Reduxa Archives - West Cheshire Tile Doctor

Green Limestone Kitchen Floor Renovation Pickmere

Stained Green Limestone Kitchen Floor Renovated in Pickmere

We were contacted by a resident of the west Cheshire village of Pickmere about their 90m2 Green Limestone tiled kitchen floor which has been stained by washing up liquid. Although washing up liquid appears to be a harmless the product clearly contains some ingredients that upset the sealer and polish.

Stained Green Limestone before Cleaning Pickmere

Unfortunately patching up the floor up wasn’t really an option as the result would be equally patchy. The only option was to re-polish the tiles with a set of Tile Doctor burnishing pads and apply a fresh sealer. I worked out a quote which was agreed and a date set.

Burnishing and Cleaning a Limestone Tiled Floor

Before working on the Limestone, I set about cleaning the grout lines with a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is a strong Tile and Grout cleaner. The pads can struggle to reach into the grout lines so I find the best way to clean grout is by hand with stiff brush and extract the soiling with a wet vacuum.

Next step was to start cleaning the stone using the first of the burnishing pads. This first pad is a coarse 400-grit which cuts through and removes old sealers, scratches and dirt from the stone. The pad is attached to a weighted buffer machine and run over each tile using only water for lubrication. The water turns into a dark liquid which was rinsed with more water and removed using the wet vacuum.

This process was repeated with 800-grit pad and the floor was then inspected. Unfortunately, it showed several areas where the staining remained so I spot treated them using Tile Doctor Reduxa. This is a liquid that is sprayed on the stain and then warmed up with a heat gun which literally steams the stain out of the stone. This process has to be repeated several times for the stain to disappear

With the staining gone I finished off burnishing the Limestone with the remaining two pads which are a fine 1500-grit and then the extra fine 3500-grit which is applied using only a little water sprayed onto the stone. This last pad builds up a high-quality polish on the stone and really bring up the finish.

Sealing a Limestone Tiled Floor

The floor was left to dry off fully overnight and I returned the next day to seal the Limestone first checking with a damp meter that the stone was dry. To get the finish the customer wanted a coat of Tile Doctor Colour Grow was applied with is an impregnating colour enhancing sealer. Impregnating sealers works under the surface by occupying the pores in the stone thus preventing dirt from becoming ingrained there. Any excess sealer was wiped off the tile before treating the stone to a gentle buff with a White pad to bring up the shine even further.

Green Limestone After Cleaning Stain Removal Pickmere

Once complete the staining was gone and the floor looked amazing much to the relief of the owner. For aftercare I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Stone Soap which is a pH neutral cleaner for the maintenance of polished floor that contains a patina enhancer.

Green Limestone After Cleaning Stain Removal Pickmere

Professional Renovation of a Stained Green Limestone Floor in Cheshire

Stained Green Limestone Kitchen Floor Renovated in Pickmere Read More »

Red Wine Stains Removed from a Limestone Fireplace Surround in Sealand

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

Testimonials

We were really pleased with the brilliant job that Alastair and his son did for us in restoring our kitchen floor. Thank you very much!!
Julie K, Chester

It was harder than usual setting up for the job to be done because of delays because of Covid. However, Alastair always replied to my emails and came when he said he would and on time. he and his son did a brilliant job on our shabby porch tiles and left them pristine. We may need renovation of inside tiles and would certainly like them to do the job.
Judith B, Chester

Alistair and his son Andrew were very professional and carried out the required work, taking longer than expected, to a very high standard and we are very grateful to them! Our hallway floor looks lovely
Sarah W, Christleton

My quarry tiles had been ruined by a thoughtless plasterer who hadn’t covered them up. I’d spent many hours fruitlessly trying to clean them in three rooms. Alastair and his son did a fantastic job of restoring them to their former glory in just a couple of days. Highly recommended.
Teresa F, Northwich

I am delighted with the cleaning and with the finish of the hallway. It looks like new and no sign of any damage that was previously there. It really sets off the hallway and is now back ‘in keeping’ with the age of the house. A wonderful feature to have restored back to its former glory! I can’t wait to have the front path sealed when the dryer weather returns as this too looks great. Thanks for your expertise and hard work Alistair and team.
Elizabeth A, Wirral

Latest Review Latest Rating 1 2 3 4 5 Thorough, excellent result carried out in a clean and professional manner. Highly recommended.
Wilby , Parkgate Neston

Professional, friendly and efficient service provided by Alistar and his son. Communicated really well and the new bathroom I’ve had gutted finally looks clean and no longer has water marks or grout haze. Highly recommend
Samantha F, Prescot

From the get go dealing with Alistair has been very professional and he was even patient in waiting for some other works to be completed before he came to carry out his works. The quoting stage was great, the comms to arrange the works was spot on and the work itself was great my wife was so happy with the end result. I have a minor fix for you for future projects…. i arrived home to see a dust and debris on my pathway and front step with the old stone and rubbish to the side of the step. For me first impressions count for a lot so another ten minutes tidying would make for a more positive first impression. Thank you for a top job.
Mathrew S, Wallasey