cleaning quarry tiles

Red and Black Victorian Quarry Tiled Floor Restored in Oswestry

Details below of a Victorian Quarry tiled floor belonging to a customer in Oswestry who had recently moved back to the area and wanted to restore the original features of the house including the Quarry tiles floor which had several coats of red floor paint and was later was covered with carpet for a number of years. The customer described the floor as:

“I have 2 areas of quarry tiles that need a serious make over, in the hall and the back room. There are patches of red paint and areas of mineral deposit and lots of ingrained filth!””

Red Black Quarry Tiles Oswestry Before Red Black Quarry Tiles Oswestry Before

Cleaning a Quarry Tiled Floor

I managed to clean the floor with a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go which was left to soak into the tiles for a while before being scrubbed in using a rotary machine fitted with a black pad; the resultant slurry was washed away using more water and a wet vacuum. The whole process was repeated several times as the paint was really stubborn and in places I had to remove the paint removal with a scraper. Once I was happy with the condition it was given a final rinse to remove any cleaning products and then left to dry for five days leaving an air mover with the customer to accelerate drying.

Red Black Quarry Tiles Oswestry After Cleaning Red Black Quarry Tiles Oswestry After Cleaning

Sealing a Quarry Floor Sealing

The tiles have to be dry before sealing and even though I returned five days later the damp meter still indicated that there was moisture in the tiles which I suspect was due to there being no membrane in place under the old Victorian tiles. I agreed with the customer to come back a further week later which proved sufficient and the floor was dry enough to take the sealer.

The customer wanted a matt finish so I sealed the floor with two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an impregnating sealer that occupies the pores in the tile and also enhances the colour of the tile.

Red Black Quarry Tiles Oswestry After Sealing Red Black Quarry Tiles Oswestry After Sealing

The customer was out when I applied the sealer but when the she got home she sent me the following message:

“The floor looks brilliant. So much better than I had ever hoped. Thank you.”
 
 

Victorian Quarry tiles restoration in Shropshire

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Victorian Quarry Tiles Telford After cleaning

Victorian Quarry Tiled Floor Restored in Telford

The photographs below of a Red and Black Victorian Quarry tiled floor were taken at a 109 year old cottage in the town of Telford. Unfortunately the tiles were in a really neglected state after the completion of building works but we do like a challenge and agreed to do the work.

Victorian Quarry Tiles Telford before cleaning Victorian Quarry Tiles Telford before cleaning

Cleaning a Quarry Tiled Floor

The whole floor was covered in layers of mortar and plaster so a strong solution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go was applied and scrubbed into the floor using a rotary machine fitted with a black scrubbing pad.

The initial clean revealed a lot more of the mess that had been left over from the builders mixing of mortar and concrete so I decided to try an acid based product called Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up which is mainly used for the removal of grout from the tile surface but works on other cementitious materials as well. This worked well but required several applications to remove it all and once complete the floor was given a thorough rinse with clean water to ensure it was clear of the resultant slurry and there was no trace of cleaning product. A wet vacuum was used to remove the water from the floor and get it dry so it could be sealed.

Sealing a Quarry Floor Sealing

Once the floor was dry I sealed it using two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which was chosen as the customer wanted a matt finish; Colour Grow also brings out the colours in the tile and it’s an impregnating sealer that occupies the pores in the tile to provide excellent stain protection.

I think you will agree the photographs below shows an amazing transformation that exceeded all expectations.

Victorian Quarry Tiles Telford After cleaning Victorian Quarry Tiles Telford After cleaning

 

Restoring old Quarry tiles in Shropshire

Victorian Quarry Tiled Floor Restored in Telford Read More »

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