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Vicenza Grigio Limestone
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I received this Tile Doctor enquiry from a customer in the historic market town of Kidderminster who had a Victorian Minton Tiled hallway floor that had been covered in carpet for a long time. The carpet had since been removed and now the floor was fully exposed you could see it was covered in carpet glue and dirty with ingrained grime. I arranged an appointment to inspect the floor thoroughly and provide a quote; you can never be sure what issues you might find, so surveying the floor first ensures I can give an accurate price. As anticipated the entire floor was covered in thick glue, fortunately apart from a few loose tiles the floor was in good order. I explained to the client the process I would use on the floor and that I was confident the floor could be restored for them. My quote was accepted, and we arranged a date to carry out the work. I often get customers claiming to have an original Minton Tiled floor however there were many manufacturers creating similar patterns at the end of the 19th century, the only way to be certain is to lift a tile and look to see what’s stamped on the back. In this case we had a few loose ones that needed relaying, so I was able to confirm that quite easily. I arrived on the booked day and the first step was to tape up the surrounding area to prevent any damage from splashing. I was then ready to tackle the glue. I applied a strong solution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go and covered the floor with industrial cling film to allow the solution to get to work without drying out. The film was removed after an hour and then the Remove and Go was worked into the tiles using a coarse 200-grit milling pad to cut through the glue and resurface the tiles. Afterwards the floor was rinsed with water and the soil removed with a wet vacuum. Some of the glue proved very stubborn to remove and had to be dealt with carefully by hand using an industrial scraper, sometimes a bit of elbow grease is the only way to get the job done. The floor was then given an Acid Rinse with Tile Doctor Acid Gel, this is designed to further clean the tiles and counter any efflorescent salts that might be present in the tiles due to the lack of damp proof membrane. After another rinse and soil removal I turned my attention to the loose tiles which were secured by removing the tile, scraping out the adhesive and re-fixing. The appearance of the floor was much improved after day and the floor was then left overnight to dry out in preparation or the sealing process. Returning the next day, I first checked the floor was dry using a damp meter. Once I was satisfied it was dry, I started to seal the floor. I had selected to use Tile Doctor Seal and Go Extra for sealing. It adds a richness to the colour of the tiles and a subtle sheen finish. I applied three coats, waiting for each one to dry before applying the next. The pattern on the floor was really nice and the colours were now very vibrant. The client was very pleased and left a great review copied below: “Our floor wasn’t easy as it had some form of coating on it which was difficult to remove but Mark took a lot of time to ensure the surface was thoroughly clean before the sealant was put down. Very pleased with how it looks. K. B, Kidderminster” Mark Conway Worcestershire Tile Doctor

It was a bit of a challenge how best to transition the stringer going round the corner from stair to landing to stair. alex marshall
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Mid-sized elegant backyard deck photo in Chicago with a roof extension

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This Victorian floor in Twickenham, Middlesex was in good physical condition for its age but needed a good deep clean. Our customer had informed us that they had never cleaned or sealed the floor in the sixteen years that they had lived there so it was well overdue. I went over to survey the floor and completed a test clean on a small section of tiling to see which products/techniques would work best. I like to do this as it demonstrates to the client what can be done, and it allows me to come up with an accurate price for doing the work. As you can see from the pictures, there was quite a difference in the test patch compared to the rest of the floor. Years of foot traffic from the street had taken its’ toll and the floor was very dirty. Luckily, the floor was in very good condition and had not worn too badly. Once they had seen the test patch, they were confident that it would be worth go ahead with my quote. It would ensure that the period feature was retained for many years to come. The colours on the floor were quite faded so it would be nice to get it restored. I started the cleaning process by first taping up the surrounding skirting boards and doors to ensure they were protected from potential splashing. Cleaning involved spraying the Victorian tiles with a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is a dedicated Tile and Grout cleaning product. This was left to soak in for about ten minutes and then scrubbed in using a black pad fitted to a heavy-duty rotary scrubber. This gives the floor a good mechanical scrub and works wonders releasing the ground-in dirt and soil from the tiles. The strong dilution of Pro-Clean will also remove any remaining sealers from the tile, however after sixteen years I doubted there would much trace of sealer left. Once done the floor was rinsed with water and all the soils removed with a wet vacuum. Following the initial clean the colours were already much stronger. Next step however was to improve on that by giving the floor an acid rinse using Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up. This removes mineral deposits and generally brightens up the appearance of the tile. After another round of scrubbing the floor was rinsed with our high-pressure washer and then vacuumed, extracting all of the dirty water and dirt away in one go. The floor was looking a lot better and was left to dry overnight. After allowing the floor to dry overnight, we returned the next day to seal the floor. First, checking the floor was dry using the damp meter. Floors of this age can take a little longer to dry as there is no damp-proof membrane so it’s always worth checking as applying a sealer to damp tiles is not a good idea. Once I was satisfied it was dry eight coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go sheen finish sealer were applied. This takes a while to do as each coat needs to dry before applying the next. The sealer will protect the Victorian tiles for dirt and stains, it also enhanced the colours in the tile and will make it easier to keep the floor clean going forward. My client was very pleased with the floor and mentioned that they should have called me in sooner! For aftercare cleaning I recommended Tile Doctor Neutral Clean which is an effective cleaner with a neutral pH, its designed for cleaning tiles without degrading the sealer. Jonathan Oldham South Middlesex Tile Doctor

Example of a huge classic backyard deck design in Atlanta

Luxury, open rise curved stair complemented with a custom ornamental metal handrail system, located in Atlanta, GA.
Staircase - large modern wooden curved open staircase idea in Atlanta

This client from Highgate in North London, N6 contacted us about their large honed Limestone tiled floor that was installed throughout the ground floor. It had been laid seven years prior and was now grubby and in need of a deep clean and seal including the grout which had turned black with dirt. I visited the property to survey and assess what was required and provided the owner with a quotation for the renovation. The hallway pictured was in the worst condition, it was a busy house with young children and dogs and over the years the sealer had worn down leaving it vulnerable to ingrained dirt. Without a sealer to protect the stone it had become heavily soiled and lost its original polished appearance. Happy with the quote we scheduled a date for the work to go ahead. The quote included deep cleaning and burnishing the stone to bring back the polish, grout cleaning and re-sealing the Limestone to protect it. We arrived on the first day and prepared the area by taping up the skirting and woodwork to protect them from potential splashing. Next step was to burnish the floor using a set of Tile Doctor Diamond Burnishing Pads, specifically the 400, 800 and 1500 grit pads fitted to a rotary machine, these were used in sequence running each pad over the tiles several times with water to lubricate the process. The water turns into a fine slurry as pores in the stone are opened and the dirt is released, the slurry is rinsed off with more water and extracted using an industrial wet vacuum after each pad. The finer 800 and 1500-grit pads slowly close the pores and refine the appearance of the stone building up the polish in the process. A strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean was then applied to the grout lines, leaving it for a short while to soak in and then hand scrubbing with a grout brush. The dirty cleaning solution and were then removed from the floor with the wet vacuum. This process was repeated across the different sections of the Limestone floor until I was satisfied with its appearance. Before leaving for the day, I rinsed the floor again using a buffing machine fitted with a brush fitted to give it a final clean. The floor was dried as much as possible using the wet vacuum and then allowed it to dry off fully overnight. The following day the final 3000-grit pad in the four-pad set was applied to the floor to bring up the polish even further. The pad is applied dry with only a little water sprayed onto the tile. We call this process a “Spray Burnish” and as well as leaving the floor nice and dry ready for sealing it adds a nice subtle shine to the stone. The floor was then sealed with two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow sealer. This is a colour intensifying impregnating sealer that works by occupying the pores in the stone so dirt cannot become ingrained there. It will provide durable protection and make the floor much easier to keep clean. It worked well on the pale Limestone and beautifully enhanced the colour and features in stone. Once complete the floor looked brand new again. I left a complimentary bottle of Tile Doctor Stone Soap with the client and gave them some information about how best to maintain the floor. This product is pH neutral and cleans whilst maintaining the patina on the stone helping to keep the floor in great condition. The client was delighted with the result and left us a great review. “Andrew is excellent and gets on with the job and we got a fantastic result. Highly recommend. By Aaron S, Highgate, 15 March 2021” Andrew Newstead North London Tile Doctor

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Let the light (and view!) shine through with a timeless Glass Railing. Our Glass Railings are custom designed and fabricated to fit the space in which it was intended. We use strong and sturdy tempered glass with a variety of tints and privacy patterns for your styling needs.

New stairs that replaced the old rotten wood ones.
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