Shrewsbury Tile Cleaning Archives - Shropshire Tile Doctor

Quarry Tiled Floor Restoration Bayston Hill Shrewsbury

Quarry Tiled Dining Room Floor Restored in Bayston Hill Shrewsbury

This is the second part of the floor restoration work we completed at a property in Bayston Hill near Shrewsbury. This post concerns the restoration of a Quarry tiled floor in the dining room whereas the previous post dealt with the Victorian tiled hallway.

Quarry Tiled Floor Before Restoration Bayston Hill Shrewsbury

Unlike the hallway the hallway the tiles in the dining room where well fixed, although there were a couple of tiles missing by the door which had been replaced with cement. The only other problem was their appearance, it looked as though they had been painted with several layers of tile paint during in its long history and this was now looking very patchy.

For this floor we needed to source a few matching Quarry tiles to be fixed in the doorway and then give the whole floor a very deep clean making sure to remove what remained of the paint in the process. Finally apply a fresh seal to the Quarry tiles which would help the original and replacement tiles blend in.

Repairing a Quarry Tiled Hallway Floor

Work started by chopping out the cement in the doorway threshold so the replacement tiles could be laid. This had to be done very carefully so as not to disturb the existing tiles. Once done the resultant rubble was cleared out and the subbase brought up to the correct level.

Replacement Quarry tiles are not that difficult to find, naturally however each one needed to be cut to fit exactly which took a little time. I always buy more than I need to allow for breakages etc, tilers usually recommend buying 10% more than you need and then to keep the spares in case you need to replace some later. With the tiles nicely shaped to fit the last step was to secure them in place with fast setting adhesive and grout.

Quarry Tiled Floor During Restoration Bayston Hill Shrewsbury

Deep Cleaning a Quarry Tiled Hallway Floor

Once the tiles has set I was able to start the deep cleaning process for which I used the same process as the hallway tiles. In summary the Quarry tiles were sprayed with a strong dilution of Remove and Go which was left to soak in for around fifteen minutes before being scrubbed in using a rotary machine fitted with a Black pad. This generates a lot of slurry as the dirt and tile coatings are lifted out of the tile and into the cleaning solution; the slurry is then rinsed away with water and extracted off the floor using a wet vacuum. Once done the floor was inspected and then retreated as needed until I was satisfied it was as clean as possible.

The next step was to give the tiles an acid rinse using Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up which is designed to remove old grout smears and salts from the tile. Salts can be a real problem on old Quarry floors with no damp proof membrane as there is nothing to stop salts being caried up through the tile from the subfloor and being left as white deposits as the moisture evaporates, a process commonly known as Efflorescence and quite common with old Quarry tiled floors.

Sealing a Quarry Tiled Hallway Floor

With both floors clean they were left to dry out for a week before I returned to apply the sealer. It’s important for tiles to be dry before sealing or the results can be patchy.

Quarry Tiled Floor After Restoration Bayston Hill Shrewsbury

For both floor I opted to use Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an impregnating sealer that leaves a matt finish and works by occupying the pores in the tile protecting it from within. It’s also fully breathable so won’t prevent moisture rising through the tile and it contains a colour enhancer that will help improve the colours in the tile.

Quarry Tiled Hallway Professionally Restored in Shropshire

Quarry Tiled Dining Room Floor Restored in Bayston Hill Shrewsbury Read More »

Victorian Tiled Floor Restoration Bayston Hill Shrewsbury

Loose Victorian Tiled Hallway Repaired and Renovated in Bayston Hill Shrewsbury

When the owner of this property in Bayston Hill near Shrewsbury contacted me about a Clean and Seal of their Victorian tiled hallway and Quarry tiled dining room floors. They mentioned a few loose tiles needed resetting, however, as you will see it turned out to be over 70% of the hallway floor tiles that were loose, additionally the Quarry tiles had been covered with several layers of floor paint.

This is one of the reasons why I rarely give a quote over the phone, happy to provide a rough estimate but if you want an accurate price for the work, I really must pay a visit to the property and survey the floor first. In the case both floors needed a lot of work to fully restore them so I’ve split this work history into two parts and will publish details on the restoration of the Quarry tiled floor in a separate article.

Victorian Tiled Floor Before Restoration Bayston Hill Shrewsbury

Except for the loose tiles the Victorian hallway was simply dull with ingrained dirt just needed a deep clean and then reseal to restore its appearance. Particularly noticeable where the light blue tiles within the geometric pattern which once cleaned would really shine.

Repairing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

For best results I use a rotary machine to clean floor tiles however the floor would been to be intact before I could make use of that, so my first task was to re-fix the loose tiles which as mentioned earlier were quite significant. In-fact once I started to lift the loose tiles, that couple of tiles turned out to be more than half of the hallway floor. When they were fixed back, I grouted it and left the floor to dry overnight.

Victorian Tiled Floor During Repair Bayston Hill Shrewsbury

Deep Cleaning a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

On the second day with the floor now solid I was able to progress the cleaning starting with the removal of old coatings and ingrained dirt in the tiles. I did this using a strong dilution of 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 then rinsed away with water and extracted off the floor using a wet vacuum.

Once done I treated the tiles to an acid wash using Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up which is designed to remove old grout smears and salts from the tile. Salts can be a real problem on old Victorian floors with no damp proof membrane as there is nothing to stop salts being caried up through the tile from the subfloor and being left as white deposits as the moisture evaporates, a process commonly known as Effloresence. Another advantage of give the floor an acid wash is that it neutralises the pH level of the floor following the use of alkaline cleaning products such as Remove and Go.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

The tiles must be dry before sealing and given all the washing and rinsing I had done to get the floor clean I decided to leave the floor for a whole week before returning to seal the tiles.

For this floor I opted to use Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an impregnating sealer that leaves a matt finish and works by occupying the pores in the tile protecting it from within. It’s also fully breathable so won’t prevent moisture rising through the tile and it contains a colour enhancer that will help improve the colours in the tile.

Victorian Tiled Floor After Restoration Bayston Hill Shrewsbury

The deep clean and fresh sealer worked well and as hoped those light blue tiles really lit up the floor. Before leaving I took time to discuss aftercare cleaning and for this floor, I recommended Tile Doctor Neutral Cleaner which is a gentle but effective product that is safe to use on sealed tiles.

Victorian Tiled Hallway Professionally Repaired and Restored in Shropshire

Loose Victorian Tiled Hallway Repaired and Renovated in Bayston Hill Shrewsbury Read More »

Ceramic Tiled Floor Renovation Shrewsbury

Renovating Patchy Grout on a Ceramic Tiled Floor in Shrewsbury

1 Comment / Ceramic Tile Cleaning, Grout Cleaning, Shrewsbury Tile Cleaning, Work by Category, Work by Location, Work History / Jozsef Hoffmann

These pictures were taken at a five-year-old property in Shrewsbury where the entire ground floor had been laid with Ceramic tiles. The owner was mainly unhappy with the grout which after five years of use had become patchy in appearance. Grout is usually the biggest problem when it comes to Ceramic and Porcelain floors, the tiles themselves usually require very little maintenance, whereas the surface of grout is slightly porous and can be stained.

Ceramic Tiled Floor Before Grout Colouring Shrewsbury

I recommended deep cleaning the floor and then re-colouring it with a Charcoal Grey colourant, not only would this resolve the appearance issue, but the colourant also acts as a protective barrier over the grout making it easier to clean and will ensure it had a consistent appearance. The alternative would be to slowly rake out the grout and replace with new which given the size of the floor would take a long time, also it would probably become stained again so we would be back to square one. My client was happy with my quote and agreed to go ahead, so we booked in a suitable time to carry out the work.

Cleaning a Ceramic Tiled Kitchen Floor

To clean the tile and grout I first sprayed on a medium dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean then after ten minutes scrubbed it in with a black pad fitted to a rotary buffer machine. I then followed this up with a manual scrub of the grout as the pads can struggle to reach into the recess of the grout line. This action lifted the dirt out of the floor which was then rinsed away with water and extracted with a wet vacuum.

The next step was to prepare the grout for the colourant by scrubbing it with Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up. This is an acidic product that cleans the grout further and etches the surface of the grout to ensure a better bond with the colourant. The solution was then rinsed away again and removed with the wet vacuum. This process was repeated with more water to neutralise the floor and remove any trace of cleaning products.

Colouring the grout on a Ceramic Tiled Kitchen Floor

It was a large area, so I left the floor to dry off overnight and returned the following day to apply the Charcoal Grout Colourant. Applying the product is done with a small brush and any excess has to be cleaned off quickly before it dries which makes it quite a slow process. It certainly requires a steady hand and a lot of patience.

The Tile Doctor Grout Colourant is available in ten popular colours, so it is very versatile for all types of tiled areas. They also supply the Colourant in a kit form with a brush and bottle of Grout Pre-Treater so you have everything you need.

Ceramic Tiled Floor After Grout Colouring Shrewsbury

It was fairly tedious work, but the discoloured and patchy grout looked great after I was finished and my client was really happy with the result, they even left the following testimonial.

“Had the whole tiled ground floor of my house, cleaned, sealed and the grout darkened. Jozsef did a great job with no mess. I would highly recommend him”

Professional Renovation of a Ceramic Tiled Kitchen Floor in Shropshire

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Painted Quarry Tiled Floor Before After Restoration Bayston Hill

Painted Quarry Tiled Floor Restored in Bayston Hill

1 Comment / Quarry Tile Cleaning, Shrewsbury Tile Cleaning, Work History / Jozsef Hoffmann

The pictures shown are of a Quarry Tiled floor in the dining room of a property in Bayston Hill, Shrewsbury. Bayston Hill is a large village in central Shropshire around three miles away from the county town of Shrewsbury.

The client had recently purchased the property and decided to renovate the quarry tiled dining room floor by painting it with red tile paint. The floor had not been painted previously and due to its age did not have a damp-proof membrane installed in the sub floor. I suspect the lack of a membrane led to moisture rising through the tile only to become trapped under the layer of paint. The moisture built-up until it destabilised the bond between the tile and the paint causing to lift and peel away.

Painted Quarry Tile Floor Before Restoration Bayston Hill

I wouldn’t recommend painting a Quarry Tiled floor and clearly painting the tiles was not a viable option in this case. Looking for a solution the owner reached out to Tile Doctor to see if the Quarry tiles could be restored to their original condition. There was also an area by the kitchen door where there was a row of tiles missing in the threshold and just filled with concrete which needed restoring.

Restoring a Quarry Tiled Dining Room Floor

I started the work with the repair which involved removing the concrete, cleaning up the area and relaying replacement tiles. Luckily, they had found spare tiles in one of their sheds, so I was able to use those.

Painted Quarry Tile Floor After Repair Bayston Hill

After the repair was done, I sprayed down a generous amount of Tile Doctor Remove and Go and then left it to work for about half an hour making sure that it wasn’t drying to the surface. After the dwell time I went over the floor with a rotary machine fitted with a black scrubbing pad. The combination of Tile Doctor Remove and Go and the scrubbing action removed most of the paint. I then repeated the process on the stubborn areas.

There were some old cement deposits on the tiles in places which I removed using Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up. I then rinsed the floor several times with water using a wet vacuum to remove the soil. I then left the floor to dry off for a week.

Sealing a Quarry Tiled Dining Room Floor

I returned the following week and first checked the floor was totally dry using a moisture meter. The readings were good, so we were ready to seal. I selected to use a couple of coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow. This is a solvent based sealer that provides durable surface protection as well as allowing the surface to breath which is important on this floor as it has no damp proof membrane. It provides a colour intensifying finish which enhanced the natural colour beautifully.

Painted Quarry Tile Floor After Restoration Bayston Hill

The client was very happy with the new floor and certainly pleased to see the back of the paint that they had applied. The floor now had the natural finish that was in keeping with the age of the property.

Professional Restoration of a Quarry Tiled Dining Room in Shropshire

Painted Quarry Tiled Floor Restored in Bayston Hill Read More »

Mosaic Marble Shower Tiled Renovation Church Preen

Rust Stained Marble Mosaic Shower Tiles Renovated in Church Preen

1 Comment / Marble Tile Cleaning, Shrewsbury Tile Cleaning, Work History / Jozsef Hoffmann

We were contacted by a homeowner near Shrewsbury about the Marble wall tiles in their shower which were looking particularly grubby. They had tried to clean the area with a multitude of household products but were unable to improve their appearance and had decided to call in some professional help.

I went over to do a site visit, run some tests and recommend a solution, I like to do this where possible as it ensures I can provide an accurate quote and it also gives me an opportunity to demonstrate a workable solution. The tiles were the small two inch square Marble Mosaics which from my point of view means there’s a log of grout to clean.

Marble tiled shower before Cleaning Church Preen

More importantly whilst there I discovered their water is pumped up from a well and the water is rich in Iron deposits. You can see on the picture where the water has dried on the walls and then the Iron deposits have turned rusty resulting in a large rust stain.

The property was in the old village of Church Preen which a small Hamlet in Shropshire which only has around 30 properties, it is approximately 12 miles from the county town of Shrewsbury.

Cleaning Rust Stained Marble Shower Tiles

Normally I would remove the iron and rust deposits with an acid-based product such as Acid Gel or Grout Clean-up but Marble is acid sensitive and doing so would etch and damage the tiles. So, to work around this problem I selected to use Tile Doctor Rust Away which worked really well. This product is an effective ready to use cleaner specifically designed to remove rust stains particularly when it has become heavily embedded. In the pictures it is clearly visible how the solution turns purple when it reacts to the rust and iron deposits.

Marble tiled shower during Cleaning Church Preen

After the rust was removed, I set about cleaning the Marble tile and grout with Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel which being a gel sticks well to wall tiles allowing for a longer dwell time. After ten minutes the solution was scrubbed into the tile and grout by hand and then rinsed off with water. I repeated this process a couple of times where necessary until I was satisfied the tile and grout were as clean as could be and then rinsed the tiles down thoroughly to ensure all any traces of cleaning product has been removed. Once done the Marble tile and grout looked so much cleaner.

Sealing Mosaic Marble Shower Tiles

It was a hot day and with a little encouragement from my air mover I was able to dry out the tiles and grout quite quickly as verified by testing with a damp meter. This meant I could complete the job in one day without the need for any additional drying time.

I sealed the Marble and grout with two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an impregnator that seeps into the pores of the stone intensifying the natural colours and providing durable protection. With a fresh sealer in place water now runs off the shower wall and no longer accumulates on the tile where the Iron in the water can cause staining as it rusts.

Marble tiled shower after Cleaning Church Preen

They were over the moon with their revamped shower, it now looked much more inviting for them to use and less embarrassing when guests come to stay.

Before leaving we discussed aftercare and I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Aqua-Pro for general cleaning, it’s a pH neutral product so its safe to use on sealed surfaces. Also I suggested that should the find water starting to collect on the shower wall after use it’s wiped off with a squeegee.

Professional Renovation of Stained Marble Shower Tiles in Shropshire

Rust Stained Marble Mosaic Shower Tiles Renovated in Church Preen Read More »

Mexican Terracotta Tiles Deep Cleaned and Sealed in Shrewsbury

1 Comment / Shrewsbury Tile Cleaning, Terracotta Tile Cleaning, Work History / Jozsef Hoffmann

Mexico is known to produce some of the best quality Terracotta tiles, with the Saltillo region in the north-east of the country being particularly famous for its craftsman. People from countries all over the world import these tiles and use them in their houses to create fantastic, colourful floors.

This set of Mexican Terracotta floor tiles had been installed throughout the ground floor of a property in historic Shrewsbury which is on the Welsh border and renowned for being the birthplace of Charles Darwin. The tiles were in all the functional areas of including the Large kitchen/diner, pantry, utility room and downstairs WC and so had seen a fair share of wear which had worn off any protective sealers that may have been present.

The floor had not received any maintenance for some time so it was now in dire need of a deep clean and re-seal. At a loss for how to improve the condition of the floor, the property owner contacted me to restore the Mexican Terracotta tiles back to their original condition.

Mexican Terracotta Tiled Floor Before Cleaning Shrewsbury

I visited the property to conduct a test clean and, impressed with the result I achieved, the client booked me in to complete the job.

Cleaning a Mexican Terracotta Tiled Floor

Before beginning the work, I made sure to cover the bottom of the kitchen units with plastic wrap to protect them from splashes during the cleaning process. I then started to clean the floor using a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean in combination with a scrubbing brush fitted to a rotary machine.

Mexican Terracotta Tiled Floor After Cleaning Shrewsbury

Pro-Clean is a versatile and powerful high alkaline that can be used with reliable results on all tile, stone and grout. Once I applied it liberally across the floor I left it to dwell and seep into the pores of the tile. After scrubbing it was rinsed off using water and the soiled solution was extracted using a wet vacuum. Stubborn stains were re-treated and then I focused my attention on to cleaning the dirty grout lines using more Pro-Clean scrubbed in with a special grout brush.

Once I was happy with the condition of the tile and grout I gave the floor a good rinse with water and used the wet vacuum machine again to remove as much moisture from the floor as possible and then left the floor to dry off fully overnight.

Sealing a Mexican Terracotta Tiled Floor

Upon my return to the property I immediately checked the floor to see if it was dry enough to be sealed (thankfully, it was). Testing for damp issues is incredibly important before sealing because any excess moisture can affect the sealer and negatively affect its performance.

I sealed the floor using two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow, an impregnating, colour enhancing sealer which offers the natural looking, matte finish the customer requested to match the rustic feel of the tiles.

Mexican Terracotta Tiled Floor After Sealing Shrewsbury

The customer was really pleased with the improved condition of his floor. So much so, in fact, that he left the following testimonial:

“Five-star performance from Tile Doctor Jozsef Hoffmann in terms of professionalism and customer service. Really pleased with the end result of our kitchen floor – a vast improvement on what is was like. Very happy that we found Tile Doctor and will certainly use them again when needed. I have no problem in recommending to both family & friends.”

Professional Restoration of a Mexican Terracotta Tiled Floor in Shrewsbury

Mexican Terracotta Tiles Deep Cleaned and Sealed in Shrewsbury Read More »

Quarry and Victorian Tiled Floors Restored in Shrewsbury

Victorian and Quarry Tiled Floors Restored in Shrewsbury

1 Comment / Quarry Tile Cleaning, Shrewsbury Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning, Work History / Jozsef Hoffmann

Details below of a red and black Quarry tiled floor at a house belonging to a customer in the Shropshire market town of Shrewsbury, which dates back to medieval times. The owner had recently moved back to the area and purchased the house with the intention of restoring all its original features including the Quarry tiles floor which had several coats of red floor paint and had been covered with carpet for several years, I guess the previous owner wasn’t sure what else to do with it.

Black and Red Quarry Tiled Dining Room Before Cleaning in Shrewsbury

I was also asked to refurbish the Victorian Tiled hallway and porch which was in an equally neglected state.

Victorian Tiled Hallway Before Cleaning in Shrewsbury

Naturally this is exactly the sort of thing we do so I was confident the floor could be significantly improved with our assistance and after popping round to take I look provided a quote although due to other priorities it was a whole year later before I was asked to come and do the job.

Cleaning a Quarry Tiled Floor

There was cement based building residue, plaster and efflorescence on the floor so I decided to treat 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 until I was satisfied that any stubborn areas had been dealt with and then the floor given an acid wash with Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up to remove the efflorescence.

Once I was happy with the condition it was given a final rinse to remove any trace of cleaning products and then left to dry for four days.

Sealing a Quarry Floor Sealing

The tiles have to be dry before sealing and after testing the floor with a damp meter I confirmed that four days has been sufficient and the floor was indeed dry. The next step was to apply three coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an impregnating sealer that occupies the pores in the tile and enhances the natural colour of the tiles in the process.

Black and Red Quarry Tiled Dining Room After Sealing in Shrewsbury

I was able to use the same cleaning and sealing process on both floors and I think you will agree it made quite a difference and both floors have been transformed.

Victorian Tiled Hallway After Cleaning in Shrewsbury

Quarry and Victorian Floor Tile restoration in Shropshire

Victorian and Quarry Tiled Floors Restored in Shrewsbury Read More »

Limestone Kitchen and Utility Refurbished in Shrewsbury

1 Comment / Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Shrewsbury Tile Cleaning, Work History / Jozsef Hoffmann

This customer had recently bought a house in Shrewsbury and was in the process of refurbishing it including replacing the kitchen which when I arrived had been removed leaving an area of flooring which was a different shade to the rest. Additionally the floor has been very badly laid resulting in lippage problems between the tiles and in some places there was a 3mm difference in the level between adjacent tiles. To make things worse there had a leak in the bathroom above which caused the ceiling to come down leaving a big mess in the utility room.

Limestone Floor in Shrewsbury Kitchen Before

Limestone Floor in Shrewsbury Utility Before

Cleaning Limestone Tiles

The polished Limestone tiles needed to be cut back and refinished with a set of diamond encrusted burnishing pads however my first task was to clean the grout lines by applying a medium dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean and scrubbing it into the Kitchen and Utility grout with a stiff narrow brush. I gave the grout a rinse with hot water and removed the now soiled water with a wet vacuum.

I had spoken to the customer earlier about the lippage problem and recommended that we could resolve it with a set of very coarse milling pads which effectively grind away at the Limestone until the whole floor is completely flat. The customer was not keen on this and after discussing the options I agreed to treat the most problematic edges with a handheld machine and set of six inch burnishing pads which gave a fairly good result.

The burnishing process requires the application of four different grades of diamond pad fitted to my rotary floor machine and lubricated with a little water. You start with the coarse pad which removes the dirt from the Limestone and you move onto the medium, fine and superfine polishing pads until the surface is restored. The process requires the floor to be rinsed between the application of each pad and this needs to be removed using a wet vacuum.

Sealing Limestone Tiles

Once I had finished polishing and the floor was dry I applied a single coat of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which impregnates into the pores of the tile to prevent other contaminates getting in there; Colour Grow also does a great job of bringing out the natural colours in the stone.

Limestone Floor in Shrewsbury Kitchen After

Limestone Floor in Shrewsbury Utility After

The customer was very happy with the end result and left the following feedback:

” Jozsef was really excellent, professional and very polite. The limestone tiles in our new home were dreadful, we thought they would have to be removed, but Joe somehow managed to get them clean again. He left everywhere clean and tidy and we would wholeheartedly recommend him. Mr & Mrs Leech, Shrewsbury.”

Limestone Tiled Floor Burnished and Sealed in Shropshire

Limestone Kitchen and Utility Refurbished in Shrewsbury Read More »

Terracotta Kitchen Floor and Victorian Tiled Hallway in Shrewsbury

Victorian Tiled Hallway and Terracotta Kitchen Floor in Shrewsbury

1 Comment / Shrewsbury Tile Cleaning, Terracotta Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning, Work History / Jozsef Hoffmann

For this old terraced house in Shrewsbury I was asked to clean and seal two areas which included a Victorian tiled hallway and Terracotta tiled kitchen; I’ve copied below the original request so you can better understand that there was a fair amount of work that needed doing.

“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!””

As it turned out the customer had only recently bought the property and told me that the previous owner had rented the property out and that the last tenants kept snakes, rats and all sorts of animals there and the remaining smell was one of the concerns of the customer.

After inspecting the Victorian tiled hallway I suspected it had probably been re-laid at some point in the past as the grout line were different in places and there were several new replacement tiles visible. The terracotta floor was more recent and had showed no signs of a sealer being applied which would explain how they had become so dirty.

Victorian Tiled Floor Before Cleaning in Shrewsbury

Terracotta Tiled Floor Before Cleaning in Shrewsbury

Cleaning a Victorian and Terracotta Tiled Floors

To clean both floors I applied a dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go leaving it to soak in before scrubbing it in using a rotary machine fitted with a black scrubbing pad. I was banking on the Remove and Go to deal with any remaining sealer and also to loosen the paint spots. The resultant slurry was washed away using more water and a wet vacuum and the process repeated until I was happy with the condition of the tiles. I also had to use a steamer on the hallway tiles as the dirt was ingrained in the mainly light coloured tiles and it needed the steam to lift it out. it was then given a final rinse to remove any cleaning products and then left to dry.

Sealing Terracotta and Victorian Floors

I left both floors to dry out overnight and returned to seal them the next day checking first with a damp meter that they were dry. To seal the Terracotta tiles in the kitchen two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow was applied, Colour Grow is an impregnating sealer that enhanced the colours and leaves a matt finish which is what the customer wanted. For the hallway however the customer wanted a shine so five coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go were applied. The one advantage of having two floors to seal was that I could be adding a coat of seal on one floor whilst the other was drying.

Victorian Tiled Floor After Cleaning in Shrewsbury

Apologies for not taking a final photograph of the Terracotta tiles after they were sealed, however the customer was really happy with the job and left a nice testimonial:

“Jozsef was a pleasure to deal with – professional, hardworking and friendly. He was quick to contact me, give me the quote and to schedule the work. He clearly explained what my options were and I am really happy with the work done – both tiled floors look great!”

Cleaning and Sealing Tiled Floors in Shropshire

Victorian Tiled Hallway and Terracotta Kitchen Floor in Shrewsbury Read More »

Sprucing up Terracotta Tiles in Shrewsbury

1 Comment / Shrewsbury Tile Cleaning, Terracotta Tile Cleaning, Work History / Jozsef Hoffmann

Details below of a Terracotta tiled hallway and kitchen at a house in the historic town of Shrewsbury. The floor had been laid a couple of years previously but the customer had found it difficult to maintain the appearance especially in the kitchen in fact the customer’s description on their enquiry form was “Need to spruce up the hallway and kitchen floor.”

Terracotta Tile Before Cleaning in Shrewsbury

Cleaning a Terracotta Tiled Floor

I cleaned the Terracotta floor with strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean scrubbed into the tile and grout with a black pad and then rinsed off with clean water which was then removed with a wet vacuum. After rinsing the floor there were a couple stubborn spots left behind so they were spot treated using Tile Doctor Remove and Go which is a strong coatings remover that is safe to use on tile and stone and usually takes care of most issues and certainly worked in this case. The floor was then thoroughly rinsed to remove any cleaning product prior to sealing and then left to dry.

Terracotta Tile After Cleaning in Shrewsbury

Sealing a Terracotta Floor Sealing

I’d agreed with the owner to return a week later to ensure the tiles were bone dry and ready to be sealed and on my return I checked the floor for any problem areas in need of further cleaning and also for dampness. The Terracotta was dry enough to take the sealer so I sealed it using two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which was chosen as the customer didn’t want a shine on the floor.

Terracotta Tile After Sealing in Shrewsbury

Out of interest I’ve included the photograph below which shows how the sealer causes water to form on the surface of the tile due to the surface tension provided by the sealer.

The customer was very happy with the result and left the following testimonial on the Tile Doctor feedback system:
“Very pleased with the work carried out by Jozsef. He is a pleasant and hard working individual and very conscientious about his work. No hesitation in recommending his work.”

Cleaning and Sealing Terracotta tiles in Shrewsbury

Sprucing up Terracotta Tiles in Shrewsbury Read More »

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Bridgnorth Tile Cleaning, Ceramic Tile Cleaning, Encaustic Cement Tile Cleaning, Fireplace Cleaning, Flagstone Tile Cleaning, Grout Cleaning, Ironbridge Tile Cleaning, Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Ludlow Tile Cleaning, Marble Tile Cleaning, Market Drayton Tile Cleaning, Newport Tile Cleaning, Oswestry Tile Cleaning, Porcelain Tile Cleaning, Quarry Tile Cleaning, Rowley Tile Cleaning, Sandstone Tile Cleaning, Shrewsbury Tile Cleaning, Slate Tile Cleaning, Telford Tile Cleaning, Tenbury Wells Tile Cleaning, Terracotta Tile Cleaning, Terrazzo Floor Cleaning, Travertine Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning, Vinyl Tile Cleaning, Wellington Tile Cleaning, Whitchurch Tile Cleaning, Work by Category, Work by Location, Work History / Jozsef Hoffmann

Shropshire Tile Doctor

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