is self-contained and doesn’t require the disposal of hot water or dirty water on site either. Using the tool I was able to blast away the soils and pollutants from the stone and then left it to dry.

Limestone sign after cleaning reading

Sealing the Limestone Wall

When I returned I checked the stone was dry, fortunately it hadn’t rained and the sun and wind had dried it out well. To seal the Limestone I used Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an impregnating sealer that occupies the pores in the stone to prevent contaminates discolouring it, additionally it’s suitable for internal and external applications and has the added effect of enhancing the natural colour in the stone. Unfortunately I didn’t have time to take a final photograph once it was sealed due to a rather irritating traffic warden.

Cleaning and Sealing Limestone Sign Wall in Reading

Limestone Sign Wall Cleaning at Reading Business Park Read More »

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

Revitalising a Slate and Flag Stone floor in Cookham Read More »

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

Grout Colouring Porcelain Tiled Kitchen Floor in Maidenhead Read More »

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

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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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Refurbished Victorian Quarry Tiles

Neglected Victorian Quarry Tiled Floor Restored in Pangbourne

We were asked to restore this Original Victorian Quarry tiled floor following a major refurbishment of a Grade 1 listed mansion in Pangbourne, Berkshire. The tiles has seen many years of neglect and as you can see from the photo below it was not given much thought or care by the builders and decorators who had been working on the property.

Neglected Victorian Quarry Tiles

Cleaning Victorian Quarry Tiles

We set about stripping and cleaning the floor of all the paint and dirt that had been left to accumulate on its surface over the years starting with a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean worked into the Quarry tiles using a rotary machine fitted with a black scrubbing pad. This was removed using a wet and dry vacuum and followed by hours of detailed cleaning using Tile Doctor Remove and Go mixed 50/50 with NanoTech Ultra Clean which adds Nano sized abrasive particles to the solution to make a more effective coatings remover. We allowed this to dwell for a short while before agitating it with a rotary machine again fitted with a black scrubbing pad working the solution into the floor, this treatment tackled the stubborn paint and all sorts of other residues. Once we were happy with floor it was given a good rinse down with clean water and then left to dry.

Refurbished Victorian Quarry Tiles

Sealing Quarry Tiles

Once the Quarry Tiles were dry we set about sealing them, a low sheen finish was required so four coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go were applied, it’s a water based sealer that will protect the surface going forward. The Main contractor could not believe we managed to get the floor looking pristine and back to its original condition.

Transforming a neglected Victorian Quarry Tiled floor in Berkshire

Neglected Victorian Quarry Tiled Floor Restored in Pangbourne Read More »

Travertine Floor Completed

Travertine Tiles Replaced and Polished in Ascot

The owner of this home in Ascot had 75m2 of travertine tiles installed on the ground floor and around 10 tiles were damaged and needed replacement; this can be difficult as like most things tiles are created in batches and it can be tricky to find an exact match. Fortunately we managed to source a very close match and set about installing them.

Travertine Floor Laid

Cleaning Travertine Tiles and Grout

To get the match as close as possible we then set about giving the whole floor a general clean using Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is a multi-purpose cleaner, it was equally important to concentrate on the grout of the existing floor which needed to be clean to match the new grout of the new floor. Cleaning the floor also ensures any grit is removed from the tile surface prior to the next step which was to polish the floor using a set of Burnishing pads, this is important as grit could get trapped in the burnishing pads and scratch the floor. We washed the floor down with clean water using a wet vacuum to remove the water from the floor before moving onto the next step.

Travertine Floor Before Burnishing

Polishing and Sealing Travertine Floor Tiles

We polished the floor using a set of 17” Burnishing pads fitted to our weighted polishing machine; the pads are diamond encrusted and you start with the coarser Red pad designed to remove sealers before moving on to the White, Yellow and finally Green polishing pad to achieve a high shine finish.

The last step was to seal the floor which we did using two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is colour intensifying sealer that enhancing the natural colours in the Travertine tile as well as providing on-going durable surface protection.

Travertine Floor Completed
We polished and sealed the entire floor to ensure a consistent look; the customer was certainly happy and left the following comment.

“Overall a good job well done. Thank you.
Mr. Wilkinson, Ascot”

 

Travertine Tiles Replaced and Polished in Ascot

Travertine Tiles Replaced and Polished in Ascot Read More »

Moroccan Leather Limestone WC After Cleaning

Restoring Moroccan Leather Limestone Tiles in Salisbury

We were asked to sort out these beautiful “Moroccan Leather” Limestone floor tiles in the kitchen and WC of a house in Salisbury which had had been badly installed by the contractor. If you look closely at the photographs you can see grout residue (also known as Grout Haze) had been left on the surface of the tile ruining its appearance.

Removing Grout Haze

The most effective way to remove grout from the tile surface is with an acidic product such as Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up, you have to be careful not to leave it on the surface too long and wash the floor down with water afterwards as acids can eat through natural stone.

Moroccan Leather Limestone Kitchen Before Cleaning Moroccan Leather Limestone WC Before Cleaning

Cleaning and Sealing Limestone Tiles

Once the grout haze was removed we set about giving the tiles a good clean using Tile Doctor Pro-Clean washing it down again with clean water before giving it a polish using a Green polishing pad to get a high shine finish.

There are a numbers of sealers you can use on Limestone each one can give a different effect, in this case we used two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which really enhances the natural colours in the stone.

Moroccan Leather Limestone Kitchen After Cleaning Moroccan Leather Limestone WC After Cleaning

The floor was completely transformed and think you will agree now looks amazing

Grout Haze removed from Limestone Tiles restored in Salisbury

Restoring Moroccan Leather Limestone Tiles in Salisbury Read More »

Travertine Tile Replaced and Polished

Replacing Damaged Travertine floor tiles and Polish in Ascot

This job involved removing and replacing five damaged Travertine floor tiles which can be tricky if you have under floor heating. The travertine floor was laid in the kitchen of a house in the town of Ascot which is famous for horse racing.

Removing the Damaged Travertine floor tiles

As you can see from the photograph below we set about marking up the damaged tiles and then proceeded to cut along the lines with an angle grinder which was fitted with a dust free extraction system. Once the bulk of the travertine was removed we used a hammer and chisel to carefully chop out the remaining edges, grout and tile adhesive. This left large holes to take the replacement tiles which were still available and were secured in place with tile adhesive and matching grout, we left the floor at this point to allow the adhesive and grout to dry.

Damaged Travertine Tile

Cleaning and Polishing Travertine Tiles

The next step was to strip and polish the entire floor using a set of diamond encrusted Burnishing Pads fitted to a rotary machine. You start with a Red stripper pad with water to remove any sealers, moving onto the White, Yellow and finally Green pad which polishes the floor to a high shine. The last step was to seal the floor using two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which brings out the colour in natural stone as well as providing durable stain protection.

The re-polishing and sealing really helped to let the new Travertine tiles blend into the floor, take a look at the finished result in the photograph below and see if you can spot the replaced tiles.

Travertine Tile Replaced and Polished
 

Broken Travertine Tile Replacement in Berkshire

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Travertine Floor before and after Repolishing

Travertine Floor Re-polish in Hook

Photographs below of a Travertine tiled floor we were asked to re-polish in the kitchen of a house in the village of Hook in Hampshire. The main problem was the floor had been sealed very badly and made worse when the tiler tried to rectify the problem leaving a dull and stained floor.

Travertine Floor Before Repolishing

Stripping and Re-Polishing Travertine

To strip the sealer from the floor and get it back to the original condition we used a set of diamond encrusted Burnishing Pads fitted to a rotary machine. You start with a Red stripper pad with water to remove the sealer, moving onto the White, Yellow and Green pads which polish the floor. Once the surface was restored we applied two coats of Tile Doctor Pro-Seal which is a premium, no-sheen, natural look, water based, penetrating sealer formulated to provide maximum stain protection to the Travertine and the Grout.

The customer was over the moon at the finish and I’m sure the tiler breathed a big sigh of relief as well.

Travertine Floor After Repolishing
 

Re-Polishing a Travertine tiled kitchen floor in Hook, Hampshire

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