oxfordshire – Tiling Tips – Tips and Information About Tiling

Marble Countertops and Worktops Sealing Marble Tiles

Removing Etching from a Marble Bathroom Countertop in Oxford

16th May 2021 Reese Mackie 0 Comments Bathroom Stone, Etched Stone, marble cleaning, marble countertop, marble restoration, oxford, oxfordshire, Vanity Top

Earlier this year I was working on the restoration of a floor in Oxford and the client asked if I would look at the Marble Countertop in the bathroom. I often get asked to look at additional items whilst on site and always happy to see if I can help. Unfortunately, the stone had been cleaned with an unsuitable cleaning product (probably bleach based) and this had etched the surface leaving what appeared to be an unsightly splash mark ruining its appearance. You do have to be careful with household cleaning products around Marble, always read the label first and check to see if it is safe to use on natural stone before application. Many products are acidic and will etch into Marble as was the case here. I explained to the client what I could do, and she agreed to add the cost onto the quote for the floor I was already doing. I took photos but it is quite hard to see the damage on the images. My base in Chalgrove is only 11 miles outside of Oxford so it’s not a problem to pop back and pick up some extra materials if I need them. In this case I was able to bring them along on day two of cleaning and sealing the floor. Polishing an Etched Marble Vanity Countertop The only way to restore a polished Marble surface like this is to use a set of diamond encrusted burnishing pads

Marble Posts

Honing a Tumbled Marble Floor in Oxford

31st October 2019 Reese Mackie 0 Comments Cleaning Tumbled Marble, Dining Room, grout cleaning, Honing Marble, Kitchen Tiles, oxford, oxfordshire, Stone Cleaning

The owners of this house in the historic city of Oxford contacted Tile Doctor about their Tumbled Marble tiled floor which was not looking its best and was proving difficult to clean effectively. The floor is part of a kitchen/dining room where the grout had darkened substantially with dirt. Oxford is only 12 miles from by base in Chalgrove so I spoke to the client on the phone and arranged an appointment to visit the property and survey the floor. I could see that sealer had also worn off which is a common problem with natural stone floor and dirt was now trapped in the pores of the stone. They had tried multiple types of household floor cleaners and nothing was getting the floor to look clean, and as it was so light in colour it was really looking quite dirty. We find the best way to renovate hard stone flooring such as Marble is to use a set of diamond burnishing pads which hone the stone and restore its appearance. I recommended this method to the homeowner and worked out a quote. The quote was agreed, and we set a date to do the work which given the size of the floor I calculated would take two days, one to burnish and one to seal. Cleaning/Repairing a Tumbled Marble Tiled Kitchen/ Dining room Floor The burnishing process starts with the application of a coarse

Marble Posts

Acid Damaged Negro Marquina Marble Shower Tiles Polished in Thame

9th May 2019 Reese Mackie 0 Comments Acid Damage, black marble tiles, Cillit Bang, Cleaning Negro Marquina Marble, Marble Shower Tile Cleaning, Marble Wall Tile Cleaning, oxfordshire, Polishing Marble Tiles, Shower Tile Renovation, Thame, Vikal

I received a call regarding a Black Marble tiled shower that the customer thought he would clean himself and ended up unfortunately making worse. Black Marble adds a very opulent and elegant look to a bathroom, and I suspect this particular variety with the white veins is known as ‘Negro Marquina’ which comes from the Basque region of Spain. I did a quick price check on-line and these tiles are priced around £60 each! If you look closely at the before picture you can see the Marble has lost its shine and has a cloudy appearance. This was due to the use of an acid based cleaner. Thame and Oxford lie in a hard water area, so we often find customers seek to remove Limescale deposits off tile using household products such as Vikal or Cillit Bang. The trouble with these products is they are acidic, and marble is acid sensitive so is easily marked and damaged by their use. You should always read the label before using any cleaner to check if its safe to use on natural stone. The client was desperate to get the shower room looking how it should when he had selected this beautiful stone. Cleaning a Marble Tiled Shower To rectify the problem and restore the polished appearance of the marble I burnished the stone using a small 6 inch 200-grit diamond pad attached to a handheld

Marble Posts

Dealing with stained Marble Shower Tiles

4th March 2017 Reese Mackie 0 Comments bathroom, kidlington, marble tiles, mosaic tiles, oxfordshire, sealing tiles, Tile Cleaning

The picture below really tells the story but basically this is bathroom from a house in Kidlington that has been tiled with Marble mosaic wall tiles which has become stained around the bath. Additionally the silicone strip between the bath and the wall had become badly stained with mould and needed replacing. Refreshing Marble Wall Tiles To get the tile and grout clean I decanted a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro Clean into a spray bottle and began to apply it in sections to the Marble mosaic wall tiles. Mixing the cleaning solution with air makes it lighter and less likely to run off the wall giving it chance to dwell on the tile and get to work. I left it to soak in for a few minutes before scrubbing into the tile and grout with a stiff brush finishing with a rinse with water; this process was then repeated on stubborn stains and the rest of the area until the wall was clean. Then the mouldy silicone was removed from around the bath, dried and replaced with new. Sealing Marble Mosaic Tile The wall was dried and then the mosaic tiles sealed with two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is an impregnating sealer that penetrates into the pores of the Marble to make an effective barrier. Colour Grow also enhances the colour of natural stone so when finished the colour

Marble Posts

Dealing With Limescale On Marble Bathroom Worktops

2nd March 2017 Reese Mackie 0 Comments Abingdon Science Park, limescale removal, marble worktops, office, oxfordshire, Sealing, Tile Cleaning

This job required the cleaning of Marble Worktops in twelve toilets at a very nice office in the Abingdon Science Park. The building was occupied by a company called Sophos who you may have heard of and over a period of time the Marble had become stained through the build-up of Limescale from the water supply and the cleaning company servicing the office could not clean it off. I’ve seen a few horror stories of stone surfaces being damaged through the use of acidic Limescale removers so the cleaning company was quite right not to touch it. Polishing Marble Worktops To remove the Limescale it would be necessary to hone the Marble using a set of small six inch burnishing pads fitted to a handheld buffing machine. The process involves starting with the coarse 400grit pad with a little water which cuts through the Limescale and then moving on to the 800, 1500 and finishing with 3000 grit to hone the surface and build the polish backup. The water helps lubricate the activity and the surface needs to be rinsed down between each pad. Sealing Marble Worktops When the surface was dry I applied two coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is a colour enhancing sealer which impregnates the pores of the stone to protect it, it also enhances the natural colours in the stone. There