Beckenham Tile Cleaning Archives - South East London Tile Doctor

Damaged Sealer Replaced on Black Slate Wall Tiles in a Penge Bathroom

The photographs below are of a Slate Tiled Bathroom at a property in Penge. The customer had an open plan ensuite bathroom and feature wall in Black Slate, unfortunately however the topical sealer had become damaged and now looked terrible. The owner was clearly unhappy with its appearance and called us in to take a look.

Slate Bathroom Tiles Before Cleaning Penge

I went over to the property to survey the tiles and work out what had happened. In this case I diagnosed that moisture had penetrated beneath the sealer causing it to become white and cloudy. Clearly the sealer used previously was not the best choice for a bathroom where a high level of moisture in the air is common.

Slate Bathroom Tiles Before Cleaning Penge

The solution would be to remove the old sealer entirely, clean the tile and grout and then apply a suitable impregnating sealer which wouldn’t have the same issue. I worked out a quote along these lines which was accepted and a date set for my return to carry out the work.

Slate Bathroom Tiles Before Cleaning Penge

Removing Sealer from Black Slate Wall Tiles

I set about removing the old sealer by applying a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go which as its name suggests is a coatings remover. Working in one section at a time the solution was decanted into a spray bottle and sprayed onto the wall tile, this mixes the solution with air making it lighter and helps it stick to vertical surfaces better.

After a few minutes the solution was worked into the stone by hand with a scouring pad, the delay gives the product time to start breaking down the old sealer. After scrubbing a section, it was rinsed with water and checked to see if more work was needed. Due to the thickness of the sealer I had to repeat this process several times aided by a steam cleaner before I was happy all the sealer had been removed.

Slate Bathroom Tiles During Cleaning Penge

When I was happy that all the damaged sealer had been removed from the Slate tiles, I continued to remove all the sealer from the remaining area. This is important as I would be applying an impregnating sealer later and any remaining sealer would prevent it from soaking into the tile. Also, the last thing you want is different depths of sealer on the stone as it will result in an inconsistent appearance.

Sealing Slate Wet Room Tiles

When all the sealer had been removed and the Slate was dry, I was then able to re-apply the new sealer. Its important that the stone was dry before applying the new sealer as any dampness in the stone can effect the way the sealer cures.

I chose two products to seal the Black Slate starting with a single coat of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which was selected for several reasons. First, its fully breathable so can cope with moisture, also as its name suggests it contains a colour enhancing formula which helps to bring out the best in dark stone. This product is also an impregnator which basically means it will soak into the stone, occupying the pores and thereby ensuring that any contaminants remain on the surface where they can be easily wiped away.

Once all the Black Slate was covered, I allowed a quick dwell time before rubbing off the excess sealer. After the first coat of Colour Grow had dried I the applied a second coat of Tile Doctor Stone Oil, this really enhances the colour of the stone. The same application and drying process were used, before I carried out a third and final coast of sealer using Colour Grow again.

Slate Bathroom Tiles After Renovation Penge

The combination of sealers brought out the best in the Black Slate which developed a lovely deep shine. The result was completely transformative and as you can imagine the owner was very happy with the improvement.

For aftercare I recommended they clean the shower tiles with Tile Doctor Aqua Pro, this is a gentle but effective spray on shower tile cleaner that has been created for cleaning sealed stone. The formula won’t harm the sealer ensuring it lasts longer.

Slate Bathroom Tiles After Renovation Penge

Professional Slate Tile Restoration in a Kent Wet Room

Damaged Sealer Replaced on Black Slate Wall Tiles in a Penge Bathroom Read More »

Soiled Encaustic Tiled Bathroom Floor Deep Cleaned in Sydenham

The customer had Encaustic Concrete tiles laid in two bathrooms and a hallway around a year ago at their house in Sydenham, South East London. Encaustic tiles have been around for a very long time however they are currently undergoing a resurgence and are once again proving very popular due the varied patterns being created.

Concrete Encaustic Bathroom Floor Tiles Before Cleaning Sydenham

It’s probably difficult to appreciate from the photographs but this particular brand of encaustic tiles were very porous and had become very grubby since being installed and were now staining easily. I suspect they had only been lightly sealed after installation (if at all) and this had allowed dirt to penetrate the pores of the tile making it difficult to clean.

Cleaning a Dirty Encaustic Tiled Hallway

The process I used for cleaning the tiles was the same one I would use on polished stone such as Limestone or Travertine. It involves applying a set of Diamond encrusted burnishing pads starting with a coarse 400 grit pad fitted to a rotary floor buffing machine and lubricated with water. The water becomes soiled with the slurry from the burnishing process and once all the tiles have been treated its rinsed off with more water.

You then apply the medium 800 grit pad, again with water to help lubricate and rinse off afterwards like before. The process is repeated with the fine 1500 grit pad and the tiles given another rinse.

Before applying the final super fine 3000 grit pad I scrubbed the grout lines with a solution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is a strong alkaline cleaner that’s designed for use on Tile and Stone. I used a handheld narrow brush to scrub the grout and followed that up with another rinse with water using a wet vacuum to extract the water and dry the floor afterwards.

Sealing Encaustic Tiles

The beauty of honing the tiles with the burnishing pads in this manner is that the system closes up a lot of the pores in the tiles, making them less porous and easier to seal. Burnishing also uses less water so it wasn’t long before the floor was dry, and I was able to start the sealing process.

I sealed the floor using Tile Doctor Colour Grow, which is a colour enhancing impregnating sealer that seeps into the pores of the tile and protects it from within. Three even coats with a drying time in between is sufficient for these tiles, and once the final coat had dried I went over the floor with the 3000-grit pad on my floor machine, to leave the floor with a slight sheen.

Concrete Encaustic Bathroom Floor Tiles After Cleaning Sydenham

After care is so important when it comes to maintaining a sealed floor, so I always leave the customer with a small bottle of a recommend cleaning product. In this case I left them with Tile Doctor Stone Soap which is made with vegetable oil extract and will help maintain the patina on the floor.

Professional Encaustic Tiled Floor Renovation in Kent

Soiled Encaustic Tiled Bathroom Floor Deep Cleaned in Sydenham Read More »

Polished Limestone Tile Renovation in Beckenham

Beckenham Tile Cleaning, Bromley Tile Cleaning, Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Work by Category, Work by Location, Work History / Jason Gates

This modern town house in Beckenham had a Limestone tiled floor laid in the family room, kitchen, utility room and hallway. It had been some time since it was last polished and was now starting to look flat and even grubby in places.

Limestone Tiled Floor Before Cleaning Beckenham

A polished stone floor needs regular attention in order to keep it looking good and this is why we offer a maintenance program where we pop back to the property once a year to top up the sealer and re-polish. In this case a thorough clean, polish and re-seal was required and due to the large area to be cleaned and the need to move furniture around it would have to be done in three stages.

Stripping and Polishing Limestone Tiles

The best way to restore high quality stone like this is to hone the floor using varying grits of abrasive floor pads. Tile Doctor have developed a technique for this known as burnishing which is a version of stone polishing that involves the application of Diamond encrusted pads. Each pad in the system has its own level of grit and is applied in sequence from Coarse to Very Fine in order to clean and re-hone the finish on the stone.

I swept the floor to remove any loose dirt and grit and then began the burnishing process using a
Coarse 400 grit pad lubricated with water, then after rinsing and wet vacuuming the floor with water I moved on to the Medium 800 grit pad, Fine 1500 grit pads. The next step was to get the grout as clean as possible by scrubbing in a medium dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean with a narrow stiff brush. Pro-Clean is a strong alkaline product that is safe to use on Tile and Stone and is a good grout cleaner. With the Limestone tiles and grout now clean I gave the floor another quick rinse and finished honing the section with a very fine 3000 grit pad that gives the stone a final polish. You don’t need too much lubrication with this last pad, just a spray of water.

Sealing Limestone Tiles

Once the floor section was dry it was sealed with Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is a colour enhancing impregnated sealer that protects from within and really brings out the brown colours in the Limestone. Once the sealer was dry I polished the floor using Tile Doctor Shine Powder which is a stone polishing compound that is worked into the floor wet, left to dry and then buffed off with a white buffing pad to leave a durable high shine on the stone.

Limestone Tiled Floor After Cleaning Beckenham

As I mentioned at the start this was a large area that had to be completed in three sections, so it took a few days in order to complete the whole floor. It was worth waiting for however and the customer was very pleased with the finish. For general day to day cleaning of polished stone we recommend using Tile Doctor Stone Soap which not only cleans but also adds patina to the finish, I left with a complimentary bottle, so she could try it.

Professional Renovation of a Large Polished Limestone Floor in Kent

Polished Limestone Tile Renovation in Beckenham Read More »

Deep Cleaning Bathroom Tile & Grout in Beckenham

Beckenham Tile Cleaning, Ceramic Tile Cleaning, Work by Category, Work by Location, Work History / Jason Gates

Recently I was asked to renovate the tile and grout of this windowless bathroom in a Beckenham flat which was not looking its best. The Ceramic tiles had become dull due to a build up of Limescale and the grout had become stained from shampoo dyes and mould.

Ceramic Bathroom Tiles Grout Before Cleaning Beckenham

Without strong ventilation and regular cleaning most bathrooms can end up with these problems however with the right products and techniques they can be renovated as you will see below.

Deep Cleaning Bathroom Tile and Grout

My first action was to apply a liberal amount of Tile Dr Oxy-Gel which is a strong alkaline tile and grout cleaning product that comes in a gel form. Being a gel it’s able to sticks to vertical surfaces for longer allowing it to break down the Limescale and soap residue that had taken up residence. Once it had been left to dwell for around thirty minutes, it was scrubbed off with water and a pan scrapper and then dried with a micro cloth. You can use this process with glazed ceramic tiles like these but for natural stone I would have used a different approach.

I then sprayed Tile Doctor Duo Clean, which is a grout cleaner and mould remover, onto the grout lines. I left the grout with the Duo Clean on it for about ten minutes before scrubbing and rinsing off with water.

The process was repeated where needed until I was happy that the tile and grout were as clean as possible however to really give the bathroom a fresh look I decided to completely renovate the grout with the application of a Grout Colourant.

Grout Colouring Bathroom Wall Tiles

There are ten colours to choose from in the Tile Doctor range of Grout Colourant’s and in this case I felt the best outcome would be to use a White colourant to match the tiles and restore the original look of the bathroom; the customer however wanted a grout colour that would provide a contrast against the white tiles, so in the end we opted for a light grey colour.

The colourant is easily applied directly to the grout and in this case I waited for the tiles to dry before applying two coats with the aid of a small brush making sure to remove any excess that comes into contact with the tile.

I finished the renovation by cutting out the original mastic sealant from around the bath and replacing with a new mould resistant silicone in white to match the bathtub.

Ceramic Bathroom Tiles Grout After Cleaning Beckenham

The bathroom now looks transformed and the epoxy grout colourant adds a layer of protection to the grout that will keep it looking good for some time to come.

Bathroom Tile Renovation in Kent

Deep Cleaning Bathroom Tile & Grout in Beckenham Read More »

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1 Comment / Beckenham Tile Cleaning, Bexleyheath Tile Cleaning, Bromley Tile Cleaning, Ceramic Tile Cleaning, Chislehurst Tile Cleaning, Dartford Tile Cleaning, Encaustic Cement Tile Cleaning, Fireplace Cleaning, Flagstone Tile Cleaning, Grout Cleaning, Lewisham Tile Cleaning, Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Marble Tile Cleaning, Orpington Tile Cleaning, Porcelain Tile Cleaning, Quarry Tile Cleaning, Sandstone Tile Cleaning, Sidcup Tile Cleaning, Slate Tile Cleaning, Swanley Tile Cleaning, Terracotta Tile Cleaning, Terrazzo Floor Cleaning, Travertine Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning, Vinyl Tile Cleaning, West Wickham Tile Cleaning, Woolwich Tile Cleaning, Work by Category, Work by Location, Work History / Jason Gates

South East London Tile Doctor

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