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Photography by Ken Wyner
2101 Connecticut Avenue (c.1928), an 8-story brick and limestone Beaux Arts style building with spacious apartments, is said to have been “the finest apartment house to appear in Washington between the two World Wars.” (James M. Goode, Best Addresses, 1988.) As advertised for rent in 1928, the apartments were designed “to incorporate many details that would aid the residents in establishing a home atmosphere, one possessing charm and dignity usually found only in a private house… the character and tenancy (being) assured through careful selection of guests.” Home to Senators, Ambassadors, a Vice President and a Supreme Court Justice as well as numerous Washington socialites, the building still stands as one of the undisputed “best addresses” in Washington, DC.)
So well laid-out was this gracious 3,000 sf apartment that the basic floor plan remains unchanged from the original architect’s 1927 design. The organizing feature was, and continues to be, the grand “gallery” space in the center of the unit. Every room in the apartment can be accessed via the gallery, thus preserving it as the centerpiece of the “charm and dignity” which the original design intended. Programmatic modifications consisted of the addition of a small powder room off of the foyer, and the conversion of a corner “sun room” into a room for meditation and study. The apartment received a thorough updating of all systems, services and finishes, including a new kitchen and new bathrooms, several new built-in cabinetry units, and the consolidation of numerous small closets and passageways into more accessible and efficient storage spaces.

Rerental services and management offered. We can help from the rental itself to the cleaning for the unit/building. Our owners are licensed brokers/agents and can assist from services from the management, tenant placement, handling the cleaning and rerental prep if ever a vacancy (long term tenancy is key, but our tenants also hire us for home cleaning as well!).

Rerental services and management offered. We can help from the rental itself to the cleaning for the unit/building. Our owners are licensed brokers/agents and can assist from services from the management, tenant placement, handling the cleaning and rerental prep if ever a vacancy (long term tenancy is key, but our tenants also hire us for home cleaning as well!).
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Drew Cunningham and Tom Jacques
Example of a mid-sized minimalist backyard deck design in Toronto with a pergola
Example of a mid-sized minimalist backyard deck design in Toronto with a pergola

Rerental services and management offered. We can help from the rental itself to the cleaning for the unit/building. Our owners are licensed brokers/agents and can assist from services from the management, tenant placement, handling the cleaning and rerental prep if ever a vacancy (long term tenancy is key, but our tenants also hire us for home cleaning as well!).

A contemporary boutique development of seven apartments and one commercial tenancy.
The design focussed on achieving maximum on structure planting, with the concept relying on contextual references to the Art deco heritage
of the precinct, with subtle material change using fine grain textural detailing.

I received an enquiry from a property in Crowthorne to come and survey an unknown Flagstone Floor in a converted barn that was ready to be rented out. The owners where concerned the stone was letting the rest of the property down due to it being dirty and heavily stained, particularly around the kitchen and entrance areas. If your selling or renting out a property it really needs to look its best if you want to achieve a good price. Having spoken over the phone we agreed a date for me to pop over to complete a survey.
From further inspection I confirmed the stone was in fact a Sandstone, it was also clear that the sealer protecting the stone from ingrained dirt had worn away and was now allowing dirt and staining to ruin the appearance of the flagstones. It was a large floor so I measured up so I could work out the quantities of cleaning and sealing products needed and then walked the customer through the cleaning process. Later that day I sent over a detailed quotation which was accepted, and a date agreed for my return.
I should mention this work took place during the Covid restrictions, fortunately being a rental property, I was able to work in the property alone.
To deep clean the floor and remove the ingrained dirt and staining I used a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean. It is sprayed onto the floor and left to soak in for five minutes before agitating with a Black scrubbing pad fitted to a weighted buffing machine. The resultant slurry was then wet extracted away using a powerful high-pressure van mounted extracting system.
This action cleaned up most of the stone nicely however certain areas where heavily stained, particularly in the kitchen area where food and drink stains were more apparent. To tackle this, I applied a stronger cleaner/stripper product called Tile Doctor Remove and Go this time allowing ten minutes for it to soak in before scrubbing the surface with a very coarse 100-grit soft milling pad. This took quite a few attempts each time extracting the slurry away and then inspecting the floor to see if more work was needed.
Happy the stains have been removed, I then focused on renovating the surface Sandstone after the application of the coarse pad. This involves the application of several finer grit burnishing pads which close the pores and adds a subtle polish to the Sandstone. As I started with 100-grit pad it was necessary to gradually refine the surface with an incremental series of pads that included 200, 400 and finally 800-grit pads. Then to ensure a uniform finish across the floor I continued the 400 and 800 grit pads throughout the property. Water is used to lubricate the process and this turns into a fine slurry that is rinse extracted as before.
The cleaning process took up the whole of the first day and I am pleased to say the Sandstone floor looked very clean after I had finished.
The stone was then allowed dry off overnight with the aid of an industrial air mover and I returned later the next day to apply a new protective seal. In the meantime, my customer had been over to check out the floor and were over the moon with how it looked and wanted to keep the finish as natural as possible.
With this in mind, I applied Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal sealer to the Sandstone throughout, only two coats were needed. This is a premium sealer that is almost invisible and works by penetrating the stone thus preventing dirt from becoming ingrained. Once done the floor looked very clean and much brighter than before, it now had that wow factor which will help it attract a good yield in the rental market.
The trouble with rental properties of course is making sure the tenant uses the right product to maintain the floor and not a typical supermarket tile cleaner that are only designed for use on Ceramic and Porcelain tiles. In fact, these types of cleaning product can slowly strip the sealer off the floor so it’s always worth checking the label before purchasing. Fortunately Tile Doctor sells a product called Neutral Cleaner that is ideal for maintaining sealed stone floors, so I left them with a complimentary bottle and recommended they get some more to leave under the sink for the new tenant.
Dennis Buckland
Berkshire Tile Doctor

This customer from Stroud was soon to be re-letting her house but the Ceramic tiled floor and especially the grout had been left in a poor and dirty condition by the previous tenant. The ceramic tiled floor was installed throughout the Kitchen and through into the adjacent conservatory. Conscious this would affect future lettings she contacted Tile Doctor to see if we could help.
I paid a visit to the property to survey the floor and discuss how we would restore the Ceramic tiles and get them looking clean again. She was happy to hear we could help and agreed to my quote and we booked the work in for the following week. It would only take a day which suited her perfectly as she was keen to get the property back on the market.
Stroud is a lovely market town and in the centre of Gloucestershire. It is the main town in Stroud District and forms the centre for numerous surrounding market towns.
The Cotswold Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty surrounds the town, and the Cotswold Way path passes by it to the west, so it really is a desirable place to live with lots of lovely walks.
The first job was to protect all the walls and units to ensure they did not get splashed by the products we would be using. I then sprayed Tile Doctor Remove and Go all over the floor and the grout lines, this was left for a short time to dwell and get to work breaking down the dirt. The floor was then scrubbed using a black buffing pad fitted to a buffing machine finishing off by scrubbing the grout lines with a stiff brush. The soil released from the floor was then rinsed off with water and extracted with a wet vacuum. Once I was happy with the result the floors were speed dried with a blow heater. The alternative was to leave the floor overnight, but as time was of the essence speed drying was the best option.
Later that day the floor was dry, and I was able to seal the grout lines with Tile Doctor Ultra Seal. I used a pipette to apply the sealer directly to the grout to ensure maximum coverage. The tiles themselves did not require any sealant as ceramic tiles are sealed at the factory when they are produced. Grout being cementitious however does attract dirt and so sealing it will keep it looking fresh for some time to come and make it easier to clean.
The client was very pleased with the results and relieved she could re-let the house again. Now the floor was clean and much more attractive it would ensure she could achieve the best rental value.
I suggested she left a bottle of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner for the new tenants as this would be the best product to keep the floor clean moving forward, you only need a small amount to dilute and it has a pleasant fresh fragrance. At least if the product is on site the tenant is more likely to keep the floor looking good and not resort to everyday household cleaners which eventually break down the grout and its’ seal. She thought this was a great idea.
Malcolm Crowther
Gloucester Tile Doctor
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