Cheshire Archives - West Cheshire Tile Doctor

Sandstone Kitchen Floor Renovation Church Minshull

Incredibly Dirty Sandstone Tiled Kitchen Floor Renovation in Church Minshull

We received an enquiry from a client in the sleepy village of Church Minshull, North of Nantwich, in the Cheshire countryside to ask if we could renovate a Sandstone tiled kitchen floor.

Availability was critical in this case as they were having a new kitchen fitted and they wanted someone who could work on the floor in between the old units being removed and the new ones being fitted. Happy to help if I could, I arranged a visit to survey the floor and discuss timings.

Sandstone Kitchen Floor Before Cleaning Church Minshull

Whilst at the property I conducted a test clean on a small section of flooring which revealed just how incredibly dirty the stone had become. It was clear to me that the sandstone was heavily ingrained with dirt and that any sealer that may have been present was now long gone. Sealers prevent dirt from dirt becoming ingrained into the pores of the stone which keeps the dirt on the surface where it’s much easier to remove.

Sandstone Kitchen Floor During Test Cleaning Church Minshull

Impressed with the difference I had been able to achieve so quickly and happy with my quote for renovating the whole floor the only thing outstanding was to work out if I could get the floor clean before the new kitchen was installed. Fortunately, I was able to move a few things around so it would work.

Cleaning a Sandstone Tiled Kitchen

To get the floor clean, work started with an application of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is a strong alkaline tile and grout cleaner. I used a very strong solution diluting four parts Tile Doctor Pro-Clean to only one part water. This was then left to soak into the sandstone for twenty minutes to give it time to break down the dirt.

The grout lines were then scrubbed using a stiff grout brush before turning attention to the Sandstone which was scrubbed using a rotary floor machine fitted with a Black scrubbing pad and more water. All this scrubbing released a lot of dirt from the floor turning the cleaning solution into a dark slurry. The dirty residue was then removed by wet vacuum.

The floor was then inspected, and the process repeated where needed. Once I was happy the Sandstone and Grout were clear of all the dirt, I gave it a final rinse and extracted as much moisture as possible with the wet vacuum.

Sealing a Sandstone Tiled Kitchen

The floor was left to dry overnight, and work resumed the next day to seal the floor. First the floor was checked with a damp meter to make sure it was dry and ready to take a seal.
The results were fine and so the floor was sealed with two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an impregnating colour enhancing sealer. Large fans were used to speed up the drying process between coats.

Sandstone Kitchen Floor After Cleaning Church Minshull

Once done the floor looked incredibly different, the patterns and colours in the stone were now visible and it looked so much cleaner. The grout had also responded well and the floor was completely transformed by the work.

Sandstone Kitchen Floor After Renovation Church Minshull

For aftercare cleaning I recommended they use of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is an effective pH neutral tile and grout cleaner that won’t impact the sealer.

Professional Restoration of a Sandstone Tiled Kitchen in West Cheshire

Incredibly Dirty Sandstone Tiled Kitchen Floor Renovation in Church Minshull Read More »

Travertine Kitchen Utility Floor Renovation Neston Wirral

Deep Cleaning a Filthy Travertine Floor Tiles in Neston Utility Room

1 Comment / Grout Cleaning, Travertine Tile Cleaning, Wirral Tile Cleaning / Alastair Robb

This Travertine tiles in the Utility room of this property in Neston on the Wirral Peninsula had become filthy with ingrained dirt. Any sealer that was once present on the stone or grout has long since worn off and the grout especially had darkened with ground in dirt.

Travertine Kitchen Utility Floor Before Cleaning Neston Wirral

This is a common problem with stone floors as the sealer ensures dirt remains on the surface where it is easily cleaned away. Sealers however wear down with use and so they do need replacing every three to five years depending on use. This happens gradually over time and tends to go un-noticed until eventually you realise it no longer looks like it should.

To renovate the floor, I quoted for deep cleaning the stone and grout, strip off what was left of the old sealer, polish the stone and then re-seal to ensure easy maintenance in the future. Some of the Travertine tile also had small pitts that were dirt magnets so I offered to fill these in with a specialist stone filler as part of the work.

Happy with the price and relieved to have found someone who could renovate the floor a date was set for they work to start.

Deep Cleaning Travertine Tile and Grout

The best way to restore the appearance of honed stone is the application of diamond encrusted burnishing pads which come is a set of four pads with different grits. Work starts with the coarse 400-grit pad which is fitted to a rotary floor machine and run over each tile several times using only water for lubrication. This coarse pad cuts through the stone to remove dirt, old sealer, marks and fine scratches. The water turns into a dark slurry and this is rinsed off and extracted with a wet vacuum.

Pads can struggle to reach into the recesses of the grout line so the next step was to hand clean the grout using Tile Doctor Pro-Clean, scrubbed in with a stiff brush. Pro-Clean is a strong alkaline tile and grout cleaning product which is safe to use on all types of tile and grout. The soiling was then rinsed and extracted as before with the wet vacuum.

Next step was to fill in the small holes in the Travertine with a specialist stone filler which is colour matched to the stone. Once done its very difficult to detect and will prevent dirt from becoming lodged.

Once the filler had set work continued with the burnishing of the floor using the 800 and 1500-grit pads using the same process as before with water. These pads bring up the appearance of the stone building up a lovely finish. The floor was then left to dry out overnight.

Sealing Travertine Tiles

I returned the next morning and set about applying the last pad which is a very fine 3000-grit polishing pad. This last pad is applied dry with only a little water sprayed onto the Travertine; this is a process we call a “Spray Burnish”.

Last step was to seal the floor with an impregnating sealer that works by occupying the pores in the stone thereby preventing dirt from residing there and ensuring it remains on the surface where its easily cleaned away. The client loved the light appearance of the natural stone so Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal was applied which provides invisible protection and doesn’t darken the stone.

Travertine Kitchen Utility Floor After Renovation Neston Wirral

One the sealer had dried I gave the floor a quick buff with a White Pad and once complete the floor looked so much cleaner and lighter; the grout in particular was transformed by the treatment. For aftercare cleaning I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Stone Soap which will help maintain the patina on the stone.

Professional Cleaning and Polishing of Travertine Ties in the Wirral

Deep Cleaning a Filthy Travertine Floor Tiles in Neston Utility Room Read More »

Red Wine Stained Limestone Fireplace Renovated in Sealand

Red Wine Stains Removed from a Limestone Fireplace Surround in Sealand

1 Comment / Chester Tile Cleaning, Fireplace Cleaning, Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing / Alastair Robb

Earlier this year we was contacted by a resident on a new housing estate on the former MOD Sealand RAF base about their wine stained Limestone fireplace. This base was famous for its gliders and spitfires on the edge of North Wales and Cheshire but has since been closed.

The customer had dropped a glass of red wine on her new Limestone fireplace which resulted in obvious dark staining as it dripped down the Limestone. Naturally The customer was keen to have the stains removed and was horrified how badly it had affected the stone.

Red Wine Stained Limestone Fireplace Before Cleaning in Sealand

Fortunately, after researching the problem on the internet, she found Tile Doctor who have a simple solution for this problem which I’ll detail below.

Removing Wine Stains from a Limestone Fireplace

The first job was to protect the new carpet and walls from any splashing during the cleaning process. With that in place I started to apply our secret solution for dealing with these sorts of problems in the form of Tile Doctor Reduxa which is designed to remove acid stains from calcareous stone.

The stained areas were sprayed with Reduxa and then left to soak in for a few minutes. The solution was then warmed up with a heat gun. Doing this causes the solution to evaporate into a vapour which draws out the stain. This process needs repeating four or five times to draw out the stain but its very effective and does the job. Once removed the Fireplace was washed down with clean water then dried off with the heat gun.

The stone had never been sealed before so the last job was to apply Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal which is an impregnating sealer that works by soaking into the pores of the stone thereby preventing anything from residing there. Once dry it becomes invisible and does not change the colour of the stone.

Red Wine Stained Limestone Fireplace After Cleaning in Sealand

The work was soon completed and as you can imagine my customer was relieved that the staining was now gone.

Professional Removal of Wine Stains from Limestone in Cheshire

Red Wine Stains Removed from a Limestone Fireplace Surround in Sealand Read More »

Minton Hollins Victorian Floor Renovation Chester

Historically Important Victorian Hallway Floor Restored in Handbridge Chester

1 Comment / Chester Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning / Alastair Robb

I was first asked to restore the large Victorian tiled hallway floor at this mansion type property in Handbridge, Cheshire two years ago. The floors had a lot of history and had been used as a template for the famous Minton Hollins encaustic tiled floor at St George’s Hall in Liverpool that was built in 1854. Unfortunately, however my work was put on hold as other restoration works including repairing dry rot took priority.

Victorian Tiled Floor Before Renovation Handbridge Cheshire

I kept in touch with the owners whilst the other works progressed and kept a look out for 22 beige Octagon shaped tiles that were needed to replace some of the damaged tiles in the floor. In fact, it wasn’t until later in 2023 that I was called back to start the renovation work to the floor, by which time I had managed to source all the replacement tiles needed.

Handbridge is a district of Chester with a mixture of large Victorian mansion type properties on the South bank of the river Dee and workers cottages built to service the water powered factories that sprung up along the river.

Repairing and Cleaning a Victorian Hallway Tiles

Before starting the cleaning process my first task was to replace all the broken tiles. This needs to be done carefully so as not to dislodge any adjacent tiles and make more work for myself. Once removed the base is cleared of old cement and then the replacement tiles fitted using rapid set adhesive and cut to size where required.

Once the repairs were complete and the adhesive set, I began the cleaning process which is designed to remove and remaining protective sealer and flush out ingrained dirt from the pores of the tile. This is done by applying a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean with a mop and then leaving it to soak into the tile for ten minutes. The floor was then scrubbed using a buffing machine fitted with a black pad and lubricated with water. The cleaning alkaline cleaning solution soon turns black with the dirt and then floor is then rinsed with water and the residue extracted with a wet vacuum.

Attention then turned to the decorative historical piece of flooring at the entrance to the hallway. This only needed to be cleaned with Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is used for regular cleaning and maintenance of tiled floors. this was applied with a two-minute dwell time before cleaning by hand using soft scrubbing brush then wiped down with damp microfiber cloths then left to dry.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

The next day damp meter readings were taken from both floors to make sure they had dried and were ready to be sealed. The readings were within tolerance so work could begin on applying the first of what would be three coats of sealer.

Tile Doctor Colour Grow was chosen to seal the tiles, it’s an impregnating colour intensifier sealer which is fully breathable so it will allow for moisture to rise through tile, an important consideration for old floors that don’t have a damp proof membrane.

The sealer was applied using a paint pad and any excess is wiped off after five minutes with microfiber cloths before leaving it to dry for twenty minutes. I use air blowers around the floor to increase the drying speed.

Victorian Tiled Floor After Renovation Handbridge Cheshire

The owner of the property was over the moon with the work and pleased that the work to restore the property to its former condition was nearing completion after what had been four years of restoration.

Victorian Tiled Floor Before Renovation Handbridge Cheshire

Professional Restoration of a Victorian Tiled Hallway in West Cheshire

Historically Important Victorian Hallway Floor Restored in Handbridge Chester Read More »

Ceramic Shower Cubicle Tile Grout Renovation Lower Whitley

Deep Cleaning Shower Ceramic Cubicle Tile and Grout in Lower Whitley

1 Comment / Appleton Tile Cleaning, Ceramic Tile Cleaning, Grout Cleaning / Alastair Robb

We were recently contacted about cleaning a Ceramic Tiled shower cubicle by a landlord in Lower Whitley which is set in the rural countryside of Cheshire. The area was once part of Lord Daresbury Estate, the Greenall Whitley brewery and only a short drive from my base in Warrington.

The client had been renting out their cottage and following the end of a long lease they discovered the shower cubicle had never been cleaned properly and was now full of mould. The grout lines in particular had attracted a lot of staining and in some places were orange with the dye that occurs in soap and shampoo. It would be difficult to attract a new tenant with the bathroom in this condition, and so I was asked to clean the shower tiles and the grout and make it presentable again.

Ceramic Shower Cubicle Tile Grout Before Cleaning Lower Whitley

Deep Cleaning a Ceramic Tiled Shower Cubicle

I started by spraying the grout lines with Tile Doctor Duo Clean which is a double action grout and mould remover and was designed for situations like this. After leaving it to dwell for ten to twenty minutes the grout lines were scrubbed with hot water and a stiff brush then rinsed off with more water.

There was still some staining left so I coated the wall tiles and grout with Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel and again left it to soak in, being a gel, it stays put for longer so it can get to work breaking down the dirt.

As this was soaking in, I removed all the old silicone around the cubicle, between the tiles and shower glass and shower tray. Once this was done, I gave the stubborn areas a further scrub and rinsed the soiling off with more water. When working on these type of jobs, rinsing is much easier in the shower. In other situations, where immediate drainage is not an option, we use a wet vacuum to extract the soil away.

I forced dried the tiles and grout and then set about replacing the silicone sealant I had stripped out earlier.

Sealing a Ceramic Tiled Shower Cubicle

The last step was to seal the grout by spraying on Tile Doctor Aerosol Tile and Grout Sealer which is very quick to do and ensures water simply runs straight off the tile and grout and doesn’t collect on the surface. The tiles themselves are ceramic so are sealed in production so there is no need to apply any products to them however the grout has a rough surface which can attract dirt and mould so it’s always best to protect it.

Ceramic Shower Cubicle Tile Grout After Cleaning Lower Whitley

The work took about 4 hours and once done the shower was transformed and looked amazing. I was confident they would not have a problem attracting a new tenant now.

My client was delighted with the work we had done and were rather relieved that more work and tile replacement was not needed.

I also suggested that they should invest in some Tile Doctor Aqua Pro Cleaner and recommend it to the incoming tenant, this is a pH neutral product which is designed with everyday use in mind. It will remove the scum build up and any hard water deposits, ensuring the shower does not get back into poor condition.

Professional Restoration of a Ceramic Tiled Shower Cubicle in Cheshire

Deep Cleaning Shower Ceramic Cubicle Tile and Grout in Lower Whitley Read More »

Scratched Corian Worktop Renovation Cuddington Cheshire

Removing Scratches from Corian Worktops in Cuddington

1 Comment / Winsford Tile Cleaning / Alastair Robb

We recently received an enquiry from the Cheshire village of Cuddington regarding a Corian worktop which was cracked and scratched in many places. Although well known for our floor restoration work the equipment, we use works equally well on stone worktops so we were happy to be of assistance.

Scratched Corian Worktop Before Renovation Cuddington Cheshire

Granite is probably the ultimate surface for a Kitchen worktop and although extremely durable it is expensive. Corian is manmade and has a lower cost but is more easily damaged by heat and scratching than natural stone. It is however a very solid material and we find it can be maintained in a similar way to natural stone.

Having discussed the size of the worktop and costs to repolish the surface a date was worked out for a visit.

Polishing Scratches out of a Corian Worktop

To renovate the Corian Countertop the first step was to run over the surface with a hand held polishing machine fitted with a 800-grit resin disc. Water is used to keep the worktop wet so as to absorb the fine dust that is generated. The pad needs to be applied to the point where the scratches are removed and then to avoid creating shallow areas its necessary to run the pad over the entire surface taking it down to the same level.

The worktop is rinsed with water to remove the fine slurry that is generated and then the process repeated with a 1200-grit disc followed by another rinse. At this point all the scratches and cracks in the Corian should have disappeared but the polished appearance will had dulled as a result.

Scratched Corian Worktop During Renovation Cuddington Cheshire

To put back the shine on the countertop it needs to be polished and for this we like to use Tile Doctor Diamond Burnishing pads which are available in a 6 inch diameter and a perfect size for use with the hand held buffer. It’s a similar process using water for lubrication and starting with an 800-grit pad and finishing with a 1500-grit pad.

Sealing a Corian Kitchen Worktop

Once the worktop was dry two coats of sealer were applied to protect it. On this occasion I used Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal which is undetectable natural look product that is recommend for use in food preparation and serving areas.

Scratched Corian Worktop After Renovation Cuddington Cheshire

To finish I buffed the worktop with a 6-inch white pad, the transformation was fantastic and my costumer was over the moon. For aftercare I recommend the use of Tile Doctor Stone Patina Spray which is a mild cleaner that will maintain the patina of the stone.

Professional Corian Worktop Polishing in West Cheshire

Removing Scratches from Corian Worktops in Cuddington Read More »

Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor Cleaned Sealed Whightgate Northwich

Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor Cleaned and Sealed in Whitegate

1 Comment / Grout Cleaning, Terracotta Tile Cleaning, Wincham Tile Cleaning / Alastair Robb

We received an enquiry from a previous customer who lives in Whitegate near Northwich asking for a clean and seal of her small terracotta kitchen floor. It seems we did such a great job five years ago she was keen to ask us back to do it again.

Terracotta looks great in a Kitchen but you do need to maintain the sealer otherwise it will eventually wear down with use and let dirt become trapped in its pores, at which it becomes very difficult to keep clean as your standard mop and bucket won’t flush the dirt out of the pores.

Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor Before Cleaning Whightgate Northwich

Its also worth mentioning at this point that the life of a sealer can be greatly reduced with the use of strong cleaning products, most tile cleaning products you find in a supermarket are only designed for use on Ceramic or Vinyl flooring and are simply too strong for use on a sealed tile (always read the label!).

Deep Cleaning a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor

After protecting the Kitchen units and skirting boards with plastic sheeting my first job was to strip any remaining sealer off the Terracotta tiles using Tile Doctor Remove and Go in 1 part solution to 4 parts water dilution. The solution was spread across the floor and then left to dwell for ten minutes before scrubbing it in with a black scrubbing pad attached to a rotary floor buffer running at a slow speed.

Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor During Cleaning Whightgate Northwich

Removing all the old sealer is an important step as the floor will have experienced different levels of wear across the area and to apply more sealer on top will mean some areas become darker due to the build-up. For the best finish its always best to strip off the old sealer first and get down to the bare tile.

With the sealer removed the next step was to improve the appearance of the grout using more Remove and Go and worked in by hand with a scrubbing brush and a wire brush. Once done the slurry was extracted with a wet vacuum and the process repeated where necessary to make sure the Terracotta and grout was as clean as it could be. After a final rinse and dry with the wet vacuum the floor was left to dry off fully overnight.

Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor After Cleaning Whightgate Northwich

Sealing a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor

I returned the next morning and tested the tiles with a damp meter to ensure the tiles were dry before applying the sealer. All was well, so I started with the application of the first coat Tile Doctor Seal and Go which is a water-based sealer that works well on clay tiles and adds a lovely sheen finish to the floor. Due to the porous nature of Terracotta, it actually took eight coats of Seal and Go before it was completely sealed, each coat was applied using a paint pad.

Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor After Sealing Whightgate Northwich

The clean and new sealer really lifted the appearance of the kitchen much to the delight of my customer who was once again over the moon with the result. For aftercare cleaning I recommended Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is a mild but effective cleaning product designed for use on sealed tiles.

Professional Cleaning of a Terracotta Tiled Floor in Cheshire

Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor Cleaned and Sealed in Whitegate Read More »

Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor Before After Polishing Delamere

Polishing a Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor in Delamere

1 Comment / Grout Cleaning, Travertine Tile Cleaning, Winsford Tile Cleaning / Alastair Robb

This Travertine Polishing enquiry came from a homeowner in the village of Delamere which is in the middle of the Cheshire countryside, West of Winsford. The customer had recently moved to the area and was unhappy with the dull appearance of their Travertine tiled kitchen floor, there were also small holes in the tiles which needed filling.

Travertine is a natural stone and holes or pitting can appear as thin layers of surface stone break down to reveal a cavity underneath. This is a common problem and can be made worse by the use of strong acidic cleaning products that eat away at the surface over time.

The solution was to fill the holes using a matching epoxy filler, deep clean the grout and then burnish the tiles to remove the dirt and bring up the polish. Happy with my quote we agreed a date for the work to commence.

Travertine Floor Tiles Before Polishing Delamere

Grout Cleaning and Filling Pitts in a Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor

The first job was to fill the holes/pitts in the Travertine using a purpose made product called Tenax which comes in a variety of colours and is described as an adhesive filler that sets hard.

Travertine Floor Tiles During Filling Delamere

Step two was to get the grout clean so I applied a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is an alkaline tile and grout cleaner. I left this to soak in and breakdown the dirt for roughly ten minutes before scrubbing it in by hand. Once done the floor was rinsed with water and the soil now released from the stone extracted using a wet vacuum.

Polishing a Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor

To bring back the polished appearance of the Travertine I applied a set of four diamond burnishing pads of different grades in sequence from coarse to extra fine. The first two pads take off any remaining sealer and dirt, the floor is then washed down and the residue removed by wet vacuum. We then go onto the third pad which is a 1500 grit which starts to put a shine back on the stone. The floor is then washed down again with clean water and the slurry removed with the wet vacuum.

The floor is then forced dried by large fans and once dry the last pad is applied which is a 3000-grit pad that puts a high shine on the floor. A small amount of water is sprayed onto the tiles during this process which we refer to as a spray burnish.

Sealing a Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor

Spray burnishing also leaves the floor dry and ready to be sealed. The owner wanted the Travertine to look as natural as possible so two coats of Tile Doctor Ultra Seal were applied. This is an impregnating sealer which is recommended for use on polished stone and for use in kitchens. To finish and to remove excess sealer the floor was then buffed with a White pad.

Travertine Kitchen Floor Tiles After Polishing Delamere

I mentioned at the beginning of this post not to use strong cleaning products on Travertine and this advice is especially relevant if the stone is sealed as strong products including bleach can also erode the sealer. For the regular cleaning of sealed Travertine, I would recommend using Tile Doctor Stone Soap which is a gentle but effective cleaner that also helps maintain the patina.

Professional Renovation of a Dull Travertine Kitchen Floor in Cheshire

Polishing a Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor in Delamere Read More »

Travertine Kitchen Floor Renovated in Thurstaston Wirral

Polishing Travertine Kitchen Floor Tiles in Thurstaston

1 Comment / Grout Cleaning, Travertine Tile Cleaning, Wirral Tile Cleaning / Alastair Robb

Although the Travertine tiles in this beautiful kitchen floor in Thurstaston were in fair condition the Grout had turned black with dirt. This normally happens when the stone is sealed but the grout has been left unprotected, then when cleaning the floor dirt is washed off the stone into the grout line where it gets trapped in the rough surface of the grout. Overtime the dirt builds up and the grout lines turning it black and completely changing the appearance of the floor.

Travertine Kitchen Floor Before Renovation Thurstaston Wirral

After visiting the property, I could see the polished appearance of the Travertine had faded and the sealer was wearing thin, so I recommend not only cleaning the grout but also burnishing the stone to deep clean it and restore its polished appearance.

Burnishing and Cleaning a Travertine Kitchen Floor

To get the best from a stone floor, we apply a set of Diamond encrusted burnishing pads of different grades starting with a coarse 400 grit pad run over the tiles using a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean. Once the pad had been run over each tile at least three times attention was turned to the grout lines which was scrubbed with more Pro-Clean and a stiff brush. Afterwards the floor is rinsed down with water and then the dirty residue is extracted with a wet vacuum.

The 400-grit pad was followed by the application of a medium 800-grit pad using only water this time to add lubrication. Again the floor is rinsed with water after use and the soiling extracted with the wet vacuum. The next two pads are a Fine 1500 grit and Extra Fine 3,000 grit which really build up a high-quality polish on the stone. Before applying the 3000-grit I spent some time filling in the larger pits (holes) in the Travertine with an epoxy filler. Travertine is notorious for having this problem and being an acid sensitive stone it very important not to use even a mildly acidic cleaning product as this can make the problem worse.

Sealing a Travertine Tiled Floor

The floor was left to dry off fully overnight and I returned the next day to seal the Travertine first checking with a damp meter that the stone was dry. The customer wanted a natural look finish to the Travertine, so to seal the tiles I applied two coasts of Tile Doctor Ultra Seal which is an impregnating sealer doesn’t change the look of the stone in anyway. Ultra-Seal is an impregnating sealer that works under the surface by occupying the pores in the stone thus preventing dirt from becoming ingrained there.

Travertine Kitchen Floor After Renovation Thurstaston Wirral

Once the sealer had dried the floor was treated to a gentle buff with a white pad to bring up the shine even further. Once complete the stone looked a lot healthier and the grout looked so much cleaner.

Professional Travertine Floor Polishing in Cheshire

Polishing Travertine Kitchen Floor Tiles in Thurstaston Read More »

Limestone Tiled Restaurant Floor Renovated Chester

Cleaning a Limestone Floor in a Chester Restaurant Ready for Reopening

1 Comment / Chester Tile Cleaning, Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Work by Category, Work by Location, Work History / Alastair Robb

We were asked to clean and seal a large Limestone floor at a restaurant on the outskirts of Chester. The large hostelry and Steak House was reopening after being closed since lock down and the floor had not been cleaned since.

Limestone Floor Before Cleaning Chester Restaurant Cheshire

I arranged a visit to survey the floor and could see that although the Limestone tiles were still stained with beer, wine, and other detritus they were in good condition for a busy commercial floor. On the back of that visit, I was able to provide a detailed quote and at the request of the manager agreed to do the work three days before it was due to open.

Although this did not leave much time in the way of contingency it made a lot of sense for the manager as the floor would be pristine for the grand opening. I had calculated that the work should take two days and that left them a day for final preparations, including setting out the furniture and last-minute staff training.

Cleaning a Limestone Tiled Restaurant Floor

To get the limestone floor clean I sprayed the area with a mixture of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean (a multi-purpose degreaser tile cleaner) and Tile Doctor Remove and Go (a multi-purpose stripper and coatings remover). The cleaning cocktail was left to soak into the stone for a good twenty minutes to allow it time to break down ingrained dirt and marks in the old polish from around the fixed furniture and skirting boards that had been applied by the cleaners over the years.

To help the process of taking the stains out of the limestone the cleaning mixture was worked into the tile using a coarse 400-grit diamond encrusted burnishing pad. The pads are fitted to a rotary buffer machine applying weights were required to maintain a better contact with the stone. The cleaning solution turns into a dark slurry as the dirt is released from the floor and once the pad has been over each tile at least three times as vet vacuum is used to extract it.

This process was then followed up with the application of a finer 800-grit pad but applied only with water which helps lubricate the process. Again, the slurry was removed with a wet vacuum and the floor rinsed with water which is vacuumed off once more. This process is then repeated with a 1500-grit burnishing pad which starts putting the polish back on the floor. These large 17-inch pads can struggle around the edges of the floor so small six-inch burnishing pads fitted to a hand polisher are used. Once the whole floor had been treated in this manner it was rinsed down once more and dried with the wet vacuum before being left to dry out fully overnight.

Sealing a Limestone Tiled Restaurant Floor

The next day the last burnishing pad in the series was run over the floor, this is a very fine 3000-grit pad which completes the polishing process and leaves the Limestone with a healthy shine. This final pad is applied dry with only a few squirts of water applied to the surface, a process we call spray burnishing.

Lastly to protect the floor it was sealed using two coats of Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal which is a premium natural look penetrating and durable sealer. The sealer prevents dirt from becoming trapped in the pores of the stone and allow it to be easily cleaned off the surface. Once the last coat of sealer was dry the floor was dry the floor was buffed with a White buffing pad to improve the sheen and remove any excess sealer.

Limestone Floor After Renovation Chester Restaurant Cheshire

I am pleased to say we didn’t encounter any complications during cleaning, so the timings worked out beautifully and the owner was able to open on schedule.

For future maintenance I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Stone Soap cleaner which is a pH neutral that will gently cleans the tile whilst improving patina. Many commercial tile cleaning products are simply too strong for sealed floors and can degrade the sealer prematurely.

Professional Cleaning of a Limestone Floor in a Cheshire Restaurant

Cleaning a Limestone Floor in a Chester Restaurant Ready for Reopening Read More »