Floor Tiles Archives - Worcestershire Tile Doctor

Honed Travertine Floor Polishing Belbroughton

Travertine Kitchen Floor Polished to a High Shine in Belbroughton

I received this enquiry regarding a dull Travertine tiled floor at a property in the small village of Belbroughton near Stourbridge. My client had been considering replacing the stone floor as they were unhappy with how dull it had become, also some holes had formed.

Honed Travertine Flooring Before Polishing Belbroughton

I paid the property a visit to survey the floor and work out a quote for renovating the stone. I talked through with the client how I could restore the appearance of the Travertine using a set of diamond pads. They were delighted to hear that the floor could be restored, and it would not be necessary for them to replace it. The quote was accepted, and the work scheduled, the work would take three days to complete.

Cleaning and Repairing a Travertine Honed Tiled Kitchen Floor

The first step was to ensure the kitchen kick boards were removed and silicone applied to base of the kitchen units to stop water penetrating the wood. I also sealed the skirting boards with silicone where needed. Preparation is essential to ensure the best experience for our clients and avoid damage.

The cleaning process could then begin. Using a 200-grit pad attached to a rotary machine I scrubbed the floor and grout lines using a dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean. The floor was then rinsed with water and the soil was removed using the wet vacuum. I repeated this again to clean up the more stubborn areas.

Once I was happy the floor was clean I then filled the holes using epoxy resin, colour matched to the travertine. Filling the holes would prevent any dirt build up in the future, coupled with applying the sealer.

The following day was the start of the resurfacing and polishing of the stone. Starting with a 400-grit diamond pad I made several passes of the floor, I then moved onto the 800-grit all, then worked through the sequence of pads right the way through to 3000-grit. After each pad the floor was rinsed with water and the soiling generated extracted with a wet vacuum.

Sealing a Travertine Honed Tiled Kitchen Floor

The floor was left to dry overnight and then we returned the following day to start the sealing process. My client wanted the Travertine to have a natural look, so I applied several coats of Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal. This is a no sheen, natural looking sealer, it gives great stain protection to the stone and the grout and is really useful in areas such as kitchens where there is high traffic and spillages.

Honed Travertine Flooring After Polishing Belbroughton

To bring up the polished appearance of the stone further Tile Doctor Shine Powder were ground into the floor using a white pad. This last step gives the Travertine a high shine and very durable finish.

Once complete the Travertine looked stunning and the kitchen looked fantastic. Although happy my client was concerned the shine may dull again over time, so before leaving I spent time discussing ways to maintain it.

First, we talked about aftercare cleaning for which I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Stone Soap which is an effective yet gentle cleaning agent that helps maintain the patina on the stone. I suspect the reason small holes were forming in the Travertine previously was due to use of strong cleaning products which are acidic and simply too harsh for use on Travertine. Second, I recommended we work out an annual maintenance plan for the floor where I would return once a year to further polish the stone and top up the sealer. With the combination of the two I was confident the stone would keep looking it’s best.

Professional Restoration of a Travertine Tiled Kitchen floor in Worcestershire

Travertine Kitchen Floor Polished to a High Shine in Belbroughton Read More »

Black Slate Kitchen Floor Renovated in St Johns Worcester

I’m not sure what was previously used to seal these Black Slate floor tiles in the kitchen of a property in the St Johns suburb of Worcester but something had not gone well. The sealer had completely failed and was starting to peel off resulting in a very unsightly appearance.

Slate Kitchen Floor Before Restoration St Johns Worcester

The owner was not happy, as well as the peeling the floor had lost its colour and now looked terrible. I was called in to strip the old sealer off the Slate and replace with something more hard wearing.

I visited the property to survey the floor and investigate the full extent of the problems. After running a few tests, I discussed the process for restoring the Slate. They were happy to go ahead with my quote and we booked in a mutually convenient date for the work to commence.

Removing Sealer from a Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor

To strip off the failed sealer the floor was sprayed with a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go with Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel applied on top. Both these products are powerful strippers and Oxy-Gel is also a cleaner. Using a Black scrubbing pad fitted to a rotary floor machine the products were worked into the floor.

This process did a good job of removing the old sealer and cleaning up the tiles and after the pad had been across the whole floor it was rinsed with water and the soiling extracted with a wet vacuum. The process was then repeated until I was satisfied that all the sealer had been removed and the ingrained dirt had been released from the pores of the stone.

Once the floor was clean, I moved my attention to the grout lines, these were flushed and scrubbed with Tile Doctor Pro-Clean worked in by hand with a scrubbing brush. After another rinse and extract the floor was left to dry off overnight.

Slate Kitchen Floor During Restoration St Johns Worcester

Sealing a Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor

The next day I returned to seal the tiles first checking they were dry using a damp meter. All was well so I moved onto applying the sealer which for this Slate floor I had chosen Tile Doctors newest sealing product called X-Tra Seal. This is an oil-based impregnator that works from withing by soaking into the pores of the stone, occupying the pores and thus preventing dirt from residing there.
Several coats of sealer were applied and by the time I had finished the floor was completely transformed. The new sealer had worked wonders on the Slate bringing out the dark colours and character whilst adding durable protection. The floor was now restored and looking how it should.

Slate Kitchen Floor After Restoration St Johns Worcester

For aftercare cleaning I recommended they use of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which will help keep the floor in tip top condition. This is a pH neutral product which is mild enough to be used daily, it will ensure that the newly applied sealer is not compromised unlike some household cleaners which are simply too strong and can break it down.

The floor looked great as you can see from the pictures and the client was very happy with the completed work, another happy Tile Doctor client.

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