Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing

Welcome to my Work History archive where you will find detailed examples of the cleaning and renovation of Limestone tiles carried out in South East London

Cleaning and Renovating Limestone tiles

Limestone is a sedimentary stone, as such it’s generally very porous and acid sensitive and can be damaged through the use of even mildly acidic soaps, shampoos and body washes. Because of this we do not recommend it for use in wet rooms, shower cubicles or near swimming pools.

Like any stone Limestone needs to be sealed to prevent dirt becoming ingrained in its pores and many varieties including Blue Lias, Blue Moleanos, Jerusalem and White Moleanos to name a few can be polished to a high shine using a series of burnishing pads.

We have found that Black Limestone has become very popular in gardens where it contrasts well against green planting and looks fantastic when wet. One issue we find however is it easily upset by the use of acidic patio cleaners that leave the stone looking dull and lifeless. If this has affected you then not to worry we do have a way of restoring the beauty of the stone back to its original condition.

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.

Limestone Floor Cleaning and Polishing Bromley

Tumbled Limestone Floor Cleaned, Polished and Sealed in Bromley

1 Comment / Bromley Tile Cleaning, Grout Cleaning, Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing /

I get called to renovate this Tumbled Limestone tiled floor at a property in Bromley every few years. The sealer does a good job of protecting the stone, but it does wear off with use and the natural crevices in the Travertine attract dirt easily. The other problem of course is the grout which due to its cementous nature also attracts dirt and darkens over time.

Limestone Floor Before Cleaning Bromley

Polished stone floors do regular attention if you want to keep them 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 repolish. In this case the owner also had a dog who was very well natured however dogs are not know for wiping their feet before entering your house.

Limestone Floor Before Cleaning Bromley

Stripping and Polishing Tumbled Limestone Tiles

With most polished Limestone floors, I would normally start with a set of burnishing pads which are the best way to restore the finish. In this case however I decided to start the cleaning process with the application of a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is left to soak into the stone for ten minutes before being worked in. This gives the product time to digest and breakdown the dirt that gets trapped in the crevices. I then use a silicon carbide brush fitted to a rotary floor machine to work the solution into the stone to bring out the dirt. The soiling is then rinsed off the floor and extracted with a wet vacuum.

The next step was to burnish the stone using a set of Diamond encrusted pads of increasing grits that range from a coarse 400-grit to a very fine 3000-grit. The pads are fitted to the rotary machine and are run across the whole floor lubricating with water which is deployed from a tank on the machine. After each the pad the soiling is rinsed away and extracted with the wet vacuum as before.

Limestone Floor During Cleaning Bromley

I stopped the burnishing process on the first day with the 1500-grit pad and turned my attention to the grout joints which are scrubbed by hand with a wire brush and more Pro-Clean. After another rinse and extract the Limestone and grout was already looking noticeably cleaner.

Sealing Limestone Tiles

I returned the next day and set about polishing the floor with the last in the set of burnishing pads which is a 3000-grit pad. This pad is applied with only a little water sprayed on to the stone as its run over the surface, this technique is known as a spray burnish and leaves the floor dry and ready to be sealed.

I was already aware that the owners of the property like the stone to look completely natural and so the sealer chosen was Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal. This is an impregnating sealer that works by soaking into the pores of the stone so dirt cannot become ingrained there allowing it to be easily removed from the surface. It doesn’t change the appearance of the stone at all so it’s almost invisible and difficult to detect which is exactly what they were after. Ultra-Seal is also a great grout sealer and will ensure the grout keeps clean for much longer.

Limestone Floor After Cleaning Polishing Bromley

Once the sealer was dry gave the floor an application of Tile Doctor Shine Powder which is a stone polishing compound that is worked into stone, left to dry and then buffed off with a White buffing pad to leave a durable shine on the stone.

Limestone Floor After Cleaning Polishing Bromley

Before leaving I took time to discuss aftercare cleaning and left them with a complimentary bottle of Tile Doctor Stone Soap which not only cleans but also help maintain the patina on polished stone.

 

Professional Renovation of a Large Polished Limestone Floor in Kent

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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 /

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.

Limestone Tiled Floor Before Cleaning Beckenham

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.

Limestone Tiled Floor After Cleaning Beckenham

 

Professional Renovation of a Large Polished Limestone Floor in Kent

Polished Limestone Tile Renovation in Beckenham Read More »

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South East London Tile Doctor

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