Restoring a Neglected Quarry Tiled Floor with a Combination of Alkaline Tile Doctor Cleaning Products in Cathays Cardiff

A customer from the old Cardiff suburb of Cathays got in touch earlier this year regarding a badly neglected Quarry tiled floor. The property dated to 1910 and had a long history, as did the floor which was in quote a bad state although I have seen worse. Keen to have it restored I was asked to pop round and advise on its renovation in the hope that something could be done to save it.

It turns out the floor had been covered with carpet for many years and having decided to renovate the whole room they removed the carpet and were delighted to discover a tiled floor.

I arranged to meet the customers at the property and survey the floor to see what could be done to help them with their wish to restore it as an original feature. As you can see from the photographs the floor was in a very poor condition, but as I mentioned to the customer anything I do to it would certainly improve the look of it; it certainly couldn’t get any worse.

I worked out a detailed quote which was emailed over to the customer and a date set to begin the work.

Cleaning a Badly Stained Quarry Tiled Floor

The first job was to review the floor and replace any that were broken and refix any that were loose with flexible adhesive. I also took moisture readings from the floor which I would use as a baseline later.

The carpet underlay had been secured with adhesive the remanent of which were all over the floor including paint splatters and plaster from decorating. To tackle this work was done in sections started with a sharp blade was used to carefully remove any bulk material before scrubbing with a strong mixture of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean, Nanotech HBU and Remove & Go. Each of these alkaline Tile Doctor cleaning products solve a different problem and I like to use them together to create an effective cleaning solution, deal for badly stained tiles like these. Once done the area was rinsed with water and the soiling extracted with a wet vacuum as work progressed.

The next step was to give the floor an acid rinse using another Tile Doctor products called Grout Clean-up. The acidic nature of this product breaks down cement residues and dissolved salts in the floor which otherwise would result in white efflorescence appearing on the floor as it dries. This is a common problem with old floors with no damp-proof membrane and worth avoiding. The solution was brushed over the floor and then rinsed and extracted with the wet vacuum.

With the cleaning mostly completed attention turned to the step between the lounge and the kitchen. The customer had managed to acquire a lovely piece of black Slate from an old pool table and wanted it fitting in the threshold between the two rooms. (Slate is traditionally used beneath the green cloth on snooker and pool tables due to it being very flat and smooth.) I cut the slate to size to fit the doorway and added a short riser beneath to account for the hight difference between the two floors. After dry fitting it was cemented it in place.

After a final inspection of the floor and some spot cleanings where needed it was left to dry out for the weekend.

which proved dry enough to take a Sealer on the Monday.

Sealing a Quarry Floor Sealing

Work continued Monday starting with taking moisture readings from the floor. These were compared with the base reading taken at the start and this confirmed the floor had dried out and was ready to take a sealer.

The choice Sealer was an impregnator Sealer called Tile Doctor Colour Grow, which is a breathable colour enhancer and very durable. It needed to be durable to cater for the needs of a very busy household and their large boisterous dog. Three coats were applied to ensure the Quarry tiles were fully sealed wiping the excess off between coats.

The floor responded extremely well to the renovation and the customers were delighted with the results, the also left the following 5-star feedback: Julian is a real professional. He worked very hard and didn’t rush the job. I am delighted with how the floor has turned out. Jack E, Cardiff

Before leaving I took time to discuss aftercare and the importance of using a cleaning product that wouldn’t impact the sealer. A lot of products you find in supermarkets are simply too strong for a sealed floor so I recommend the use of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner.

Source: Quarry Tile Restoration Products and Services in Cathays Cardiff