Limescale Removal

Quarry Tiled Balcony Renovation Notting Hill W11

Quarry Tiled Balcony Patio Renovated for Notting Hill Landlord

The Quarry tiles in the photographs below were actually installed on the balcony of a flat in London’s famous Notting Hill W11. The property had been rented out and not surprisingly never maintained properly by the tenants.

Quarry Tiled Balcony Patio Before Cleaning Notting Hill W11

There was a lot of grime and algae on the tiles which made the patio look very uninviting. The landlord was keen to rent out the flat as soon as possible and the balcony needed a end of tenancy clean to sort it out before potential tenants were shown round.

Deep Cleaning a Quarry Tiled Balcony Patio Floor

Having been entrusted with the keys and having negotiated appropriate parking I went round on a warm day to renovate the tiles and get them in the best condition possible in advance of the viewing. Fortunately, the lift was working so after a couple of trips up and down with various items of equipment I was soon setup and ready to get going.

To get the quarry tiles clean I used a strong treatment of Tile Doctor Remove and Go which was sprayed onto the tiles and left to soak in for fifteen minutes to allow time for the solution to get to work breaking down the dirt and old sealers. Then, I ran over each tile multiple times with a floor buffer fitted with a Black scrubbing pad. I also used a stiff brush along the grout lines to get them clean, however, the staining was bad so short of grout colouring or re-grouting I was only able to make a modest improvement. The landlord just wanted the balcony to be presentable, so I stuck to getting them as clean as possible.

Once finished cleaning the now dirty cleaning solution was rinsed off with water and extracted using a wet vacuum. I was then able to inspect the floor and carry out spot cleaning where I felt more work was needed. One of the problems I found was the presence of limescale and to remove that I realised I needed to use an acidic product that would dissolve it.

To treat the limescale I gave the floor a second clean using Tile Doctor Acid Gel which was scrubbed in with handheld brushes and another fresh black pad. Once done, the tiles were rinsed again, and a wet vacuum was employed to get the tiles as dry as possible. Fortunately, the sun came around that side of the building towards the afternoon and the patio was bathed in sunlight allowing it to dry faster.

Sealing a Quarry Tiled Balcony Patio Floor

The quarry tiles needed to be completely dry before I could seal them and with the weather forecast looking good overnight and into the next day so I left them to dry off completely overnight.

The next day I returned and started by checking the tiles were dry using a damp meter. The readings were good, so I was able to start with the application of a protective sealer which for these tiles I used Tile Doctor Colour Grow.

Only a couple of coats were required however it is quite time consuming, and you have to wait 30 minutes between coats. This sealer has a breathable formula which is well suited for use on this patio, and it contains a colour enhancer which helps to bring out the colours in the Quarry tile.

Quarry Tiled Balcony Patio After Cleaning Sealing Notting Hill W11

For the regular cleaning of sealed Quarry tiles, I recommend Tile Doctor Neutral Clean which is supplied in a concentrate so a 1 litre bottle goes a long way. You can’t use strong cleaning products on sealed tiles as they will prematurely erode the sealer so Neutral Cleaner is an ideal choice.

 

Professional Renovation of Balcony Quarry Tiles in Central London

Quarry Tiled Balcony Patio Renovated for Notting Hill Landlord Read More »

Limsescale Stained Slate Shower Renovation Bayswater W2

Limescale Stained Slate Tiled Shower renovated in Bayswater W2

My client had rented their property in Bayswater out while they were working abroad for a year or so; on their return they discovered the tenants had not looked after it properly and had allowed lots of limescale to build up on the Slate shower tiles. The staining was so bad It was putting them off using the shower and they were very disappointed that the tenants had not taken more care.

Limescale Stained Slate Shower Before Renovation Bayswater W2

London is a hard water area which basically means the water contains a high level of calcium and magnesium which is results in limescale deposits. Thankfully Tile Doctor has several solutions for this problem including the use of acidic cleaning products. You do have to be careful with these however as some types of stone can be etched by these making the problem worse.

Limescale Stained Slate Shower Before Renovation Bayswater W2

I made an initial visit to work out the best approach to resolve the Limescale and provided a written quote to do the work. The quote was accepted and a date arranged to carry out the work.

Removing Limescale from Slate Shower Tiles

The first step in the renovation was to decant a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go into a spray bottle and spray it onto the shower wall. Combining the product with air makes it stick better to vertical surfaces where it can dwell and break down old sealers and general dirt. This was worked into the tile using a stiff brush and then rinsed off.

Next Tile Doctor Acid Gel was applied to the tiles and worked in with a stiff brush to remove the ingrained limescale. Gel products are ideal for cleaning wall tiles as they stick to the tiles easily. Once done the slurry was rinsed off again.

At this point the stone was looking clean and free of limescale and old sealers but was still looking very unappealing. To bring back the appearance of the slate it needed resurfacing with a set of coarse diamond pads. To do this I started with the application of a very coarse 6-inch 100-grit pad fitted to a handheld buffer and lubricated with water. After rinsing away the slurry that had been generated, I changed pads to the 200-grit and repeated the process, finally moving onto a 400-grit pad. One last rinse and the tiles were left to dry out.

Sealing Slate Shower Tiles

Once the tiles were all dried out, I applied a single coat of Tile Doctor X-Tra Seal. This is a breathable impregnating sealer that soaks into the stone and being oil based adds colour and improves appearance. It’s a good idea to seal Slate used in a shower as it adds water repellency and stain protection. One coat revived the colour of the tiles, in this instance a second coat was not needed, but if applied it would have added a subtle sheen finish.

Limescale Stained Slate Shower After Renovation Bayswater W2

There was a lot of work to do, however, I managed to complete the whole area in a single but very long day. Once completed however the slate tiles looked transformed so it was well worth the effort. Certainly, my client was very happy with the work we had completed and now felt happy to use the shower again!

For aftercare cleaning it’s important not to use strong chemical cleaning products on sealed stone as they will strip off the sealer. So, I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Aqua-Pro for cleaning. This tile cleaning product is pH neutral so mild enough to use every day which will help keep the limescale and grime at bay. It has a pleasant fragrance and with a trigger spray it is easy to use for both all the family and indeed the new tenants if they go down this route again.

 

Professional Restoration of Limescale Stained Slate Shower Tiles in London

Limescale Stained Slate Tiled Shower renovated in Bayswater W2 Read More »

Damaged Marble Shower Wall before and after Restoration Ealing

Restoration of Viakal Damaged Marble Shower Tiles in Ealing

We recently received an enquiry from a customer in Ealing, East London who was concerned about their Marble Tiled Shower which had been damaged from the use of Viakal Limescale Remover. Unfortunately, this is a very common problem and we often receive calls from customers with similar issues. Limescale removal products such as Viakal and Cillit Bang are very effective but like any acidic product, they are very harmful to natural stone such as Limestone and Marble. With any cleaning product you should really read the label before use and in this case you will find they state the product should not be used on natural stone.

The Viakal had etched the surface of the Marble in several places where it had been applied and although the damage looked really bad I was happy to inform my customer there is a solution and that I could indeed restore the appearance of the stone.

Damaged Marble Shower Wall Before Restoration Ealing Damaged Marble Shower Wall Before Restoration Ealing

Polishing Damaged Marble Shower Tiles

My first task was to give the Marble tile and grout a good clean and remove any sealer and soap scum etc; to do this I used a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean scrubbed in with a small black scrubbing pad fitted to a hand-held machine. The Marble tiles were then rinsed with water to remove the soil generated by the cleaning process.

To fully restore the appearance of the Marble the next step required the application of coarse burnishing pads applied in sequence from very coarse to very fine using six-inch pads fitter to a handheld buffer. It’s a process that takes the polish off the stone and rebuilds it. A little water is needed to help lubricate with the coarser pads and the tiles are rinsed off between each one to remove any slurry generated during the process.

To achieve a very high shine the Marble tiles were then treated to an application of Tile Doctor Shine Powder which involves buffing crystallising polishing powder into the stone to build a deep durable finish

Sealing Marble Shower Tiles

The last step was to seal the Marble tile and grout to protect it going forward. Before sealing we needed to make sure that the tiles are dry and a damp meter is a very useful tool for this. A single coat of Tile Doctor Colour Grow was applied which is an impregnating sealer that occupies the pores in the stone whilst enhancing the natural colours in the Marble in the process.

Damaged Marble Shower Wall After Restoration Ealing Damaged Marble Shower Wall After Restoration Ealing

The work took three days in total but as you can see from the photographs on this page it was well worth the effort and the white streaky damage caused by the Viakal has now been removed and the stone has been transformed. My customer was very happy with the results and left the following feedback.

I had serious acid etchings from spraying Viakal on my marble shower box and basin. Didi and his partner did a good job of polishing out the majority of the acid etchings. It was a 3 day job for them, and over all I was happy with the result and service.
Edward T, London

Acid Etched Marble Shower Tiles Restored in London

Restoration of Viakal Damaged Marble Shower Tiles in Ealing Read More »

Scroll to Top