I was asked to restore this Victorian tiled hallway floor at a property in Lincoln which as you can see was in quite a state. I don’t have the full history of the floor but essentially there were two large sections of missing tiles including under and in front of the stairs. these areas had been back filled with cement to level the floor so it could be covered with lino.
I’ve seen plenty of Victorian floors in my career, but I’ve never seen anything quite like it before. I discussed a price for the work which they were happy to accept and booked in a date to start.
Cleaning and Repairing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor
The first job was to carefully remove all the cement from in front of the staircase and cut back the cement around the back of the staircase along the hall. The owner planned to create an understairs cupboard so there was no need to remove all of it as the cement floor would eventually be hidden.
With the ugly cement removed, the floor sections were brought level ready for tiling with a self-levelling compound. I had managed to source replacement tiles ready for the restoration, so then the next task was to use these to tile the floor following the existing pattern. Once they had set, I then grouted the floor.
 |
 |
The next step was to deep clean the old and new sections of tiling for which I used Tile Doctor Remove and Go. This was left to dwell and soak in for fifteen minutes before being scrubbed in with a Black pad. The residue generated was then rinsed off and then extracted with a wet vacuum. The tiles were then inspected, and stubborn paint splashes were spot treated with more product until I was happy the floor looked clean.
The next step was to give the floor an acid rinse with Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up, this counters potential efflorescence and neutralises the pH level of the floor after using Tile Doctor Remove and Go which is alkaline. Efflorescence is a common problem with these old floors which don’t have a damp proof membrane and have been covered with rubber underlay or lino which prevents moisture rising through the floor. The floor was then rinsed and extracted again and left to dry out for a couple of days.
Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor
On my return I checked the moisture level of the tiles with a damp meter to make sure the floor was dry before starting. All was well so I sealed the floor with four coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which enhanced the colours in the tile and produced a lovely matt finish. Colour Grow is a breathable sealer which will allow for any moisture to rise through the tile and evaporate at the surface, this is an important feature for old floors that don’t have the benefit of a damp proof membrane.
The floor looked so much better after the work was complete and my client was amazed at the transformation that had taken place. For aftercare I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner which is a gentle but effective tile cleaning product that won’t harm the sealer.
Serving North Lincolnshire including Lincoln, William Bailey is your local Stone, Tile and Grout maintenance expert. Additionally he is an agent of Tile Doctor, the largest professional Tile, Stone and Grout restorative cleaning network in the UK. Tile Doctor has developed products and techniques to handle a multitude of issues surrounding tile, stone and grout, interior, exterior, domestic or commercial.