Floor Restoration Archives - Worcestershire Tile Doctor

Encaustic Cement Tiled Hallway Floor Restored in Worcester

I received an enquiry regarding the restoration of an Encaustic Tiled floor in the hallway of an Edwardian property in Worcester. I arranged a visit to assess the floor and come up with a plan for its restoration.

Edwardian Tiled Floor Before Restoration Worcester

The client wanted the whole floor restoring to its original condition including retiling a section just behind the front door that had been dug up to install pipe work back in the 1980’s and then backfilled with screed.

I work on these sorts of projects all the time so happily agreed to the work on condition I could find matching replacement tiles. There are several suppliers in the UK and fortunately I managed to track down the necessary replacements from a reclaimed tile supplier I know. They confirmed I could get the required tiles, so I sent a quote to the client, which was accepted, and a date was arranged to start the restoration.

Cleaning and restoring an Edwardian Tiled Hallway

Day one was spent carefully removing the old screed as I would need to install one at the right level to allow for the replacement tiles to be in installed. This has to be done very carefully so as not to disturb the rest of the tiled floor. The rubble was then removed and a new cement base laid to the correct level in order to take the new tiles.

Edwardian Tiled Floor During Restoration Worcester

The next stage was to cut and dry lay the replacement tiles to match the original pattern and check everything fitted, making adjustments where necessary. Once I was happy with the lay out, I started fixing the tiles starting with the border and then the main patterned inset. This was meticulous work that required the new tiles to fit the existing geometric pattern exactly. This was completed over 2 days including grouting.

Once the floor had set overnight, I moved onto the restorative cleaning. This started with a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go which was worked into the floor using a coarse 100-grit diamond pad fitted to a rotary buffer machine to remove what was left of the old sealer. The floor was then rinsed with water and the soiling extracted using a wet vacuum.

The next step was to give the floor an acid wash using using Tile Doctor Acid Gel which was pasted onto the floor and then worked in with a finer 200-grit diamond pad. Once done the floor was rinsed with water and the soiling extracted with the wet vacuum as before.

Sealing an Edwardian Tiled Hallway

The floor was left to fully dry overnight, and I returned on day four to apply a protective sealer. Sealer options were discussed earlier and for this floor we had chosen Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is a durable impregnating sealer that contains a colour enhancer.

Impregnating sealers work by soaking into the tile, occupying the pores and thereby preventing dirt from residing there. This ensures dirt remains on the floor where it can be easily cleaned away.

Edwardian Tiled Floor After Restoration Worcester

As you can see from the photos the floor was returned to how it should look, and the client was absolutely delighted.

For aftercare cleaning I recommended they use Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is mild but effective tile cleaning product that won’t damage the sealer.

Professional Restoration of an Edwardian Tiled Hallway in Worcestershire

Old Quarry Tiled Floor Restoration Great Witley Worcestershire

Full Restoration of an Old Quarry Tiled Floor in Great Witley

1 Comment / Bewdley Tile Cleaning, Quarry Tile Cleaning, Work History / Mark Conway

It is lovely when we get called out to properties with an interesting history. This delightful property in the pretty Malvern Hills village of Great Witley dates to the 1800’s and was once used as children’s home. The property has since been renovated and turned into a residential property. During the renovation works the new owners were delighted to peel back the carpet on the large entrance hallway and dining room to reveal an original quarry tiled floor believed to be well over 100 years old.

The floor however was in quite a bad state after years of being covered with various carpets over the years and was ingrained with layers of dirt and varnish. The owners were unsure if the floor could be repaired and restored and after finding Tile Doctor on-line they arranged for me to pop over and survey the floor.

Period Quarry Tiled Floor Before Restoration Great Witley

On the day of the inspection I could see that this would take some work to bring the floor back and over 20 tiles would need replacing due to salt damage or broken tiles some of which had completely perished. There was also layers and layers of white paint over many tiles from previous decoration work to deal with. Even in such a state I was still very confident that with the combination of my own abilities, the right tools and Tile Doctor products that the floor could be restored. We discussed a price for the work which was accepted and scheduled a convenient date for me to pop round and restore the floor.

Cleaning and Repairing a Quarry Tiled Hallway Floor

My first job was to remove all the damaged tiles, being careful not to damage any good tiles. I then repaired the substrate and prepared the area for the replacement tiles which were all slightly larger so needed cutting with an electric wet saw.

Period Quarry Tiled Floor During Restoration Great Witley

This work took up much of the first day and on the second day the new tiles were laid using a flexible fast setting adhesive. The area was then grouted and left overnight before starting the cleaning process.

The following day the entire floor was sprayed with a dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go which was then left to dwell and soak into the tiles before being scrubbed in with a rotary floor machine fitted with a black scrubbing pad. Difficult areas such as the paint splashes were covered with a sheet of plastic, so the solution wouldn’t dry out and left until the paint became easier to scrape away.

The floor was then rinsed with water which was the soil extracted using a wet vacuum. More work was needed to release the layers or ingrained dirt, so this was followed by scrubbing the floor with Tile Doctor Pro-Clean and then more rinsing and extracting.

Last step of the cleaning process was to treat the floor to an acid rinse using Tile Doctor Acid Gel. This was also scrubbed in with a rotary cleaner before being rinsed off with water and the slurry removed using the wet vacuum. The acid rinse will counter any mineral salts in the floor and reduce the chance of efflorescence occurring as the floor dries out.

Once I was happy with the floor I left it to dry overnight, the floor was already looking significantly better.

Sealing a Quarry Tiled Hallway Floor

I returned on the fourth day to compete the restoration by applying a sealer, checking first that the floor had dried with a moisture meter. Once I was happy the Quarry tiled floor was sealed with five coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go Extra which made the natural colours of the tile shine through without looking too glossy. This product is also fully breathable which is an important factor for these old floors where no damp proof membrane is present, and moisture needs to be able to pass through the tile unimpeded.

Period Quarry Tiled Floor After Restoration Great Witley

The deep cleaning and sealing process ensured the new replacement tiles blended in well with the original tiles and the whole floor was transformed back to its former glory. The client was over the moon with the results and surprised at what we had been able to achieve!

Professional Restoration of an old Quarry Tiled Floor in Worcestershire

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