A client in the town of Melton Constable contacted us about the Victorian tiled kitchen floor following a recommendation from one of our past clients. They had only recently purchased the property which was a Grade II listed manor house and were keen to restore as many original features as possible. The Kitchen floor was tiled with Red and Black tiles laid in a diamond pattern and was in a very worn state.
The entire property was undergoing significant renovation and unfortunately the building contractors working in the property had ignored the delicate nature of the kitchen floor. Without any robust protection sheeting the tiles had become heavily coated with various types of construction contaminants particularly plaster and paint.
In an attempt to clean the floor one of the building contractors had tried to renovate the tiles using a lightweight hired buffing machine but had made virtually no improvement. Disappointed with the lack of improvement it was decided it was time to call in a specialist.
On my visit to the property, I was able to reassure the client that this would not be a problem and I was confident that restorative cleaning processes would remove all the contaminants and transform the floor to its former condition.
I produced a quotation for the renovation which would be done over two days, the first to deep-clean and the second to apply the appropriately approved sealing product. The client was happy with our costings so a pair of dates were scheduled for our return which was to happen the following month once the construction work in the kitchen had been completed.
Deep Cleaning a Victorian Tiled Floor in Melton Constable
Before starting the renovation of the floor, our first job was to protect the newly plastered walls and skirting boards with masking film to prevent potential damage from the strong cleaning products and processes required for this type of renovation.
Next, concentrating on removal of the paint splatters, a generous quantity of Tile Doctor Remove & Go was sprayed onto the tiles and left to dwell for fifteen minutes so that it could get to work breaking down the oil and water-based paint products. Then, using a black nylon stripping pad fitted to our heavy Klindex rotary machine, the product was scrubbed into the surface to remove as many of the building contaminants as possible. This process would also take care of any remaining sealer. Once done, the resulting slurry was extracted using our 3-stage high performance wet vacuum machine.
The next step was to treat the floor with a concentrated acidic scrub using Tile Doctor Acid Gel which was applied and left for five minutes before working in with a fairly coarse 200 grit diamond pad. This treatment has a lot of benefits for porous tiled floors and is very efficient at removing old cement, grout smears and other contaminants such as efflorescence salt deposits. Being acidic it also neutralises the pH of the tiles following the earlier use of high-alkaline Remove and Go stripper. The floor surface was then wet vacuumed again and the process repeated with a finer 400-grit diamond pad.
Sealing a Victorian Tiled Floor in Melton Constable
The floor was then left to dry out completely overnight and the next morning it was tested extensively with a digital damp meter. This is to test that the moisture introduced during the cleaning processes had evaporated and the tiles were now ready for sealing. The moisture readings were acceptable so we were happy to proceed to the next step of sealing the floor.
Prior to producing our quotation for the renovation, we had discussed sealer options with the client and because there was a requirement in the Grade II listing for the use of a breathable sealing product, Tile Doctor Seal & Go Extra was the preferred choice. This is a fully breathable exterior-grade product which provides excellent stain resistance and is perfect for high traffic areas such as food preparation areas and hallways. It improves the intensity of the colour in the tiles and has a low sheen finish so does not make the floor look overly shiny once fully cured. Five coats were applied allowing each one to dry completely before applying the next.
On completion of our work, the client was extremely impressed with the overall finish we had achieved and was greatly relieved that the building contractor had not permanently damaged it through his inexperience.
For aftercare maintenance, I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Neutral Cleaner which is a highly effective yet gentle tile cleaning product that won’t impact the sealer.
When cleaning tiles with a mop we recommend using two buckets, one containing a neutral pH cleaning fluid such as Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner and the second where you rinse your mop afterwards, otherwise you will contaminate your cleaning fluid with dirt every time you rinse.