Flagstone Tile Cleaning

Property renovation can be a busy and chaotic process, especially when some of the work falls short of your expectations. This customer, who lives in the tiny Bedfordshire village of Moggerhanger (pronounced locally as ‘Morhanger’), called me in as he was not happy with the appearance of a newly laid Flagstone tiled floor in the kitchen, dining room and downstairs WC. There was extensive renovation work taking place at the property and the customer had been let down by his tiler, as a result he agreed to allow his builder to lay the Flagstone tiles.

Unfortunately, the installation was not completed properly and the grout haze quickly emerged. What’s more, there was a significant quantity of adhesive staining on the surface of tiles, left over from the decorating which had not been removed. The customer needed help to get the floor looking the way it should and we were more than happy to help.

Cleaning and Sealing a Flagstone Tiled Toilet Floor

The photo below shows the extent of the grout haze present in the WC area. I was able to remove this successfully by using Tile Doctor Grout Clean Up which is a concentrated phosphoric acid cleaner designed to penetrate below the surface to remove grout haze, mineral deposits, rust stains and efflorescence.

This product was scrubbed into the grout using a rotary machine fitted with scrubbing brushes. The soiled cleaning residue was then removed using a wet-vac machine. Any stubborn areas of grout haze were given a second treatment, followed by a washing and rinsing.

The next photo shows this area after an application of Tile Doctor Stone Oil which soaks into the stone to enhance the natural colours and texture. I allowed the area to dry for 24 hours before sealing with Tile Doctor Seal & Go which adds a nice sheen to the tile as well as further protection.

Cleaning and Sealing a Flagstone Tiled Kitchen Floor

The next pair of photos show the staining of the kitchen tiles including a close-up shot.

I was able to remove the staining using a stiff rotary brush in combination with our reliable alkaline cleaner Tile Doctor Pro Clean, which was followed by an application of Grout Clean-Up to remove any particularly stubborn deposits. The floor was allowed to dry for twenty-four hours before being sealed in a similar way to the bathroom using three coats of Stone Oil and three coats of Tile Doctor Seal & Go. The final photos show the finished floor.

Finally, I was asked by the customer if I would help the builder out by assisting with grouting the entire kitchen due to time restraints and because the customer wanted to get the room back into use as soon as possible.

Together we finished grouting the entire area correctly, made much easier by the fact that I had already sealed the floor. New grout was left to dry for a further 24 hours, before I returned to give the floor a light clean and two further coats of Tile Doctor Seal & Go to ensure the new grout was sealed and adequately protected.

The customer left the following feedback stating how pleased he was with the overall service:

“Philip did a fantastic job getting extensive amounts of adhesive and grout off of our newly laid flagstones. He also re oiled, sealed, helped with grouting and a final clean/seal so when he left the flagstones were completely finished. Prompt service and stayed late to get the job done as soon as possible so we could put our house back together. Would highly recommend.”

Flagstone Floor Installation Issues Resolved in Bedfordshire