Porcelain Tile Cleaning

Welcome to my Work History archive where you will find detailed examples of the cleaning and renovation of Porcelain tiles carried out in Shropshire

Cleaning and Polishing Porcelain tiles

Harder than ceramic tiles modern production methods have allowed a growth in the availability and design of Porcelain tiles which are known for their durability and water resistance making them a popular option for floors. Like Ceramic, Porcelain tiles are generally very easy to clean and need little maintenance however some are micro porous and do require sealing, you will need to ask you supplier which type you have installed as it can be very difficult to tell.

If your Porcelain tiles are of the micro porous variety then they will need to be sealed to avoid a build-up of dirt in the pores of the tile. For this we recommend Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal which works by impregnating the pores to ensure dirt can’t become ingrained there without changing the appearance of the tile itself.

Apart from sealing the biggest issues with this type of tile are usually grout related. Either the adjacent grout discolours over time or the tiler has been unable to remove excess grout from the surface of the tile, an issue known as Grout Haze or Grout Smears. Modern grouts can be particularly susceptible to the grout haze issue due to shorter working times and polymers in the grout which make it difficult to remove once dry. If this sounds familiar do contact us so we can advise you on how best to remove it.

Below you will find detailed examples of work we have carried out in the past, it should give you some idea of what’s involved and what can be achieved with the right techniques and products.


Porcelain Floor Tile Before After Epoxy Grout Haze Removal Telford

Epoxy Grout Haze Removed from New Porcelain Floor in Telford New Build

The photos below are of a Polished Porcelain tiled floor at a house in the new Telford Lawley Village development. When the house was built my customer had specified large format White glazed Porcelain floor tiles on the ground floor and had insisted on the use of a matching white Epoxy Grout. The developer agreed to lay the tiles but refused to use Epoxy Grout (which is very resilient but also tricky to work with). As a result, the customer hired someone else to grout the floor.

Porcelain Tiled Floor Before Epoxy Grout Haze Removal Lawley Village Telford

Epoxy Grout is notoriously difficult to work with and unfortunately the tiler was unable to remove all the grout residue from the surface of the Porcelain tiles and ruining their appearance. The tiler tried to remove the grout residue but ended up discolouring all the skirting boards instead. The customer was out of time at this point and had to move in, but the floor looked a right mess as is clearly visible on the before pictures on this page. Having given up on the tiler they decided to call Tile Doctor.

Porcelain Tiled Floor Before Epoxy Grout Haze Removal Lawley Village Telford

Fortunately for the customer we are very familiar with this issue and have been resolving problems like this for some time. After discussing the problem on the phone, I paid the customer a visit to take a close look at the problem and after running a few tests I was confident I could fix it for them. We agreed a price and I arranged a time to return to complete the work.

Cleaning a Polished Porcelain Tiled Hallway Floor

To break down the polymers in the epoxy grout I first applied Tile Doctor Remove and Go which was left for approximately fifteen minutes before agitating it with a black scrubbing pad fitted to a rotary floor machine. This process removed most of the grout haze but to get it looking 100% I swapped the black pad to a 3000-grit diamond burnishing pad and polished the tiles using a little water sprayed onto the tile. This is a very fine polishing pad and brings up the finish on the Porcelain tiles a treat.

Once that was done, I inspected the floor again looking for stubborn areas and then spot treated those areas by hand with a repeat of the same process and a scraper. The tiles were factory sealed so once I was happy all the grout haze was gone the job was finished.

Porcelain Tiled Floor After Epoxy Grout Haze Removal Lawley Village Telford Porcelain Tiled Floor After Epoxy Grout Haze Removal Lawley Village Telford

For aftercare and keep the floor looking pristine I recommended they use Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner. It’s easy to use and comes in concentrated form so you only need a small amount, it has a nice fresh smell. They could use household cleaners, but they are likely to leave a residue and leave smears on the polished surface

The client was very happy that I saved the floor for her, it now looked how she had imagined it and was in keeping with the rest of the stunning new house. She left the following testimonial for me, which is always a delight. They now just needed to clean up the skirting boards, which may need a rub down and a lick of paint.

“Very professional manner. Excellent job. I am more than pleased. Edith K.”

 

Professional Restoration of a Polished Porcelain Tiled Hallway in Shropshire

Epoxy Grout Haze Removed from New Porcelain Floor in Telford New Build Read More »

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Shropshire Tile Doctor

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