Victorian Tile Cleaning Archives - Monmouthshire Tile Doctor

Victorian Hallway Floor Renovation Crosskeys Newport

Deep Cleaning 70 Years of Ingrained Dirt from Victorian Floor Tiles in Crosskeys

The Victorian tiled floor you can see below was discovered under a carpet at a property in Crosskeys on the outskirts of Newport. The owners understood it had been covered up for seventy years, yet remarkably it was still in good condition and they were keen to restore the floor as an original feature.

Having removed the carpet, they decided to have a go cleaning it themselves however soon realised there was more to this than they had bargained for including the need to seal the tiles. After doing more research on-line they decided to ask Tile Doctor to pop round and provide a quote.

Victorian Hallway Floor During Cleaning Crosskeys Newport

I paid a visit to the property and conducted a test clean on a small part of the floor. Although it appeared to be clean it was evident from the test that there was a substantial amount of dirt that was still being held by the tiles. My client was gobsmacked by this as they had been cleaning it themselves.

I took time to explain how porous these encaustic cement tiles can be, and without an effective sealer in place dirt had become lodged deep within the pores of the tile and this needed to be flushed out before being re-sealed. Happy with my quote and keen to make the floor more manageable I was given the go-ahead to do the work.

Cleaning a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

On my return I started the cleaning with a medium dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which was wiped over the entire floor and left to soak in. After fifteen minutes I used a 17-inch black pad attached to my rotary machine to scrub the solution deep into the floor and lift the ingrained dirt. The resultant slurry was then extracted using a wet dry vacuum.

After the floor was clean, I went around on my hands and knees using a 120-grit diamond block and blade scraper to remove any other debris that the machine could not reach such as in the corners, followed by a clean rinse with water ensuring there was no residue left on the floor.

The floor was then dried with the wet vacuum and left to dry for 24 hours.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

I returned later the next day and after confirmed the tiles had dried set about applying a sealer. The sealer works be preventing dirt from becoming ingrained in the porous tiles, keeping in on the surface where it can be easily cleaned away.

Tile Doctor have numerous sealers available for Victorian floors however in this case the client wanted a satin/wet look finish so we went with Tile Doctor Seal and Go.

Victorian Hallway Floor After Cleaning Sealing Crosskeys Newport

Several coats were needed to fully seal the tiles but it was well worth the effort as the sealer really brought the best out of the tiles and give the floor a very pleasing finish. The clients were extremely happy with the job and asked me to return later to work on renovating the bathroom tiling.

To maintain the sealer and to prevent accelerated break down I left the client with a bottle of Tile Doctor pH Neutral Tile Cleaner. Unlike the household cleaners on the market which tend to be acidic and break down the seal, this product will be gentle on the floor, it is mild enough to use daily and will ensure the floor stays looking great.

Professional Restoration of a Victorian Tiled Hallway in Monmouthshire

Deep Cleaning 70 Years of Ingrained Dirt from Victorian Floor Tiles in Crosskeys Read More »

Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor Cleaning Sealing Chepstow

Badly Maintained Victorian Tiled Hallway Renovated in Chepstow

I received a request to quote for the restoration of this Victorian tiled floor in the hallway of a property in Chepstow. As you can see from the photograph below was in a very poor condition.

Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor Before Cleaning Chepstow

I visited the property to survey the floor and could see that although it had not been well maintained it was in good physical condition except for a few loose tiles. From experience I knew it would respond well to a deep clean and seal, so I carried out a test clean on a small area to demonstrate its potential. The tiles came up well and my client was satisfied it would be worthwhile to have it restored.

I worked out a quote which was accepted and a date set for the work to start which would take two days.

Cleaning and Repairing a Victorian Tiled Hallway

To get all the dirt out of the pores of the tiles I started with a strong dilution of Tile Doctors Remove and Go. This was sprayed onto the floor and left to soak in for ten minutes before being scrubbed in with a 17” Black pad fitted to a rotary machine.

It’s always difficult to find out the history of a floor but from what I could tell the tiles had been exposed to a variety of contaminants including paint, plaster, cement, and worn in dirt. Luckily, Remove and Go can handle all of these. I had to repeat the process on the stubborn stains and then removed all the slurry and dirt using a wet vacuum.

I then moved onto the loose tiles which needed to have the old adhesive removed from the tile and the base. The original tiles were then cleaned up by hand before new rapid setting adhesive was applied to secure them back into the floor.

Once the loose tiles had set, I moved onto the next step of giving the floor an acid rinse using Tile Doctor Acid Gel. This product further cleans up the tiles by removing old grout smears and dissolving efflorescent salts in the floor. This is a common issue in properties of this age which do not have a damp proof membrane to stop moisture rising through the tile. This process also neutralises the pH level of the floor after the use of Remove and Go which is a strong alkaline cleaning product. The floor was rinsed again afterwards, and the soiling extracted with a wet vacuum before leaving it to dry overnight.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Kitchen

The next day the moisture levels of the tiles were checked with a damp meter to ensure they were dry enough to be sealed. The readings were fine, so I was able to start applying the sealer. In this case two coats of Tile Doctors Colour Grow sealer where applied which is a colour enhancing impregnator that allows for moisture vapour transmission. This is a super durable product which will give great protection to the floor, especially when it is in a high traffic area such as a hallway.

Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor After Cleaning Sealing Chepstow

Once complete the floor was transformed and my client was extremely happy with the result. To maintain the sealer and to prevent accelerated break down I left the client with a complimentary bottle of Tile Doctor Ph Neutral Tile Cleaner.

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Classic Black and White Victorian Tiled Hallway Renovated in Caerleon

Classic Black and White Victorian Tiled Hallway Caerleon

1 Comment / Newport Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning / Max Iacono

A customer in Caerleon on the outskirts of Newport asked me to call in to discuss their classic Black and White Victorian tiled hallway floor. The had told me that their floor wasn’t that dirty and just needed a light clean and seal.

I conducted a moisture reading upon surveying with showed the floor was high in moisture in some areas, this information is important as it shows the need to use a fully breathable sealer that will allow moisture to rise through the tile and evaporate at the surface. If we were to use a less breathable product moisture could build up under the tiles where it will reach out to the walls resulting in rising damp.

Classic Black and White Victorian Tiled Hallway During Cleaning Caerleon

After conducting a cleaning test on part of the floor, it was evident there was a substantial amount of dirt being held by the tiles. My customer was gobsmacked by this as they clean the floor twice a week minimum. This test proved that the sealer was failing on the floor and dirt was being trapped in the pores of the tile where it is difficult to shift with normal cleaning.

Impressed with the amount of dirt I was able to pull out of the tiles I was asked to schedule a date to return and deep clean then seal the whole floor.

Cleaning a Black Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor

I began cleaning by applying a mixture of Tile Doctor HBU Nanotech Remover combined with Pro-Clean and left it to soak in for a good ten minutes. This gives it time to work and breakdown the ingrained dirt from foot traffic and any remnants of old sealer. The solution was then agitated and scrubbed with a Silicone Carbide Brush attached to a rotary machine. This action lifted the soiling from the tiles to the surface where it was extracted with a wet vacuum.

Classic Black and White Victorian Tiled Hallway During Cleaning Caerleon

The brush can struggle to get into the corners to these were hand-cleaned using a 200-grit diamond block and more solution. Once I was satisfied the floor was clean, I moved onto the final phase of deep cleaning. For this I applied a 200-grit burnishing pad lubricated with water followed by a 400-grit burnishing pad. The slurry generated from this process was then sucked up with a wet vacuum.

I then washed the floor with a sponge and water ensuring nothing had been missed then left it to dry for a couple of days leaving the customer with an air mover to speed up the drying.

Sealing a Black Slate Tiled Kitchen Floor

Once I returned and conducted a moisture reading, the results were good and showed the floor had returned to its previous level and was now ready for sealing. As mentioned previously I would need to use a fully breathable sealer for this work which does limit the options slightly. Having discussed this with the owner previously we agreed to use a Matt sealer called Tile Doctor Colour Grow. This is a fully breathable colour enhancing Matt finish sealer that improves colour and helps the Black and White tiles stand out.

Two coats of Colour Grow were applied allowing thirty minutes between coats. This is an impregnating sealer that soaks into the tile occupying the pores and thereby ensuring dirt can no longer reside there. This ensures dirt or spillages remain on the surface where they can easily be cleaned away. Once dry I used a White buffing pad on my rotary machine to buff the floor ensuring a uniform matt finish.

Classic Black and White Victorian Tiled Hallway During Cleaning Caerleon

The customer was ecstatic with the results as you can see by the images, a lot of dirt was removed. To maintain the sealer used on the floor I left the customers with a bottle of PH Neutral Tile Cleaner. You do need to be careful when choosing a floor cleaning product as most are simply too strong for use on sealed tiles and will strip off a sealer with repeated use.

Classic Black and White Victorian Tiled Hallway During Cleaning Caerleon

Professional Cleaning of a Classic Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor in Monmouthshire

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Victorian Tiled Hallway Deep Cleaned and Sealed in Newport

1 Comment / Newport Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning, Work History / Max Iacono

I was contacted by a professional couple who were despairing over the state of their Victorian tiled hallway floor which was dull and uninviting. The property was in Newport which is on the south east side of Wales around twelve miles east of the bustling city of Cardiff.

I went over to visit the property which was a beautiful Victorian period terrace house nestled amongst other properties of a similar age properties. The couple wanted their Victorian hallway floor to be brought back to life, so I demonstrated the cleaning process I intended to use on a small part of the floor. Immediately it had the desired effect and the floor looked much cleaner. I could see that there were no structural issues with the floor and the test clean proved it was just ingrained dirt that was the problem. The clients were happy with the result of the demonstration and subsequent quote, so we arranged a suitable date to come back and complete the work.

Victorian Tiled Hallway Before Cleaning Newport Gwent

Cleaning/Repairing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

When I arrived, I started by protecting the skirting boards with tape and then set about giving the Victorian tiles a deep clean. I applied a combination of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean and Remove and Go leaving it to dwell for a short time to allow the products to soak into the pores of the tiles and start breaking down the ingrained dirt. After about ten minutes I scrubbed the floor with black scrubbing pad attached to a rotary floor buffer which released the years of grime and dirt. The floor was then rinsed with water and the soil removed using a wet vacuum. I repeated the process to ensure the floor was as clean as possible.

A further inspection of the Victorian tiles revealed a few stubborn marks which were dealt with using handheld diamond burnishing blocks. These are also handy for getting into the corners of the floor which were difficult to reach with the rotary machine. The floor was then left overnight to dry out.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

The following day I returned, and I checked the floor was dry using a moisture meter to ensure it was dry. Once I was happy, I started to seal the floor with Tile Doctor Seal & Go which is a water-based sealer that works well on Victorian tiles. Several coats were applied building up layers to produce a stunning satin finish.

Once I had finished the floor was looking so much cleaner and brighter and the addition of the sealer will protect the floor from dirt and keep it looking good for some time to come. My clients were over the moon with the floor!

Victorian Tiled Hallway After Cleaning and Sealing Newport Gwent

For aftercare I recommend Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner, which unlike the stronger products you find in supermarkets is ideal for cleaning sealed floors and will ensure the sealer stays in good condition.

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Dirty Victorian Tiled Hallway Renovated in Abergavenny

1 Comment / Abergavenny Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning, Work History / Max Iacono

This lovely Victorian tiled floor was located in the hallway of a beautiful house in Abergavenny which is an old Market Town that dates back to Roman times on the outskirts of the Brecon Beacons national park.

Victorian Tiled Hallway Before Cleaning Abergavenny

It has been sometime since it was last given a thorough clean and seal and was now in need of some TLC to give it a new lease of life and have a chance to take centre stage again. The floor was in excellent condition, but the old sealer had worn off in the high traffic areas and dirt had now penetrated the pores of the clay tiles making it difficult to maintain effectively.

Repairing and Cleaning Dirty Victorian Tiles

To get the tile and grout clean and remove what remained of the old sealer I applied a 50/50 mixture of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean combined with Remove and Go. This was further diluted with water and applied to the floor for ten minutes, so it could soak into the tile and get to work breaking down the old sealers and dirt. The solution was then worked into the tile and grout using a 17” black scrubbing pad fitted to a rotary buffer machine running on slow speed to reduce splashing. This process released the years of grime and dirt build up from the floor and a wet vacuum was used to extract the soil.

I gave the floor a rinse with water which was then removed using the wet vacuum and the floor inspected to ensure it was clean and that what was let of the old sealer was now removed. There were a few stubborn areas than needed attention, so the treatment was repeated until I was satisfied.

The floor was then given a thorough rinse to remove any trace of cleaning products and then dried with the wet vacuum to remove as much moisture as possible. It’s not wise to apply sealer when the floor is still damp so once I was done cleaning I left for the day so that is could dry off fully overnight.

Sealing Victorian Tiles

My first task upon returning to the property the next day was to check for any dampness. If you neglect to remove all excess moisture from the surface of the tiles before sealing it is more than likely going to cloud the sealer, rendering it less effective I’m protecting the stone against ingrained dirt and stains.

Once satisfied that the floor was completely dry I was able to complete the renovation by applying several coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go which is a topical sealant that works really well on Victorian tiles and leaves a lovely satin finish that brings out the colours.

Victorian Tiled Hallway After Cleaning Abergavenny

My customer was very pleased with the outcome and left the following comment on the Tile Doctor feedback system.

Paul was very professional and did a fantastic job with our Victorian tiled hallway. It looks so much better. I would definitely recommend Tile doctor to anyone needing cleaning or restoring of tiles.
Sarah T, Abergavenny

Professional Victorian Tiled Floor Restoration in the Monmouthshire

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Beautiful Black and White Victorian Tiled Hallway Renovation in Monmouth

1 Comment / Monmouth Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning, Work History / Max Iacono

This beautiful black & white Victorian tiled hallway was recently discovered hidden under carpet at a house near Monmouth. As well as the years of grime that had become ingrained in the tile, the carpet had been secured with carpet grippers which had been fixed on top of the tiles and the owner was keen to recruit my help in its restoration.

It’s a lovely drive up through the Wye Valley from my base in Caldicot to the town of Monmouth which has a long history that goes back to the Roman times. In fact it’s famous for its “Monnow Bridge” which dates back to medieval times and is the only remaining stone gated bridge of its type left in Britain. Needles to say it has a strong mixture of architecture with many old houses built during Victorian times.

Victorian Floor Before Renovation in Monmouth

Cleaning an Original Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

The first step in cleaning the floor was to prepare it for cleaning by carefully removing the old carpet grippers and adhesive deposits using a handheld scraper. This was followed by creating a mixture of two powerful cleaning products namely Tile Doctor Remove and Go and NanoTech HBU remover. Remove and Go is a coatings remover designed to strip off old sealers whilst NanoTech HBU is a powerful Heavy Build-Up Remover that uses tiny abrasive particles to clean up tile and stone.

The floor was smothered in the cleaning solution and it was allowed to soak into the tile for about twenty minutes before scrubbing it in. It was not an exceptionally large hallway so a lot of hand scrubbing was required to get the floor as clean as possible. The cleaning solution was rinsed off with water and then extracted using a wet vacuum or wet vac as my colleagues often refer to it.

To finish off the cleaning process I scrubbed a dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean into the grout lines to get them as clean as possible and then gave the floor a final rinse. I need the floor to be dry before sealing so using the wet vac I extracted as much moisture from the floor as possible.

Sealing an Original Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

I left the floor to dry completely overnight and returned the next day to finish the floor off with a few coats of sealer. On my arrival I started by taking a few reading with a damp meter to ensure the floor was ready to be sealed. Fortunately by efforts with the Wet Vac the night before had paid off and it confirmed the tiles were dry and ready to be sealed.

To do this, I used multiple coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go which works really well on Victorian Tiles and adds a nice low sheen that brings them up nicely. Naturally the sealer not only improves the way they look it also makes them much easier to clean and will protect them against ingrained dirt and staining.

Victorian Floor After Renovation in Monmouth

I think you will agree this old floor has been transformed and now has a new lease of life.

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