Quarry Tile Cleaning

Welcome to my Work History archive where you will find detailed examples of the cleaning and renovation of Quarry tiles carried out in Edinburgh

Cleaning and Renovating Quarry Tiles

Quarry tiles are a classic hard wearing tile often utilised in high traffic areas such as reception areas, toilets and outdoor patio areas and porches. Although hard wearing Quarry tiles are often neglected and end up hidden under years of grime. If the tiles are structurally sound then often it’s just a question of deep cleaning to extract the dirt and then applying a sealer to enhance their appearance and protect them going forward.

For sealing we usually recommend Tile Doctor Seal and Go which works well on clay tiles such as Quarry and is also water based so doesn’t give off a smell as it dries. When applying a sealer always make sure the floors are dry first as applying a sealer to a damp floor can lead to inconsistent results. Because of this we usually clean and seal floors of this type over two days.

Other problems we face when restoring Quarry tiles usually relate to the removal of surface such as Tile Paint and Carpet Adhesive, for this we have a number of products and methods we can apply to remove coatings and restore the tile to its original appearance.

Below you will find detailed examples of work we have carried out in the past, it should give you some idea of what’s involved and what can be achieved with the right techniques and products.


Quarry Tiled Porch Before and After Cleaning Sealing Edinburgh

Restoring an Old Quarry Tiled Porch Floor in Edinburgh West End

The restoration of this old Quarry tiled porch floor was carried out at a house in the west end of Edinburgh famous for its historic buildings and cobbled streets. The tiles were very old (possibly Victorian) and a number had patterns painted on with a stencil at some time in the past and these had now worn away leaving mainly white paint, I’m sure the patterns looked great initially but years of wear and tear had certainly taken their toll on them.

Quarry Tiled Porch Before Cleaning Edinburgh

Cleaning Quarry Tile and Grout

First the floor was covered with a Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel which is a new product based on the popular Pro-Clean product but in a more manageable gel form. We left the Oxy-Gel to soak into the pores of the tile for ten to fifteen minutes, we were working in a tight space so the gel ensured the product remained in position. The tiles were then scrubbed by hand and then rinsed which removed most of the hard ground in dirt.

To remove what was left of the paint stencils the tiles were individually treated with Tile Doctor Remove and go which is a powerful coatings remover, its was worked into the tile as before and the paint came away.

Last step before sealing was to give the floor a final clean with another solution of Oxy-Gel and then rinsed with neutral tile cleaner and water to remove any trace of cleaning product and then left to dry off overnight.

Sealing Quarry Tiles

We came back the next day and checked a few areas to make sure the floor was dry before sealing. The tiles were dry so the sealing process was started using Tile Doctor Seal and Go which is an ideal sealer for Quarry tiles as it affords good stain protection whilst adding a nice subtle sheen to the floor, five coats were required before the tiles had become fully sealed.

Quarry Tiled Porch After Cleaning Sealing
The porch tiles now look much fresher and with the new sealer should keep looking that way for some time in the future.

Quarry Tiled Porch After Sealing with Seal and Go
 

Deep Cleaning and Sealing a Quarry Tiled Vestibule in Edinburgh

Restoring an Old Quarry Tiled Porch Floor in Edinburgh West End Read More »

External Quarry Tile Steps Before and After Cleaning

External Quarry Tile Steps and Grout Cleaned in Kirkliston

The photographs below are from a set of steps outside a house in the small West Lothian town of Kirkliston near Edinburgh airport and as you can see from the photograph the Quarry Tiled steps and Grout were looking tired and now in need of a good deep clean.

External Quarry Tile Steps Before Cleaning

Cleaning Quarry Tile and Grout

To get them clean we scrubbed in a strong solution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean, it was a small area so this was done by hand using water to rinse away the soiled cleaning solution. The process was repeated until the dirt and grime had been removed and particular attention was applied to the grout using a stiff brush and plenty of elbow grease. Cleaning tiles outside does have its advantages as there is less preparation required but drying can take longer if it’s a cold day or shady spot.

Grout Colouring Quarry Tiles

Despite our best efforts to get the grout clean there was still evidence of staining so once it was dry the grout was coloured with 2 coats of grout colourant. The top layer of grout is actually porous so it will become ingrained with dirt over time that makes cleaning very difficult, the grout colourant product we use however forms an epoxy barrier over the grout which seals the grout and makes it easy to clean. Once complete and dry the steps were finished off with a wipe down using Tile Doctor Neutral Cleaner.

External Quarry Tile Steps After Cleaning
 

Quarry Tile Steps and Grout Refreshed in Kirkliston near Edinburgh Airport

External Quarry Tile Steps and Grout Cleaned in Kirkliston Read More »

Quarry tiles Before and After cleaning and colouring

Stained Quarry Tile Grout Cleaned and Coloured in Livingston

The grout on this Quarry tiled floor in the kitchen of a house in Livingston near Edinburgh was proving impossible to clean effectively and had now become badly stained with dirt and grime and had gone dark in the process making it obviously dirty when compared with the clean areas.

Quarry Tiles Before Cleaning and Colouring

Cleaning Tile and Grout

The first step when cleaning grout is to apply a strong solution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is a strong alkaline cleaning agent. The solution is mopped onto the tile and grout and then scrubbed in by hand with a stiff brush along the grout lines, Pro-Clean is also a good general tile cleaner so it worked well on the Quarry Tiles as well. The soiled cleaning solution was rinsed away with water and as much water as possible was removed using a wet vacuum. Next we left the floor to allow it to dry leaving a turbo air mover in help to speed up the process.

Quarry Tiles Before Cleaning and Colouring

Sealing Quarry Tiles

When the floor was dry it was clear that the grout would never be clean enough to match with the areas that were still white so we agreed to apply a white epoxy Grout Colourant to resolve the problem. The group colourant is applied by hand and is painted onto the grout using a small brush; any excess is then wiped off the tile. Two coats were required on this floor.

Quarry Tiles After Cleaning and Colouring
The floor now looks like it has come back to life and as you can see all the grout now has a uniform colour and should stay that way for a long time as the added advantage of an epoxy grout colourant is it forms a barrier over the grout that will seal and protected it.

Quarry Tiles After Cleaning and Colouring
 

Quarry Tile and Grout Cleaning and Colouring in Livingston, West Lothian

Stained Quarry Tile Grout Cleaned and Coloured in Livingston Read More »

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