Work History

Teesside-Tile-Doctor

Welcome to my Work History archive where you will find detailed examples of Tile, Grout and Stone Cleaning and renovation work carried out within Teesside.

Dirty Ceramic Tiled Shower Cubicle Transformed in Middlesbrough

Here’s a fairly straightforward job I completed at a house in Middlesbrough which if you haven’t come across it before is a large industrial town situated on the south bank of the River Tees famous for its football club.

My client was keen to have the Ceramic tiled shower cubicle in her bathroom refreshed, paying particular attention the areas where the tiles and grout had been stained by the chemicals in shampoos and soaps. There was also signs of mould build-up that needed to be addressed.

Ceramic Shower Tiles Middlesbrough Before

Cleaning a ceramic tiled shower cubicle

My first task was to mix a strong solution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean and clean water. Pro-Clean is an alkaline-based cleaner that is highly effective for removing grease, soap scum, and more. While in this case I used Pro-Clean to clean the Ceramic wall tile and grout, it is also suitable for use on most natural stone floor tiles, including Granite, Slate, Limestone and Travertine.

I then decanted the solution into a spray bottle, and applied it to the tiles and grout. The reason for using a spray bottle is due to the fact cleaning products generally don’t stick very well when applied directly to vertical surfaces. When applied via a spray bottle the solution is mixed with air, turning it into more of a vapour which clings more effectively to the surface.

After the solution had been applied, I left it to dwell for a while before scrubbing it into the tiles and grout. As you can see from the photos, this made a big difference breaking down the mould and soap scum and I was soon able to wash away the resultant slurry leaving an inviting shower cubicle.

The final step was to replace the silicone sealant strip between the shower tray and the tiles; the silicone strip is not so easy to clean and although applying fresh silicone can be tricky it does finish the job off rather nicely. As an alternative you can apply Tile Doctor Mould-Away which does work on Silicone however if your shower is leaking then you can almost guarantee it’s the silicone strip that’s the cause.

Ceramic Shower Tiles Middlesbrough After

If the shower wall had been made from stone I would now be talking about sealing the tiles however Ceramic tiles are glazed and won’t take a seal so the only consideration would have been to use a Grout Sealer however in this case we didn’t feel it was necessary. The shower cubicle now looks like a new installation and my customer was very pleased with the transformation.
 
 

Tile and grout cleaning for a Ceramic tiled shower cubicle in Middlesbrough

Dirty Ceramic Tiled Shower Cubicle Transformed in Middlesbrough Read More »

Travertine Tiled floor Refresh in Wynyard

I was recently asked to pop over to a large house on the Wynyard estate near Wolviston where a customer with a beautiful Travertine Tiled Kitchen floor needed some help to put the shine back on their tiles.

It seems their cleaner had been using the wrong cleaning product on the tiles and it being mildly acidic had started to dull the lustre. Naturally I can’t name the product in this post but you do see it advertised on TV quite a lot and if you read the label at the back it clearly states for use on Ceramic tiles and unfortunately will eat into the sealer with frequent use and will eventually cause holes to appear in natural stone.

Travertine Tile in Wynyard Before

Cleaning Travertine Tile

To restore the shine I first give the floor a quick clean with Neutral Cleaner to remove any debris that might get trapped under the rotary machine and scratch the floor, Neutral Cleaner is a frequent use cleaning product designed for use on sealed stone.

The next step was to burnish the floor using the diamond encrusted burnishing pad system starting with the red pad and water to clean the tiles and remove any topical sealers that may have been present. This was continued with the white and yellow pads using nothing but water and then with a stiff grout cleaning brush and a weak solution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean along the grout lines to make sure all the grout was thoroughly cleaned. The last step of the cleaning process was to rinse the floor of any dirt picked up by the pads and then when the floor was dry I used a green polishing pad to add more shine to the floor.

Sealing Travertine Tile

To protect the travertine it was sealed using a single coat of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an impregnating sealer that brings out the natural colour in stone and in this case it definitely brought up the brown shades in the travertine tile. Once it was all dry again I buffed it up again using a soft white buffing pad.

Travertine Tile in Wynyard After

We maintain all types of tiled floors from Ceramic and Porcelain through to Marble, Terracotta and Travertine so if you live in the Teesside and surrounding areas do get in touch for a free evaluation of your floor.
 
 

Travertine Tiled floor maintenance in Teesside

Travertine Tiled floor Refresh in Wynyard Read More »

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