Sandstone Tile Cleaning

Welcome to my Work History archive where you will find detailed examples of the cleaning and renovation of Sandstone flooring carried out in Oxfordshire

Cleaning and Renovating Sandstone Floors

Sandstone is often used for Kitchen and Hallway flooring, however as with any natural stone it needs to be sealed to protect it and bring out its beauty and colouring. One of the biggest problems we find with stone flooring is with the sealer becoming stripped away prematurely by the continuous use of cleaning agents not designed for this type of surface. Without its protective sealer porous stone quickly becomes ingrained with dirt making it increasingly difficult to clean effectively.

Our method for renovating Sandstone typically involves stripping the floor of any existing sealer/coatings, deep cleaning to extract the dirt and then applying a fresh sealer for which I recommend Tile Doctor Colour Grow as it enhances the natural colours in the stone. If the floor is particularly bad, it’s best to resurface it with coarse milling pads which can remove a thin layer from the surface of the stone.

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.

Neglected Indian Sandstone Patio Floor Renovated in Headington

Large Indian Sandstone Patio Renovated in Headington

1 Comment / Oxford Tile Cleaning, Sandstone Tile Cleaning / By

This Indian Sandstone Patio was laid three years ago at a property in the leafy residential Oxford suburb of Headington. The stone patio has not been properly cleaned since it was laid and I was contacted to see if it could be improved and to fill in the missing grout. You can see from the photograph it was in a shocking state and had completely discoloured after being exposed to the ravages of the UK weather and was now turning green with staining from the trees.

Indian Sandstone Patio Before Deep Cleaning Headington Oxford

Except for the grouting the patio was physically solid and I assured owner that with the right treatment we could renovate the stone to bring back the colour and character of the Sandstone.

Renovating an Indian Sandstone Patio in Headington

On arrival I sprayed the patio with Tile Doctor Patio & Brick Driveway Cleaner and left it to soak in and get to work for about half an hour. The patio was then scrubbed with a rotary machine fitted with a carbide brush. I then rinsed the whole patio with water to remove the soiling. Being a very hot day, it dried very quickly and I was able to inspect the patio and repeat the process focusing on the stubborn staining and to make sure the black spots were removed.

With the patio clean I was able to get a better view of the cement grouting which was cracking and crumbling in places. Rather than patching it up I discussed the problem with the customer we decided that the cement grout had to go completely. To do this I used a mortar rake and an angle grinder, it was laborious work but, in most places it came out easily. With the old cement grouting cleared away a new resin-based grouting compound designed for external use for installed.

Indian Sandstone Patio After Deep Cleaning Grouting Headington Oxford

The whole job took 1 1/2 days to complete and was unrecognisable from the original.
I did recommend sealing the stone with a product such as Tile Doctor X-Tra Seal which is designed for external use however the owners were so pleased with the new look of their patio they decided to leave it as is.

 

Professional Restoration of an Indian Sandstone Paved Patio in Oxfordshire

Indian Sandstone Pool Surround After Cleaning

Cleaning Indian Sandstone Tiles around an Indoor Swimming Pool

1 Comment / Flagstone Tile Cleaning, Sandstone Tile Cleaning, Work History / By

These Indian Sandstone floor tiles were installed around an indoor swimming pool at a magnificent residence in Oxford. As you can see from the photograph below the Sandstone was not looking its best and given its proximity to the pool care needed to be taken not to contaminate the pool with dirty water from the cleaning process or chemicals

Indian Sandstone Pool Surround Before Cleaning

Swimming Pool Tile Cleaning

We made a decision early on that we would not use any chemicals to clean or seal the tiles to ensure the water in the pool remained un-contaminated, we also setup a temporary barrier to stop any debris going in the pool and used a high pressure machine fitted with a flat surface head to prevent water flying everywhere.

Indian Sandstone Pool Surround After Cleaning
The process worked well and you can see the difference in the photographs above however the job did take taking longer than usual to complete but the main thing was the customer was happy with the result.

Sandstone Tiled Pool Surround Cleaned and Sealed in Oxford

Thame Sandstone Fireplace After Cleaning

Cleaning a Sandstone Fireplace Surround in Thame

1 Comment / Fireplace Cleaning, Sandstone Tile Cleaning, Thame Tile Cleaning, Work History / By

Details below of a Sandstone Fireplace surround from a house in Thame, Oxfordshire. The fireplace had never been cleaned as the customer did not know where to start and so gave us a call.

Thame Sandstone Fireplace Before Cleaning

Sandstone Fireplace Cleaning

To clean the fireplace I used a diluted mixture of Tile Doctor Pro Clean and NanoTech Ultra Clean which combines the cleaning power of Pro-Clean with the tiny abrasive particles in Ultra Clean to produce a very effective cleaning product that is safe to use on Stone. This was left to dwell on the stone for a short while in order to let it soak in and work on the dirt before scrubbing it into the Sandstone with a hand brush. This process did a good job cleaning the stone and once I was happy with the result the soiled cleaning solution was removed using a wet vacuum and the stone was rinsed with water to make sure all the chemical had been removed.

Sandstone Fireplace Sealing

When dry the Sandstone was sealed using a couple of coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which will protect the stone going forward as well as bringing out the deep colour in the stone. To finish the job off I removed the grate and cleaned it up using some grate black to make it look new again before putting it back; last step was to remove the protective strip I had put around the fireplace to protect the wall and carpet and the job was done.

Thame Sandstone Fireplace After Cleaning
As you can imagine the customer was quite surprised by the results and hadn’t realised what a wonderful fireplace they had until now.

Sandstone Fireplace Cleaned and Sealed in Thame, Oxfordshire

Bicester Indian Sandstone Swimming Pool Surround

Bicester Tile Cleaning, Flagstone Tile Cleaning, Sandstone Tile Cleaning, Work History / By

The large outdoor pool was situated in the garden of a large house in Bicester, as you can see it was surrounded by large Indian Sandstone flagstones which had become soiled with dirt.

Indian Sandstone Swimming Pool Surround Before
Indian Sandstone Swimming Pool Surround Before

I was not allowed to use any chemicals as the client had dogs and so it was cleaned with Diesel powered high pressure washer.

Indian Sandstone Swimming Pool Surround after cleaning
Indian Sandstone Swimming Pool Surround after cleaning

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