Newbury Archives - Berkshire Tile Doctor

Red Marble Patio Renovation Newbury 2025

Maintaining Red Marble Patio Tiles Six Years After First Visit in Newbury

I recently had the pleasure of revisiting a property in Newbury that I first worked on around six years ago. The job stood out in my memory—not just because of the work involved, but because the property itself is truly unique. Styled like a Mediterranean villa, the home features a stunning Spanish Red Marble patio that gives it a real wow factor. In fact, we did write about at the time and if you want to visit that post please click here: Red Marble Patio Newbury

Red Marble Patio Before Renovation Newbury 2025

The client had spent the past few years living abroad and had rented the house out in the meantime. Unfortunately, during that period, the patio had been exposed to the elements and was showing signs of neglect. The once vibrant marble was now dull and in need of some serious TLC.

Red Marble Patio Before Renovation Newbury 2025

Cleaning a Red Marble Tiled Patio in Newbury

Given the size of the patio, I worked in sections to manage the restoration efficiently. I started by thoroughly brushing and vacuuming the surface to remove loose dirt and debris—essential prep before burnishing the stone. With water as a lubricant, I began the refinishing process using a 200-grit diamond pad on a weighted rotary machine. This coarser pad did a great job cutting through the built-up grime. I then followed up with a series of diamond burnishing pads starting with 400, 800, and finally 1500-grit to gradually refine the surface and close the pores of the marble for a smooth, polished finish.

In some areas—particularly around the edges—I came across thicker grime that needed to be broken down first. For those spots, I used Tile Doctor Remove and Go, which helped loosen the residue so the diamond pads could do their job more effectively.

Sealing a Red Marble Tiled Patio

I returned the next morning to check that the marble had dried completely and was ready for sealing. Luckily, the weather had stayed warm, which helped speed up the drying process. This time, instead of the Colour Grow sealer I used on my first visit, I opted for a newer product—Tile Doctor X-Tra Seal. It’s especially well-suited for exterior stone and performed brilliantly.

Not only did X-Tra Seal enhance the natural beauty of the stone—bringing out the deep reds and striking white veining—it also penetrates deeply into the surface, offering long-lasting protection from within. It’s a great option for coping with the often-unpredictable UK weather.

It was a real pleasure returning to this property and seeing the transformation all over again. The Marble looks as good as new—and the patio is once again a standout feature of this beautiful Mediterranean-style home.

Red Marble Patio After Renovation Newbury 2025

For aftercare I continued to recommended Tile Doctor’s 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.

Red Marble Patio After Renovation Newbury 2025

Professional Restoration of a Red Marble Tiled Patio in Berkshire

Maintaining Red Marble Patio Tiles Six Years After First Visit in Newbury Read More »

Badly Stained Travertine Table Polished to New Condition in Newbury

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

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

Travertine Tabletop Before Renovation Newbury

Cleaning and restoring a Travertine Tiled Tabletop

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

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

Sealing a Travertine Tiled Tabletop

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

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

Travertine Tabletop After Renovation Newbury

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

Terracotta Tiled Garden Room Floor After Renovation Newbury

Professional Restoration of a Travertine Tabletop in Berkshire

Badly Stained Travertine Table Polished to New Condition in Newbury Read More »

Terracotta Tiled Garden Room Floor Renovation Newbury

Terracotta Tiled Garden Room Floor Deep Cleaned and Sealed in Newbury

1 Comment / Grout Cleaning, Newbury Tile Cleaning, Terracotta Tile Cleaning / Dennis Buckland

I recently did some work for a customer in Newbury renovating a Terracotta tiled garden room floor. The conservatory was used to host annual horticultural themed events; however, years of use had worn off the sealer allowing dirt and contaminations to build-up in the floor and leaving it looking tired.

Terracotta Tiled Garden Room Floor Before Cleaning Newbury

I went over to survey the tiles and work out a plan for their renovation. Whilst talking I discovered the floor had never been professionally cleaned since it was installed twelve years ago. The customer also had a stone table that was in a similar state however I’ll cover that in a separate article.

Terracotta Tiled Garden Room Floor Before Cleaning Newbury

From my renovation plan I worked out a quote which they were happy to go ahead with and a date was arranged to carry out the work which would take two days.

Deep Cleaning a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor

To get the Terracotta tiles clean I applied a strong dilution of an alkaline cleaning agent called Tile Doctor Pro-Clean and left it to soak in for several minutes. This dwell times gives the product time to breakdown the dirt and any remaining sealer present on the tile.

The solution was then scrubbed into the tile and grout using a silicon carbide brush fitted to a mechanical rotary machine that I had added extra weights to in order to increase traction. This process releases the dirt from the floor turning the cleaning agent into a dark slurry which is then extracted. I use a hot water encapsulation system for this which cleans the floor and extracts the soiling at the same time, it’s a real time saver and the hot water ensures the floor dries quickly.

Then the whole process was repeated using a mild acid cleaner called Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up. This second product further cleans up the tiles by removing unwanted grout smears and being acidic also neutralises the pH level of the floor after the use of the alkaline cleaner earlier. After another rinse and extraction, the floor was then left to dry off overnight.

Sealing a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor

The next day I returned to seal the floor first checking it had dried with a damp meter. I had decided earlier that the best sealer for Terracotta in this environment would be Tile Doctor X-Tra Seal. It’s a modern oil-based product that is rates for internal and external use.

One good coat was applied before buffing off the excess using plenty of sealing cloths. After two hours I gave the complete area a final buff with the rotary buffer fitted with a White pad. This removed any excess sealer and left it with a gentle sheen.

Terracotta Tiled Garden Room Floor After Renovation Newbury

My customer was very happy with the outcome and was sure his horticultural friends would be impressed! For aftercare I left a bottle of neutral floor cleaner to help maintain the floor. This product 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.

Terracotta Tiled Garden Room Floor After Renovation Newbury

Professional Restoration of a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen in Berkshire

Terracotta Tiled Garden Room Floor Deep Cleaned and Sealed in Newbury Read More »

Black Limestone Patio Before After Renovation Highclere

Black Limestone Patio Ruined with Brick Acid in Highclere Village

1 Comment / Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Newbury Tile Cleaning, Work History / Dennis Buckland

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

Professional Restoration of a Black Limestone Patio in Berkshire

Black Limestone Patio Ruined with Brick Acid in Highclere Village Read More »

Red Marble Patio Before After Renovation Newbury

Restoring a Large Red Marble Patio at a Newbury Villa

1 Comment / Marble Tile Cleaning, Newbury Tile Cleaning, Work History / Dennis Buckland

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.

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.

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.

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.

Professional Restoration of a Red Marble Tiled Patio in Berkshire

Restoring a Large Red Marble Patio at a Newbury Villa Read More »

Exterior Slate Patio Paving Tile Renovation in Thatcham

1 Comment / Slate Tile Cleaning, Thatcham Tile Cleaning, Work History / Dennis Buckland

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.

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”

Restoring the Look of a Slate Paved Patio in Berkshire

Exterior Slate Patio Paving Tile Renovation in Thatcham Read More »