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 Suffolk

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 Tiled Kitchen Floor Renovated in Ipswich Suffolk

Dirty Limestone Kitchen Floor Deep Cleaned, Polished and Sealed in Ipswich

This limestone tiled floor was installed in the kitchen of a house on the outskirts of Ipswich in Suffolk. The protective sealer had broken down over the years with use, and the limestone was now unprotected and had lost its lustre, it was now absorbing dirt giving it a permanently dirty and dull appearance. Natural stone is porous and without the protection of a sealer its appearance will degrade as more dirt becomes ingrained in its pores.

Limestone Kitchen Floor Before Cleaning Ipswich

I visited site to have a look at the job, I carried out a test on a small sample area, which came up well; the client was happy to proceed with my quote so we arranged a date to complete the work later in the month.

Limestone Kitchen Floor Before Cleaning Ipswich

Cleaning a Limestone Tiled Kitchen Floor

To remove the ingrained dirt and improve the limestone I spent a day applying different grades of diamond encrusted floor pads, worked into the tiles with only water to help lubricate the scrubbing action. These pads are called burnishing pads and to up the pores of the stone so the dirt can be released you need to start with a coarse 400-grit pad.

Once the pad has been run over each tile at least three times the floor is rinsed with water and the soil is extracted with a wet vacuum. Before starting with the next pad in the series a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro Clean was run into the grout lines and scrubbed in by hand with a stiff brush before another round of rinsing and extracting.

The burnishing process was then repeated with a finer 800-grit pad and then a 1500-grit pad. The pads remove any remaining sealer and dirt and start building up the polish on the tile. At the end of the first day the floor was given a final rinse and dried with a wet vacuum. The floor was then left to dry off completely overnight.

Sealing a Limestone Tiled Kitchen Floor

Returning on the 2nd day I began by applying a very fine 3000 grit pad to close the pores up and add a nice subtle shine to the limestone. The floor was checked with the damp meter just to check it was dry enough to seal. The client wanted a slightly matt finish but wanted to ensure the natural colours of the floor came through with just a slight sheen. We selected to use Tile Doctor Colour Grow. It was then sealed with 3 coats, applying each coat after the previous one had soaked in and dried. It took 3 litres of sealer to fill up the stone with sealer which will now prevent dirt from becoming ingrained there.

Limestone Kitchen Floor After Cleaning Ipswich

The floor now has a nice, easy to maintain shine and the Colour Grow sealer provided a very durable finish. I recommended to the client to use Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner, this is pH neutral cleaner so nice and gentle on the floor, it will ensure the integrity of the newly applied sealer is not compromised.

Limestone Kitchen Floor After Cleaning Ipswich

 

Professional Restoration of a Limestone Tiled Kitchen in Suffolk

Dirty Limestone Kitchen Floor Deep Cleaned, Polished and Sealed in Ipswich Read More »

Limestone patio before after renovation in Ipswich

Restoring a Poorly Sealed Limestone Patio in Ipswich, Suffolk

This Limestone patio had been poorly sealed, resulting in a lack of protection from weather and the general wear and tear of nature. As such, the patio was in need of a thorough clean, and any remaining sealer stripped off and replaced. In addition, the pointing between the Limestone tiles was crumbling, and in places the stone was marked by oil spots. The patio was installed at a house in Ipswich, Suffolk which incidentally is considered to be one of, if not the oldest town in England. I knew the Limestone tiles would be difficult to clean, especially after being exposed to dirt and wear for so long so I figured this would take some time to resolve.

Limestone patio before renovation in Ipswich Limestone patio before renovation in Ipswich

Removing tough stains and dirt from a Limestone patio

My first step was to give the patio an initial rinse with clean water in order to remove any loose debris. Following this, I mixed up an equal cleaning solution of Tile Doctor Pro Clean and NanoTech HBU. Pro-Clean is a versatile, high alkaline cleaner which can be used on a variety of natural stone floors, whilst NanoTech HBU (formerly known as Ultra Clean) is specifically designed to tackle the heavy build-up of dirt and stains. It does this by using nano-sized particles to penetrate beneath tough stains to dissolve and lift them out.

As you can see from the photographs, the combination of the two cleaning products was highly effective. After completing the cleaning, I left the house for two days to allow plentiful time for the patio to dry completely, and therefore ready to be sealed.

Sealing a Limestone Patio with Stone Oil

Fortunately the weather held and I was able to call in as planned and applied Tile Doctor Stone Oil, an easy-to-apply product that adds colour to the stone. I left the floor for a further two days and then returned again to protect the Limestone using a couple of coats of Tile Doctor Ultra Seal.

After cleaning and sealing the patio, my final task was to deal with the pointing issue. I replaced any missing pointing and fixed the loose pieces, before colouring the grout using a dark colourant to provide uniformity. This was difficult, but highly rewarding work, as the patio now looks bold and inviting.

Limestone patio after renovation in Ipswich

My customer was certainly pleased with my work, and left the following comment on the Tile Doctor feedback system:

“I couldn’t have been more pleased with the service I received from Bruce Copping. He communicated well, was reliable and managed to breathe life back into my very unattractive limestone garden patio that had been excruciating badly sealed by my original contractors…The whole area, which is around 30ft square, now looks fantastic.”

Limestone patio after renovation in Ipswich

 
 

New life breathed into Limestone Patio in Suffolk

Restoring a Poorly Sealed Limestone Patio in Ipswich, Suffolk Read More »

Newmarket Limestone Floor Before After

Cleaning and Sealing a Limestone Tiled Floor in Newmarket

This Limestone tiled floor was around 50m2 and installed in Kitchen and Hallway in a new build style property in Newmarket, ‘The Home of Horse Racing’. The property was only 3 years old and the owner was having difficulty keeping the floor clean.

Newmarket Limestone Floor Before

Cleaning Limestone Floor Tiles

The first step was to scrub the Limestone tiles with a rotary machine fitted with a black scrubbing pad and a solution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is a strong multi-purpose alkaline cleaning product designed for use on natural stone. This process ended up taking all day and requiring a full five litre bottle of Pro-Clean to get the floor how we wanted it, It was after a reasonably large area and we had to repeat the process in some areas.

The floor was then rinsed thoroughly with clean water to remove any cleaning products and we then we switched on the under floor heating and left for the day so the floor could dry overnight.

Sealing Limestone Floor Tiles

When we came back the next day the floor was nice and dry and we set about sealing the Limestone tile with Tile Doctor Colour Grow which provides stain resistance and enhances the natural colour within stone, three coats were sufficient but again due to the size of floor we did use a full five litre bottle.

Newmarket Limestone Floor After
The floor now looks splendid and the sealer has made it a lot easier to maintain, certainly the customer was pleased and left the following comment on our feedback system.

“Great job, very friendly, tiles look excellent. Mrs Fothergill, Newmarket, Suffolk”

Limestone Floor cleaning and sealing in Suffolk

Cleaning and Sealing a Limestone Tiled Floor in Newmarket Read More »

Burford Limestone Before After

Cleaning Burford Limestone Tiles in Rendham, Suffolk

These Burford Limestone tiles were in an old farmhouse in the village of Rendham in Suffolk. We were called in because the floor had only been laid less than a year prior and it was proving extremely difficult to keep clean. In fact you should be able to see from the photographs a number of stubborn lines and staining.

Burford Limestone Before Burford Limestone Before

Cleaning and Sealing Limestone Tile

To thoroughly clean the Limestone tile we applied Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is a strong alkaline cleaning agent; it’s important to use an alkaline cleaner as even weak acidic products will harm natural stone with continued use. We used 5 litres of Pro-Clean in total, leaving it to dwell on the surface of the tile for a few minutes before actively scrubbing the floor with a rotary machine fitted with a black scrubbing pad. The scrubbing process works the solution into the surface of the tile to release the dirt. The Limestone floor was then rinsed thoroughly with water to clean and neutralise the floor and wash away any remaining cleaning fluid ready for sealing; a wet Vacuum machine really helps at this stage to suck up the water from the floor.

We let the floor dry overnight and were back the next day to start the sealing process. To seal the floor we used three coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is a colour intensifying breathable sealer that enhances colour as well as providing durable surface protection, two litres of Colour Grow was required to cover the 25m2 area of Limestone with three coats of sealer.

You can see from the photographs the improvement in the floor, plus its now a lot easier to clean.

Burford Limestone After Burford Limestone After

 

Burford Limestone cleaned and sealed in Suffolk

Cleaning Burford Limestone Tiles in Rendham, Suffolk Read More »

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