Tile Doctor Remove and Go Deployed to Restore an Original Victorian Tiled Hallway in Ammanford Swansea
A lady in Ammanford, just outside Swansea requested a visit to discuss the Victorian tiled floor she had discovered when lifting an old carpet in the hallway. Dating back to the 1900’s the tiles were in a poor state however she thought that it would be a real to leave them like that and it would be worth investigating their restoration. After all it would be a real shame not to make them a beautiful feature of the house.
We visited the property first to survey the floor and produce an accurate quote for its restoration. The floor was indeed very dirty and had several issues including carpet adhesive and plater that would need removing. Fortunately, it was in good physical condition and no tiles needed to be replaced and having restored floors in a worse state I was confident I could get it looking marvellous again. After discussing the steps and products needed to restore the floor a detailed quote was sent over for approval. She happily accepted the proposal, and a date was scheduled to complete the work.
Renovating an Original Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor
Work began with a handheld scraper to carefully remove large deposits of paint, plaster and adhesive before giving the floor a more intensive clean with a rotary machine. I used a coarse 200-grit pad with the rotary to work in a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove & Go which as its name suggests is a specialist remover that breaks down old coatings.
The abrasive pad cuts into the surface of the tile removing the contaminates and dirt in the process. The floor was rinsed and the soiled cleaning solution extracted with a wet vacuum as the work progressed. Several passes were needed and this was followed with a finer 400-grit diamond burnishing pad applied with more water for lubrication.
After doing this the floor was inspected again, and handheld diamond blocks applied to spot clean stubborn staining and bring the whole floor back to a clean consistent appearance.
After a final rinse and extraction of the floor I was happy the floor was as clean as it could be and was left to dry off for several days to give it sufficient time to dry out completely and ready for the next step of sealing.
Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor
On my return the floor was tested for moisture with a damp meter to make sure it was ready to accept a sealer; applying sealer to a damp floor can lead to cloudy finish so best avoided.
The sealer chosen for this floor was Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an impregnating matt sealer that improves colour. Being an impregnator the sealer soaks into the tile occupying the pores and ensuring dirt remains on the surface where is can be easily cleaned away with neutral tile cleaner. This sealer is also fully breathable so will allow for moisture to rise thorough the tile; this is an important requirement for old floors which don’t have a damp proof membrane.
The client was so very happy and kept just staring with obvious emotion at how the floor had been transformed. That’s the most rewarding part of this work, seeing how happy a client is once something that looked destroyed can be turned into something they love. Copied below is a testimonial they left for me on the Tile Doctor web site. Warren was very professional very knowledgeable and helpful, he discussed and talked me through the whole process step by step. I would highly recommend him to anyone By Llian M, Ammanford
Source: Victorian Hallway Tile Restoration Products and Services in Ammanford Swansea