Quarry Tiled Floor Hidden Under Ceramic Tiles Restored

The history of this Quarry Tiled floor at a house in Swindon is a little unusual in that the owner had discovered the Quarry tiles underneath cracked ceramic tiles which had been laid over the top for several years. The customer wanted to bring the Quarry tile back to life to match the existing hallway from the kitchen and so we got a call. Incidentally the practice of laying new tiles on top of old is not unusual as an existing tiled floor provides an ideal level on which to lay new tiles.

Cleaning Quarry Tiles

We started by using a floor scraper to scrape off as much tile adhesive as possible. Once this was done we mixed a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up and brushed it all over the remaining tile adhesive and used a black scrubbing pad attached to a rotary machine to remove the glue. This took several attempts using more Grout Clean-up, a floor scraper and a black scrubbing pad to remove all traces of the adhesive. Next we rinsed off any trace of product using clean water and then removed it using a wet vacuum.

The floor was free of glue at this point but we still needed to remove any existing sealer from the tiles and give them a deep clean to remove ingrained dirt so a strong solution of Tile Doctor Pro-clean mixed 50/50 with Nanotech Ultraclean was applied to the tiles and left to dwell for twenty minutes. (The Nanotech product adds tiny abrasive particles to the mix making a more effective cleaner). The solution was worked into the tile using a black pad attached to a rotary machine and the floor thoroughly scrubbed. Once satisfied the tiles were rinsed with clean water several times to remove any trace of cleaning product and the water removed using a wet vacuum. A lot of work had gone into the floor at this point and it needed time to dry before sealing so we left for the evening.

Sealing Quarry Tiles

We returned two days later and after testing the tiles were dry using a damp tester, which came back as OK, we processed to seal the Quarry tiles using six coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go which is an ideal sealer for Quarry tiles as it adds a nice sheen to the floor as well as providing future surface protection. Seal and Go is also water based so there’s no smell as it dries.

Source: Residential and Commercial Tile, Stone and Grout Restoration in Wiltshire