Sunbury-on-Thames Tile Cleaning Archives - South Middlesex Tile Doctor

Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor Renovation Feltham

Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor Deep Cleaned and Sealed in Feltham

This Travertine stone floor had been installed in a property in Feltham eight years ago and hadn’t been professionally cleaned since. The appearance of the stone had slowly degraded during that time with dirt and stains building up in the pores of the stone and especially the grout which had darkened. My client had found it impossible to get it clean and restore the nice original finish. They had tried multiply household cleaners and had finally given in and contacted Tile Doctor.

Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor Before Cleaning Feltham

I visited the property and after surveying the tile and grout formulated a plan for its recovery. It was clear to me that the sealer that would protect the stone had long since worn off and now dirt was filling the pores making it impossible to clean. Without the use of some specialist products and equipment they were never going to be able to improve that on their own.

I discussed with them the process for deep cleaning and renovating the floor and they agreed to go ahead with my quote. We agreed a date for my return to do the work which would take a couple of days.

Deep Cleaning a Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor and Grout

I returned the following month and started work by taping up the wooden skirting boards, kitchen plinths and architrave to protect them from splashing during cleaning. To deep clean the stone and grout I set about applying a combination of Tile Doctor Remove and Go and Tile Doctor Pro-Clean diluted with water to break up the soils and greases from the kitchen floor. This was left to soak in for ten minutes before being scrubbed in with a heavy-duty machine scrubber, alongside hand scrubbing the grout lines and deeper cracks.

After this, we low pressure washed and vacuumed the floor, flushing all the cleaning products and soils away. The process was repeated again to deal with a couple of areas that were particularly stubborn. Once this was complete the floor was left to dry out overnight, so it would be ready to receive a sealer the following day.

Sealing a Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor

The next morning I checked the floor for moisture using a damp meter and confirmed the tile and grout had dried out and was now ready for sealing. For this I applied two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow sealer allowing time to dry between each coat. Colour Grow is a versatile impregnating sealer that soaks into the pores protecting the stone and grout from within, its colour enhancing formula also helps to bring out the Brown shades in Travertine to improve the overall appearance. Additionally, this sealer leaves a matt finish rather than anything too shiny which the client was keen to avoid.

Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor After Cleaning Sealing Feltham

Once complete the floor looked clean and the different shades of Travertine tile really contrasted well together. My client had forgotten how beautiful their stone tiles are and were very happy with its improvement. The new sealer will provide a durable barrier from soils and spillages in the future allowing the floor to maintain its appearance for many years to come.

For ongoing maintenance, I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Stone Soap, this product is pH neutral and is suitable for sealed stone floors. Its effective yet mild enough to use daily if needed and goes a long way once diluted. You must be careful when selected a cleaning product for a sealed floor as many stronger products you find in supermarkets can degrade the sealer prematurely.

Professional Restoration of a Travertine Tiled Kitchen in South Middlesex

Travertine Tiled Kitchen Floor Deep Cleaned and Sealed in Feltham Read More »

Travertine Tile Grout Before After Cleaning Sunbury-on-Thames

Professional clean of a Travertine Tiled floor in Sunbury-on-Thames

1 Comment / Grout Cleaning, Sunbury-on-Thames Tile Cleaning, Travertine Tile Cleaning, Work History / Jonathan Oldham

This client got in touch about cleaning their Travertine Tiled floor which they were struggling to get clean. They had been using all the usual household floor cleaners, but nothing was having the desired effect. The property was in the lovely village of Sunbury On Thames within the borough of Spelthorne. I’m based in nearby Shepperton and so it wasn’t long before I was able to pop over and take a look at the problematic floor.

Travertine Tiled Floor Before Cleaning Sunbury-on-Thames

It turns out the Travertine floor which was installed throughout the hallway and kitchen had not been professionally cleaned since its’ installation twelve years prior. As you can see from the pictures, the old sealer that was protecting the Travertine had long since worn off and this in turn had allowed soils and spillages to penetrate deep into the pores of the stone and grout. The sealers demise may have been accelerated with the use of overly strong cleaning products but given it not been professionally cleaned for twelve years it was well overdue a deep clean and reseal.

I discussed with the client what we could do to clean the floor and demonstrated my proposed cleaning process on part of the floor. They were very satisfied with the demonstration and were happy to go ahead with my quote. The work would take two days to complete, one day for cleaning and a second day for sealing.

Deep Cleaning a Travertine Tiled Floor in Sunbury-on-Thames

Working in sections I started by spraying a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean on the floor and left if to soak in while I set up a floor buffing machine with a black scrubbing pad. After about ten minutes I ran the buffing machine over the working area, the machine was set to run at slow speed to reduce splashing. This action broke down the soils and helped lift the marks and stains out of the stone.

Tile Doctor Pro-Clean is a concentrated, multi-purpose high-alkaline cleaner, stripper and degreaser. The strong dilution of one-part cleaner to two parts water would ensure it would clean the floor and strip off any old sealers present on the tiles. Once the Travertine had been cleaned in this way, I ran a narrow brush along the grout lines to ensure they were also scrubbed clean.

Travertine Tiled Floor During Cleaning Sunbury-on-Thames

After scrubbing a low-pressure rinsing machine was used to rinse the floor with water and extract all the dirt and cleaning products off the floor. After a final inspection the floor was then left to dry out overnight to leave the stone ready to receive a new seal the following day.

Sealing a Travertine Tiled Floor in Sunbury-on-Thames

I returned the next morning and tested the floor with a moisture meter to ensure the Travertine was dry. The results were good, so we set about applying two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is a colour enhancing sealer that soaks into the pores of the stone thus preventing dirt from becoming ingrained there. The sealer really brought put the contrast back into the stone by enhancing the colour whilst giving it the protection it needed to prevent future spillages staining the tiles.

Travertine Tiled Floor After Cleaning Sunbury-on-Thames

The client was very happy with the result, the finished floor looked much lighter and 100% cleaner, the beauty of the natural stone was really apparent, and the grout which was once dark and was now white again.

For aftercare I recommended they avoid purchasing supermarket floor cleaners, the majority of which are too strong for sealed stone and let them with a bottle of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner. This is a pH neutral solution that will not prematurely erode the sealer and is highly concentrated, so a small bottle lasts a long time.

Professional Restoration of a Travertine Tiled Kitchen in South Middlesex

Professional clean of a Travertine Tiled floor in Sunbury-on-Thames Read More »

Slate Kitchen floor Before After Cleaining Sunbury on Thames

Neglected Slate Kitchen Floor Tiles Restored in Sunbury-on-Thames

1 Comment / Slate Tile Cleaning, Sunbury-on-Thames Tile Cleaning, Work History / Jonathan Oldham

We always recommend regular maintenance for stone tiled floors, especially in areas of high traffic and high possibility of spillages, such as kitchens. Unfortunately, most house owners aren’t aware of this as was the case case of this particular Slate tiled kitchen floor at a property in Sunbury-on-Thames. In fact, the sealer hadn’t been refreshed for seven years and I suspect had worn off some years prior. The result? Well, you can see it from the photographs below

Slate Kitchen floor Before Cleaning Sunbury-on-Thames

Heavy soil and general kitchen spillages was now able to penetrate the pores of the stone leaving it looking stained and grubby.Cleaning using run-of-the-mill household products was proving near impossible and with the customer at a loss as to how to resolve the situation, I was called in to provide the professional attention these tiles so desperately needed.

Cleaning a Dirty Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor

The first order of business was to break down what was left of the old impregnating sealer. To do this I applied Tile Doctor Remove and Go to the floor, it was left to soak in for around ten minutes before being scrubbed into the stone. Remove and Go is a heavy-duty remover for old sealers, adhesive stains and paint splashes that is safe to use on stone, tile and grout.

Another product used was Tile Doctor Pro-Clean, which is a powerful high alkaline cleaner which works well on stone and is especially good at cleaning up grout lines.

This combination of products helped to eliminate all oil-based stains and day-to-day soils from the stone. Next, using a specialised stone rinse extractor and water, I flushed all the old sealer, cleaning products and resultant soil away.

Sealing a Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor

I left the floor overnight to dry completely following the cleaning. Upon my return to the property I applied three coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow sealer, an impregnating sealer which helps to protect the stone from spillages and ingrained dirt by filling the pores of the stone and acting as a barrier. This subsequently makes daily maintenance easier.

Slate Kitchen floor After Cleaning Sunbury-on-Thames

As you may have guessed from the product name, the sealer also enhances the natural colours in the stone. The photos below show just how significant a difference this make to the aesthetic appearance of the floor.

The customer was very pleased with the results and couldn’t quite believe seven years of poor maintenance could be remedied in just two days!

Professional Tile Cleaning and Sealing for a Dirty Slate Tiled Floor Restoration in Sunbury-on-Thames

Neglected Slate Kitchen Floor Tiles Restored in Sunbury-on-Thames Read More »

=================================

Ashford Tile Cleaning, Brentford Tile Cleaning, Ceramic Tile Cleaning, Encaustic Cement Tile Cleaning, Fireplace Cleaning, Flagstone Tile Cleaning, Grout Cleaning, Hampton Court Tile Cleaning, Hayes Tile Cleaning, Heathrow Tile Cleaning, Hounslow Tile Cleaning, Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Marble Tile Cleaning, Porcelain Tile Cleaning, Quarry Tile Cleaning, Richmond Tile Cleaning, Sandstone Tile Cleaning, Shepperton Tile Cleaning, Slate Tile Cleaning, Staines Tile Cleaning, Sunbury-on-Thames Tile Cleaning, Teddington Tile Cleaning, Terracotta Tile Cleaning, Terrazzo Floor Cleaning, Travertine Tile Cleaning, Twickenham Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning, Vinyl Tile Cleaning, Work by Category, Work by Location, Work History / Jonathan Oldham

South Middlesex Tile Doctor

================================= Read More »