Limestone Tile Cleaning and Polishing

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

Cleaning and Renovating Limestone tiles

Limestone is a sedimentary stone, as such it’s generally very porous and acid sensitive and can be damaged through the use of even mildly acidic soaps, shampoos and body washes. Because of this we do not recommend it for use in wet rooms, shower cubicles or near swimming pools.

Like any stone Limestone needs to be sealed to prevent dirt becoming ingrained in its pores and many varieties including Blue Lias, Blue Moleanos, Jerusalem and White Moleanos to name a few can be polished to a high shine using a series of burnishing pads.

We have found that Black Limestone has become very popular in gardens where it contrasts well against green planting and looks fantastic when wet. One issue we find however is it easily upset by the use of acidic patio cleaners that leave the stone looking dull and lifeless. If this has affected you then not to worry we do have a way of restoring the beauty of the stone back to its original condition.

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.


Limestone Bathroom Floor Merchiston Before and After

Polished Limestone Bathroom Tiles Transformed in Merchiston, Edinburgh

We often come across tiled floors that have simply never been maintained after their original installation. This inevitably leads to problems: over time, the sealer starts to wear away, particularly in high traffic areas, allowing dirt and staining to become easily ingrained in the stone and grout. The longer this is left unaddressed, the harder it becomes to clean the tiles.

An excellent case in point are this cream coloured Polished Limestone tiled floor installed in the downstairs WC and upstairs bathroom of a property in the prosperous Merchiston area of Edinburgh. The floor were already laid when the customer bought the house 10 years ago, and as far as they know, it has never experienced professional maintenance.

Limestone downstairs toilet Floor Merchiston before
The result of this is quite clear: just looking at the photos below you can see how dull and unimpressive the tiles looked before I was called in to restore them to their best possible condition. The customer was particularly unhappy with how easily the floor became stained and patchy where the sealer had failed in certain areas of the floor.

Limestone Bathroom Floor Merchiston before

Cleaning and Burnishing Limestone Floor Tiles

To clean the Limestone tiles, I used Tile Doctor’s system of four diamond encrusted burnishing pads, which range from Coarse to Very Fine. The abrasive Coarse grit pad are applied to cut back through the stone to remove stains, while the Fine and Very and Fine pads are applied to achieve a high quality polished shine.

The pads are fitted to a rotary machine in sequence from coarse to fine and lubricated with a small quantity of water which is sprayed onto the surface. The resultant slurry is rinsed off with more water and extracted using a wet vacuum.

The downstairs WC was approached using much the same method except the space was tighter so we had to use smaller six-inch burnishing pads fitted to a handheld buffer.

After completing the burnishing process, I scrubbed the grout with a narrow brush and a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro Clean, which is a high performance alkaline cleaner, to remove any dirt and stains.

Last step before leaving was to rinse both floors with water to remove any trace of cleaning solution. The wet vacuum was then used to remove as much water and moisture from the tiles as possible.

Limestone Bathroom Floor Merchiston during

Sealing a Limestone Tiled Bathroom Floor

I left the floor to fully dry out overnight before returning the next morning to re-seal the stone which would protect it from future staining.

My choice of sealer was Tile Doctor Colour Grow, which is the ideal sealer for sealing Limestone. As an impregnating sealer, it penetrates deep into the pores of the stone to fill them and prevent dirt from becoming ingrained there. It also subtly enhances the natural shades in the stone.

Limestone downstairs toilet Floor Merchiston after
The customer was delighted with the job as both floors were completely transformed. It’s sometimes hard to believe how long some tiles go without proper maintenance, but it’s equally amazing just how quickly they can be rejuvenated with the right products and methods!

Limestone Bathroom Floor Merchiston after
 

Restoring the Polish on Limestone Floors in Edinburgh

Polished Limestone Bathroom Tiles Transformed in Merchiston, Edinburgh Read More »

Limestone Table Before and After Refinishing Edinburgh City

Refinishing a Limestone Table Top in Edinburgh City Centre

Here is a Limestone table that we stripped, cleaned and sealed in Edinburgh city centre. As you can see from the photographs below the old sealer/wax coating had started to deteriorate and wear off in places leaving the table looking dirty and the client hated the waxy/yellow shine finish it left so asked us to remove the old seal completely and make the Limestone look completely natural.

Limestone Table Before Refinishing Edinburgh City

Cleaning a Limestone Table Top

To remove the remaining wax coating the table was smothered in strong solution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is an effective cleaning product that will strip off old sealers when used in a concentrated form. The solution was left to dwell for a while before being scrubbed in by hand and then rinsed off with water.

To make the job easier the table was cleaned in two sections and the process repeated a number of times in order to remove all the wax. Once complete the table was given a final clean using Tile Doctor Neutral Clean which is a PH neutral cleaning product to remove any trace of Pro-Clean and neutralise the stone before sealing.

Limestone Table During Refinishing Edinburgh City

Sealing a Limestone Table Top

The table was dried thoroughly before being sealed using three coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is a penetrating sealer that soaks into the pores of the stone improving its natural colours and protecting it against staining from within.

Limestone Table After Refinishing Edinburgh City
The difference was remarkable and my client was delighted with the result.

Restoring the appearance of a Limestone Table in Edinburgh

Refinishing a Limestone Table Top in Edinburgh City Centre Read More »

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