Neutral Tile Cleaner Archives - Nottinghamshire Tile Doctor

Old Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor Renovation Sutton-in-Ashfield

Old Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor Renovated in Sutton-in-Ashfield

This old Terracotta tiled kitchen floor was located in a small 17th-century cottage in the historic market town of Sutton-in-Ashfield. The floor had accumulated years of soiling and layers of traditional dressings, leaving the Terracotta looking dark, tired and masking much of its natural colour.

Terracotta floors of this age were historically often finished using Linseed Oil and Wax. While these materials provided protection and helped enhance the appearance of the tiles, they require regular maintenance and, over time, can become heavily soiled and difficult to maintain.

Old Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor Before Cleaning Sutton in Ashfield

The customer contacted Tile Doctor to deep clean the floor and bring it back into good condition. I explained that the first stage would be to remove the old, worn coatings and accumulated soiling before applying a more modern sealing system that would provide better long-term protection.

Happy with my suggestion and quote a date was scheduled for the work which would take place over three days.

Deep Cleaning old Coatings off a Terracotta Tiled Floor

I began by applying Tile Doctor Remove & Go, our coating and soiling remover, across the floor. This was left to dwell for approximately 30 minutes; this allowed the product plenty of time to break down the old Linseed Oil and Wax coatings.

The floor was then worked thoroughly, including the grout lines, using a grout brush and mechanical agitation from a rotary floor machine fitted with a Silicone Carbide Brush. This combination was particularly effective at working the cleaning solution into the textured surface of the Terracotta and Grout lines releasing the coatings and ingrained dirt.

The resulting slurry was removed using a wet vacuum and the floor inspected to ensure it was clean. The process was repeated where needed until the floor was clean and ready for the second stage of cleaning.

A diluted solution of Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up was then applied and agitated using the brushes. This was again removed with the wet vacuum before the floor was thoroughly rinsed with fresh water. This is an acidic product that is good at removing mineral based contaminates and dissolve salts which can result in efflorescence as the floor dries.

Sealing a Terracotta Tiled Floor

The floor was left to dry out overnight and I returned the following day to begin the sealing process.
The first stage was to apply two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow, an impregnating sealer designed to penetrate the Terracotta and provide stain protection while enhancing the natural colours in the Terracotta.

Colour Grow leaves a matt finish so after leaving it to dry overnight, I returned for a third day to apply four coats of Tile Doctor Seal & Go which leaves a satin floor finish. This combination of sealers will provide maximum protection against soil and moisture ingress while helping to retain the appearance of the newly renovated floor.

Once done the completed floor was transformed, with the natural character and colour of the old Terracotta brought back to life while providing the customer with a considerably more practical finish for a busy kitchen.

Old Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor After Cleaning Sealing Sutton in Ashfield

Routine Cleaning of Terracotta Tiles

Whilst at the property I took time to go through future cleaning and explained that maintaining the floor correctly is important, particularly given its age and new sealer. I advised using Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner for routine cleaning, unlike many general-purpose floor cleaners you find in supermarkets this product won’t damage the sealer.

I also recommended having me return once a year to complete an annual maintenance clean. This will keep the floor looking its best and prevent soil and contamination from becoming established in the surface again.

Old Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor Renovated in Nottinghamshire

Old Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor Renovated in Sutton-in-Ashfield Read More »

Edwardian Chequered Porch Tiling Restoration West Bridgford

Dilapidated Edwardian Tiled Porch Restored to New in West Bridgford

1 Comment / Nottingham Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning / Steve Carpenter

I was asked by a client in the West Bridgford area of Nottingham to renovate the Edwardian era tiling in the porch at the front of their property. The tiles were laid in a classic black and white Chequered pattern and were now in a bad state having been exposed to the elements, they had also suffered extensive damage to the tile and screed foundation.

It’s very difficult to quote for restoration work like this from photographs so I arranged to visit the house, survey the floor and take some detailed notes. From this I was able to create a detailed quote which they were happy to go ahead with.

Edwardian Chequered Porch Tiling Before Restoration West Bridgford

Repairing and Cleaning an Edwardian Tiled Porch

Work started by removing the damaged tiles so the damaged sections screed could be removed and replaced. Once the base was ready replacement vintage tiles were cut to shape and the correct size where needed and then reinstated.

Edwardian Chequered Porch Tiling During Restoration West Bridgford

Once the replacement tiles had been laid the tiles were grouted in to make the floor solid, and ready for the next step of restorative cleaning.

With the tile and grout set a low-moisture gel clean process was applied using Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel to break down the old floor coatings and soiling. After allowing this product to soak into the tile for ten minutes it was worked in using Tile Doctors abrasive Silicon Carbide Brushes.

Edwardian Chequered Porch Tiling During Restoration West Bridgford

The resulting slurry was removed, and work progressed onto the next stage which was to apply Tile Doctor Acid Gel to further clean the tile. This product also treats inherent efflorescence staining and neutralises the alkaline Tile Doctor Oxy Gel used earlier. Again, this was worked in using Silicon Carbide Brushes.

The slurry was removed as before and the floor wiped down with microfibre cloths, that had been sitting in water with diluted Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up.

Sealing an Edwardian Tiled Porch

The floor was allowed to dry overnight and then sealed the following day with Tile Doctors X-Tra Seal which is a colour enhancing impregnating sealer. This sealer allows for vapour transmission which is ideal for period floors that do not have a DPM (damp proof membrane) to prevent moisture rising through the tile. Air movers were used to speed up drying times.

Edwardian Chequered Porch Tiling After Restoration West Bridgford

The sealer occupies the pores in the tile thereby preventing dirt from becoming ingrained in the tile and keeping it on the surface where it can be easily cleaned away. Once completed I recommended Tile Doctors Neutral Cleaner for regular cleaning and left a bottle with the client along with the instructions on how to use it.

Edwardian Chequered Porch Tiling After Restoration West Bridgford

My client was very happy with the newly restored porchway which now created a much more inviting entrance that I’m sure has added value to the property.

Professional Restoration of an Edwardian Tiled Porch in Nottinghamshire

Dilapidated Edwardian Tiled Porch Restored to New in West Bridgford Read More »

Victorian Encaustic Tiled Floor Restoration West Bridgford Nottingham

Encaustic Tiled Victorian Floor Renovated in West Bridgford

1 Comment / Nottingham Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning / Steve Carpenter

Here we have an encaustic tiled hallway floor from the Victorian era laid in a beautiful geometric pattern at a property in West Bridgford Nottingham. Given its age the floor had survived well however there were many loose tiles that needed attention and it was overdue a restorative clean and fresh seal.

Victorian Encaustic Tiled Floor Before Restoration West Bridgford Nottingham

Having visited the property, I was able to ascertain the extent of the repairs needed and created a detailed quotation for its restoration. My quotation was accepted and a date agreed for the work to start.

Cleaning and Repairing a Victorian Encaustic Tiled Floor

Before cleaning the tiles and re-sealing, the floor needed to be structurally sound so the first day was spent pulling out the 150 or so loose and damaged tiles. This was followed by removing the old adhesive and cleaning and repairing the foundation screed ready for the next step. I was able to re-use some of the original tiles, but I had also sourced replacements which needed to be cut to fit the pattern.

Victorian Encaustic Tiled Floor During Restoration West Bridgford Nottingham

The tiles were dry fitted into position to ensure the geometric pattern of the original floor was replicated. Only then were they fixed into place using rapid set adhesive and grouted.

The tiles were left to set overnight, and I returned the next day to deep clean the whole floor. Tiled floors of this age don’t have the benefit of a damp proof membrane and so they can suffer from damp rising through the foundation. Because of this I like to use low moisture gel cleaning products to clean old floors, this keeps water usage to a minimum, increases drying times and reduces the likelihood of efflorescent salts appearing later.

In this case I gave the floor a thorough deep clean using Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel and Acid Gel combined. These are applied to the tiles and then scrubbed in with a coarse 200-grit diamond pad to remove the years of ingrained dirt.

The resulting slurry was removed with a wet vacuum and wiped down with microfibre cloths dampened with a small amount of water. Again, this method minimises moisture penetration into the floor.

Victorian Encaustic Tiled Floor During Restoration West Bridgford Nottingham

The low-moisture system has the added benefit of keeping the tiles reasonably dry, so I was able to apply the sealer later that afternoon.

Sealing an Encaustic Victorian Tiled Floor

To seal the tiles Tile Doctors X-Tra Seal was applied. It’s a modern oil-based sealer that improves colour and is rated for external as well as internal use making it ideal for a hallway. Another feature of this product is that it’s fully breathable which is very important for period floors and won’t restrict moisture transmission through the tile.

Victorian Encaustic Tiled Floor After Restoration West Bridgford Nottingham

For aftercare I recommended Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is a pH neutral floor cleaner which won’t degrade the protective sealer.

Professional Restoration of an Encaustic Victorian Tiled Hallway in Nottinghamshire

Encaustic Tiled Victorian Floor Renovated in West Bridgford Read More »

Georgian Brick Floor Renovation Ollerton Nottinghamshire

Renovation of Georgian Brick Flooring in Ollerton

1 Comment / Ollerton Tile Cleaning, Quarry Tile Cleaning / Steve Carpenter

We were asked by our client in Ollerton, near Sherwood Forest, to renovate a couple of original brick floors that dated to the Georgian period. The floors were in a recently renovated cloakroom and the utility room and had been left to the end of the works.

Georgian Brick Floor Before Renovation Ollerton Nottinghamshire

Both floors had been painted at some point in their long history hiding some of the original features of the property. We can improve old floors like these, but I do have to set the expectations of the client. We can definitely make big improvements, but floors of this age can rarely not be restored to their original appearance. The other problem of course is its impossible to see what we are dealing with until all the paint is removed, and the floor is uncovered. The client was very keen to try and gave us the go ahead to do the renovation, they agreed to my quote and we booked in a suitable date in to carry out the work.

18th century floors like these do not have damp proof membranes and can be laid directly onto compacted soil, as a result efflorescence where moisture rises through the floor can be a common problem. Normally I use a lot of water to clean a floor but in this case, I didn’t want to exacerbate any damp issues and introduce more moisture into the sub flooring, so I used gel cleaning products.

Removing Paint from Georgian Brick Flooring

To remove the numerous latest of paint from the bricks they were covered in a strong paint stripper and then covered with a plastic sheet, leaving it overnight. The following day with the paint softened the bricks were deep cleaned with Tile Doctors Oxy-Gel and Acid Gel combined and worked in with light diamond abrasive pads. This stripped the paint from the brick flooring along with old worn coatings allowing it to be lightly rinsed with water and the soiling removed with a wet vacuum.

The process had to be repeated in a couple of areas that were particularly stubborn but eventually we got there. The floor we uncovered was quite different and was then to dry out for a few days before we could tackle the sealing.

Georgian Brick Floor During Renovation Ollerton Nottinghamshire

Sealing Georgian Brick Flooring

On our return the day the brick flooring was sealed with Tile Doctor X-Tra Seal to saturation point. This is a colour enhancing impregnating sealer that forms a protective breathable finish that will cope with the excess moisture and help manage the efflorescence problem.

Georgian Brick Floor After Renovation Ollerton Nottinghamshire

For aftercare I left the client with a bottle of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner and advised them how to maintain. This product is pH neutral so will not damage the newly applied seal unlike some of the household cleaners on the market. It should keep the floor in good condition and ensure that maintenance is minimal moving forward.

Our client was very happy with the work we carried out and delighted with the improvement of the floor particularly the colour!

Professional Restoration of a Georgian Brick Floor in Nottinghamshire

Renovation of Georgian Brick Flooring in Ollerton Read More »

Victorian Hallway Floor Before After Restoration Nottingham City

Restoration of a Victorian Geometric Tiled Floor in Nottingham City

1 Comment / Nottingham Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning / Steve Carpenter

This Victorian Tiled Hallway at a property in Nottingham City is a fantastic example of what can be done to restore an old floor. If you take a good look at the before photographs on this page, you will see not only was the floor dirty but there were many missing tiles that needed replacing to make the geometric pattern whole again.

Victorian Geometric Tiled Floor Before Restoration Nottingham City

We were contacted by the property ownerto repair the floor and the clean and seal to protect them. Initially the customer thought that only small repairs were required, however after inspection our survey highlightedextensive repairs were required. As part of the survey the missing, loose, and damaged tiles were counted to work out how many replacements would be required. Fortunately, I was able to source a good match from The Vintage Tile Company.

Repairing a Victorian Tiled Floor with Matching Replacements

To begin we focused on carrying out the extensive repairs which included rebuilding the sub floor with cement screed were necessary. Original tiles were repurposed where possible otherwise the replacements were carefully cut tiles to size to match the geometric pattern.

Victorian Geometric Tiled Floor During Restoration Nottingham City

Once a section of tiling was complete it was fixed in place with a rapid setting flexible adhesive. There was a lot of meticulous tiling to do so the repairs took some time to complete.

Deep Cleaning a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

Next, we set about cleaning the tiles using low-moisture cleaning products to remove the ingrained dirt from the pores of thetile. This was done using Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel, a strong alkaline-based gel cleaner that is used to break down dirt and grime. With these old floors, it’s important to keep the use of water to a minimum so not to exacerbate any inherent damp issues. The cleaner was left to dwell for a short period before being agitated with a scrubbing pad. This process releases the dirt and the resulting soiled cleaning solution is then extracted using a wet vacuum.

This was followed by giving the floor and acid wash using another gel product made by Tile Doctor called Acid Gel. The acidic content of the product counters any efflorescent salts in the floor and cleans up the tile even further by removing old grout smears.

Victorian Geometric Tiled Floor During Cleaning Nottingham City

These products were used alongside Tile Doctors abrasive floor pads which use industrial diamonds of different grades. For the corners and difficult to reach places they also provide handheld Diamond blocks. The combination of products deep cleaned the floor removing old coatings, paint spots and ingrained historic soiling in the process.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

Once deep cleaning was completed the Tiles were sealed with Tile Doctor X-Tra Seal which is a specialist colour enhancing sealer that’s fully breathable which is an important feature when sealing old floors that don’t have a damp proof membrane.

Victorian Geometric Tiled Floor After Restoration Nottingham City

As you can see from the photographs, the restoration was a massive transformation making our customer very happy. Before leaving I took time to explain how to look after the floor including the importance of protecting the integrity of the sealer by using a ph. neutral tile cleaning product such as Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner for regular cleaning.

Professional Restoration of a Victorian Tiled Hallway in Nottinghamshire

Restoration of a Victorian Geometric Tiled Floor in Nottingham City Read More »