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Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor Renovation Frome

Problematic Terracotta Kitchen Floor Tile Solved in Frome

Photographed below is a Terracotta tiled kitchen floor at a property in Frome that was installed six months prior and was already proving problematic. I was asked to pop over and discuss the floor as they had been struggling to keep the tiles clean. Apparently after installation the builders offered to seal the floor, however they did not use enough sealer, so marks and stains soon started to appear. To resolve this several layers of wax were then added but this only caused more issues.

Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor Before Cleaning Frome

Although traditionally used as a coating for Terracotta we are not keen on wax finishes as the wax is easily scratched leaving a nice crevice for dirt to become ingrained, wax is also difficult to remove. After surveying the floor, I recommended stripping off the wax and what was left of the previous sealer, deep cleaning the Terracotta and grout and then sealing with a modern product designed for use on Terracotta which is notoriously porous.

Happy with my plan I worked out a detailed quotation for the work which was accepted and a date set for the work to start which would take two days.

Cleaning a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen

After taping up the kitchen units to protect them from splashing, work started with the application of neat Tile Doctor Remove and Go; this was allowed to dwell and soak into the floor and soften up the layers of wax. After 10 minutes the floor was scrubbed using a 240-Grit Carbide Brush attached to a rotary machine, the grout was also scrubbed at this point and on completion the floor was vacuumed.

Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor During Cleaning Frome

The next step as to treat the Terracotta to an acid rinse using Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up worked in with a poly brush. This treatment further cleans the terracotta and neutralises efflorescent salts which can be a problem with porous clay tiles like these. Again, once done the waste was extracted using a wet vacuum.

Removing some areas of wax build-up was a struggle and the cleaning process had to be repeated two to three times before we were happy the floor was clean and free of coatings. The floor was then given a final water rinse and left to dry with a couple of air movers left in place to aid drying of the floor.

Sealing a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen

We returned 3 days later to give the floor plenty of time to dry, several moisture readings were also taken on arrival to confirm the Terracotta was dry and ready to seal. Having previously discussed sealers it was clear the client wanted the floor to have a bit of shine and so I recommended Tile Doctor Seal and Go Extra. Terracotta is very porous, so it took six coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go Extra before it was fully sealed.

You can see from the photographs how much lighter and cleaner the floor looked after the work was complete making a significant difference to the kitchen. For aftercare we left a complimentary bottle of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is a mild yet effective product we recommend for cleaning sealed floors.

Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor After Renovation Frome

My client was very happy with the improvement and left the following feedback:

“Lucas was fantastic. Explained everything in detail, was patient with all the questions and has done an amazing job with the floor. Highly recommended.”

Professional Renovation of a Terracotta Tiled Kitchen Floor in Somerset

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Rejuvenating Pitted Travertine Tiles in Frome

1 Comment / Work History / Somerset Tile Doctor

Pitting, which can be described as a natural form of corrosion that occurs on stone such as Travertine, can be a big problem for property owners with tiled floors. This is because the corrosion causes lots of small holes to form in the stone; without proper protection in place, these holes can quickly become ingrained with dirt. To make things worse many supermarket cleaning products are acidic and overtime they can eat into the stone making the problem worse.

Without the right maintenance and adequate sealer in place Pitted Travertine will be very difficult to keep clean and this was the problem that had affected the Travertine tiled floor of one of my customers in the town of Frome; a Somerset market town packed with interesting architecture and historic buildings.

Pitted Travertine Tiled Floor Before Cleaning Frome Somerset

Cleaning a Pitted Travertine Tiled Floor

I travelled to the property to see what could be done to resolve the situation and I could immediately see the very noticeable problem was related to dirt that had become ingrained into the stone and grout, a problem that covered a large area from the kitchen to the dining area.

To deep clean the floor I set about applying a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean, which is our go-to alkaline cleaner for natural stone. I left it to soak for ten minutes before scrubbing it into the stone and grout paying focus to the individual pits to soften and help dislodge the ingrained dirt. The soiled cleaning solution was rinsed off with water using a wet vacuum to extract it from the floor.

I then used Tile Doctor’s set of four diamond encrusted burnishing pads. Each pad was fitted to a rotary floor machine and applied with a little water to help lubricate. In our system, we start with a Coarse grit pad to remove old sealers and dirt and gradually work our way through to Medium, Fine and Very Fine grit pads to achieve a high quality polished finish.

It was a large area so it took most of the day to completely burnish the floor and once finished I filled the larger pits with a matching resin which will improve the overall appearance of the floor and minimise the issue of dirt becoming ingrained.

Sealing a Pitted Travertine Tiled Floor

The Travertine tiled floor was then left to dry out fully before I could return to seal it though next day. We typically allow for at least 24 hours, unless there are any inherent damp issues.

My sealer of choice here was Tile Doctor Colour Grow, which is an impregnating sealer designed to enhance colour and protect he stone. It does this by penetrating the pores to fill them and therefore prevent dirt becoming trapped – which had been the major problem with these tiles to begin with.

Pitted Travertine Tiled Floor After Cleaning Frome Somerset

The photos below show a complete transformation. As you can imagine, the owners were thrilled with the finished floor.

Professional Travertine Stone Floor Restoration in Somerset

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