Following a recommendation, this client from Penarth contacted Tile Doctor to carry out a survey on their Victorian tiled kitchen floor and come up with a plan for its restoration. Always happy to provide advice and guidance I arranged a date to pop over and take a look.
As you can see from the photographs on this page the floor was in very poor condition with many tiles needing replacing and a section missing adjacent to the wooden floor. Many stains were visible due to years of neglect as previous builders used it to mix cement and plaster.
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Undeterred I advised that the floor could be restored using replacement tiles to match the existing and then with deep cleaning and sealing it should be transformed. I worked out a quote for the restoration which they were happy with.
Cleaning and Repairing a Victorian Tiled Kitchen
After sourcing suitable replacement tiles the first job was to remove the broken and damaged areas of tiling and clean up the base ready for tiling. This is slow and careful work as the replacements had to be cut to match the existing pattern. Once the tiles were ready, they were dry fitted into place to ensure the pattern was correct before being fixed in place with a flexible adhesive and fresh grouting.
The floor was left to set overnight, and I came back the next day to start the cleaning.
As this floor was heavily soiled with a variety of different substances, I mixed a variety of Tile Doctor products to achieve the most effective way to lift the stains. The mixture contained a litre of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean, Tile Doctor Remove and Go together with Tile Doctor HBU Nanotech, all of which provide different capabilities and were combined in a container which was then shaken to mix the contents.
The cleaning progressed at 1m2 at a time scrubbing the surface with a handheld pad cut from a 17″ Tile Doctor Burnishing Pad, scrubbing the pitted areas with a scrubbing brush, rinsing with clean water and vacuuming up as I worked.
Once the floor was clean it was then given an acid rinse using Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up to help neutralise efflorescent salts and remove cement smears. Being acidic it also neutralises the floor after cleaning with the alkaline products used earlier.
Sealing a Victorian Tiled Kitchen
The floor was left to dry for 2 days as it had a considerable amount of liquids applied during the cleaning process.
The chosen sealer was Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is a durable tile impregnator. It also acts as a base coat for the next sealer applied which was Tile Doctor Seal & Go which provides a satin shine finish and enhances the rich colours. Both sealers allow for vapour transmission (aka breathable) which is important feature for floors laid without a damp proof membrane.
The floor looked stunning once complete and my clients was delighted with the service and finish of the floor. They have also passed on Tile Doctors contact details to family and friends.
For aftercare I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is a mild yet effective tile cleaning product that safe to use on sealed surfaces.
Never use a steam cleaner or strong cleaning product on sealed tile or stone as this will reduce the life of the sealer. We recommend using a specialist tile cleaning product such as Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner for the regular cleaning of sealed surfaces. if you do use another product always read the label first, most supermarket tile cleaners are only suitable for use on Ceramic and Vinyl tiles.