Bideford Tile Cleaning Archives

Slate Flagstone Floor Renovated in Bideford

Rescuing a 200-Year-Old 45m2 Slate Flagstone Floor in Bideford, Devon

Whilst surveying this 200+ year old floor at a cottage in Bideford the owners told me that they were quite set on pulling up their original Slate flagstone floor and replacing with new stone, but they wanted to make sure they had explored every option before making that decision.

Slate Flagstone Floor Before Restoration Bideford

The floor, which is around 45m2, had previously been covered in old underlay and carpet for some time. There were damp issues, some relatively significant shale in areas where the moisture had sat and enough paint stains on the floor to give the walls another coat 😊

I reassured them that the floor had plenty of life left and could be rescued, and once done it would be a real feature of the property that matched its age. Removing and replacing at huge cost would not be necessary. They accepted my quote and we set a date for the work to start.

Resurfacing and Cleaning a 200-Year-Old Slate Flagstone Floor

Day 1 started with resurfacing the old Slate flags using a coarse 50-grit diamond pads which was fitted to a weighted rotary floor machine. These pads cut back the old, tired surface of the stone and reveal a new untainted surface removing the shaling stone and paint marks stains,

This process also opens the pores in the stone allow the long-standing moisture to finally evaporate overnight. Although the machine does most of the hard work its meticulous work and requires rinsing and extracting to remove the soiling.

It’s slow meticulous work and once the whole floor had been completed, I moved on to a 100-grit and then a 200-grit pad to slowly close the pores in the stone and restore the appearance of the Slate.

To fully restore the appearance of the Slate I then applied a finer 400-grit diamond burnishing pad which removed the remaining scratches and swirl marks. At the end of day 3 I knocked out a few troublesome joints and re-pointed these areas with a German Resin based jointing mortar called VDW800.

Sealing Old Slate Flagstones

By day 5 the Slate floor was ready to be sealed for which I applied two coats of Tile Doctor X-Tra Seal which is a premium oil-based product that works well on old stone floors like this one.

The natural stone colours and mineral patterns soon began to pop out again leaving a stunning and freshly restored Slate flagstone floor. The owners were over the moon with the results. They had not only saved the largest internal original feature in the cottage but had also saved money as well. A great result.

Slate Flagstone Floor After Restoration Bideford

For aftercare I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is a mild pH neutral tile cleaning product that will ensure the integrity of the newly applied seal and will keep the floor looking in this great condition for years to come.

Professional Restoration of a Slate Flagstone Tiled Ground Floor in Devon

Rescuing a 200-Year-Old 45m2 Slate Flagstone Floor in Bideford, Devon Read More »

Original Victorian Tiles Restored at B&B in Bude

1 Comment / Bideford Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning, Work History / Harry Payne

Bude is a lovely coastal resort in North Cornwall and is home to several B&Bs for visitors to the area. It became popular during the latter half of Queen Victoria’s reign, as sea bathing became a popular trend amongst the upper and middle classes, and as a result there are plenty of period houses.

In fact, I was recently contacted by a lucky Bed and Breakfast owner who had uncovered this late Victorian tiled hallway and entrance lobby which was around a hundred years old during renovation work. It had been under carpet for at least twenty years and had a variety of stains including paint, tar and glue!

The customer rightly wanted to reinstate it as a showpiece to greet clients upon entering the upmarket guesthouse but had no luck trying to remove stains themselves and had spent many hours on hands and knees but to no avail and were nearly ready to take the builder’s advice and cover it in a self-levelling cement and install a carpet throughout which would have been sacrilege!

Victorian Tiled Hallway Before Restoration at Bude Bed and Breakfast

Cleaning an Original Victorian Tiled Hallway and Entrance Lobby

To begin with diamond-impregnated buffing pads were used with a rotary machine to scrub the floor and open up the pores. Small diamond hand blocks were also used to get into those difficult to reach areas such as corners and under the stairs.

Afterwards the floor was thoroughly rinsed with water which was then extracted using a wet vacuum. This was followed by giving the floor an Acid rinse using Tile Doctor’s Acid Gel. This helped to remove old mineral deposits and residue from carpet underlay. I had to be careful not to leave the acid down for too long because these tiles are susceptible to acid damage. This is also a great product to use as par for the course on floors like this that don’t have a damp proof course (floors generally didn’t pre-1950s) and the acid will neutralise any salts coming rising up through the tile later.

Dealing with salt issues on these old floors (efflorescence) is essential because they can damage the sealer or become trapped under it, detracting from the beauty of the floor. Given the age of the house It’s difficult to know what the floor had been laid onto. Often it was compacted rubble and building works from the erection of the adjoining houses. Terraced and some of the later Victorian floors were laid on a wet limecrete scree which contain a high salt-content.

Sealing an Original Victorian Tiled Hallway and Entrance Lobby

Once the tiles had been cleaned, I rinsed the entire floor thoroughly using fresh water to remove any traces of chemicals, before leaving it to dry completely overnight.

Upon my return to the B&B the next day, I sealed the tiles using several coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow, an impregnating sealer which provides robust protection and intensifies the natural colours in the tile. It does this while leaving a natural-look matte finish which is befitting of a classic Victorian geometric patterned floor like this one.

Now cleaned and freshly sealed, the Victorian tiles will be in a much strong position to cope with the busy B&B season over the Summer. The owner was very pleased and I’m sure visitors to the B&B will be very impressed with this original feature!

Victorian Tiled Hallway After Restoration at Bude Bed and Breakfast

As part of the package a cleaning and maintenance guide is provided once the work has been completed but unfortunately the owner’s uncle didn’t consult this when house-sitting and attempted to clean the floor with white spirit. Fortunately, I was able to return and improve the damage that was caused much to the owner’s relief and just in time for opening!

Professional Restoration of an Original Geometric Victorian Tiled Hallway at a Bude B&B

Original Victorian Tiles Restored at B&B in Bude Read More »

Restoring Neglected Geometric Victorian Hallway Tiles in Barnstaple

1 Comment / Bideford Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning, Work History / Harry Payne

Barnstaple in North Devon is known to be one of, if not the oldest boroughs in the whole of the United Kingdom. The area certainly has a rich history and many of the properties built in the 19th century still exist and are in use.

It’s not uncommon for the owners of houses built in this era to discover original Victorian tiled floors and hallways. They’ve usually been covered up at some point in the past, either by carpet or linoleum, but if maintained correctly they can be a real asset to any property.

I recently visited one such customer, who lives in Barnstaple, to restore a recently uncovered Victorian tiled hallway that had been tiled in a geometric pattern. This hallway had been neglected and covered for some time by carpet so the colours had faded and there were patches of carpet underlay firmly embedded in some of the tiles.

The property owner uncovered the floor after seeing a similar one in the entrance hallway of a neighbour and was thrilled with her find. After a bit of scrubbing and cleaning the customer decided to call in professional help after a recommendation for the Tile Doctor Devon from a friend. A home visit was conducted and a test patch was done to show what was possible and to talk through options. A quote was then produced which the customer was happy with and the work was arranged for the following week.

Victorian Tiled Hallway Barnstaple before restoration

Cleaning a Neglected Victorian Tiled Hallway

As the floor was really in quite a bad state, I opted to use Tile Doctor NanoTech HBU as my main cleaning product. HBU stands for ‘Heavy Build-Up’ – and that’s exactly what the product is formulated to tackle: heavy build-up of ingrained dirt and soil. It used nano-sized cleaning particles to penetrate deep into the pores of the stone and get underneath stains to lift them to the surface.

I applied NanoTech HBU to the entire hallway and left it to dwell for several hours, before scrubbing it as thoroughly as possible with a brush fitted to a rotary cleaning machine. The soil that was brought to the surface was subsequently rinsed away with fresh water and the resulting slurry was extracted using a wet vacuum.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway

Once finished with the cleaning process, I left the floor to dry out completely. This was important as older floors which lack a damp proof membrane can suffer from moisture issues, and these issues can damage the performance of the sealer.

Thankfully there were no problems with drying the floor. I was able to seal the tiles using a colour-enhancing impregnating sealer from our range, known as Tile Doctor Colour Grow. For extra protection – and to provide the finish the customer had requested – I also applied a topical sealer called Tile Doctor Seal and Go. This left the floor with a high-quality, long-lasting satin finish.

A properly sealed floor will be much more resistant to stain as well as easier to clean. As with every job a cleaning and maintenance guide was provided which gives handy tips and do’s and don’ts for the floor and that particular sealer.

The restoration reinstated this great Victorian tiled hallway as the showpiece upon entering the property and the customer was absolutely thrilled. You can see the final result below.

Victorian Tiled Hallway Barnstaple after restoration

The customer was thrilled with the floor and was very surprised at just how well the colour came back to the tiles and provided the following feedback:

“I am so pleased with the service Stuart provided. After the initial quote and patch test I felt under no pressure to ask him to proceed, but I was happy with the quote and he arranged a date convenient to me. I am chuffed with my floor, it looks great. The after care has been great also. Thank you Stuart.”

Professional Restoration of a Dirty and Neglected Victorian Tiled Hallway in North Devon

Restoring Neglected Geometric Victorian Hallway Tiles in Barnstaple Read More »

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Barnstaple Tile Cleaning, Bideford Tile Cleaning, Brixham Tile Cleaning, Ceramic Tile Cleaning, Dawlish Tile Cleaning, Encaustic Cement Tile Cleaning, Exeter Tile Cleaning Service, Exmouth Tile Cleaning, Fireplace Cleaning, Flagstone Tile Cleaning, Grout Cleaning, Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing, Marble Tile Cleaning, Newton Abbot Tile Cleaning, Paignton Tile Cleaning, Porcelain Tile Cleaning, Quarry Tile Cleaning, Sandstone Tile Cleaning, Sidmouth Tile Cleaning, Slate Tile Cleaning, Teignmouth Tile Cleaning, Terracotta Tile Cleaning, Terrazzo Floor Cleaning, Tiverton Tile Cleaning, Torquay Tile Cleaning, Travertine Tile Cleaning, Victorian Tile Cleaning, Vinyl Tile Cleaning, Work by Category, Work by Location, Work History / Harry Payne

Devon Tile Doctor

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