Diamond Pattern

Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor Before and After Restoration Highgate

Repairing and cleaning a Victorian Tiled hallway in Highgate

This client from North London had recently bought a property in Highgate N6 and during renovation had discovered an original Victorian tiled floor in the hallway. The floor was laid in a classic black and white diamond pattern but unfortunately a large section was missing and had been filled with concrete. Furthermore, most of the remaining floor had been covered in cement and glue.

I carried out a survey of the floor to determine the main issues and was then able to email over a quote later that day that included rebuilding the missing section of flooring. I suspect the floor had been excavated at some point in the past to install central heating and then rather than have the excavated section restored it was simply back filled and then levelled with a cement screed before finally gluing down a carpet on top.

Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor Before Renovation Highgate N6

Once the quote was accepted, I sourced replacement tiles from the Vintage Floor Tile company. Situated in Kent they are a reclamation yard that specialises in supplying original geometric and encaustic tiles including the major historical makers such as Minton and Craven Dunnill.

Repair and Restoration of Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

Armed with replacement tiles I started by removing the concrete that had been used to backfill the missing section and prepare a new surface for tiling with quick drying cement. When ready I was able to carefully build back the original pattern using the replacements. The tiles were secured with tile adhesive and once that had gone off, they were grouted.

Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor During Renovation Highgate N6

The floor was left to set fully overnight and then the next day I was able to return and clean the whole floor using a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go. As usual this was left to soak into the tiles for a good ten minutes before being scrubbed into the tiles using a black scrubbing pad. The Tile Doctor Remove and Go did a good job of cleaning the floor and the cleaning solution soon turned black with dirt during the scrubbing. The floor was rinsed with water and the soil extracted with a wet vacuum. After inspecting the floor any areas that needed further work were hand scrubbed and rinsed again until I was happy the floor was clean.

Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor During Renovation Highgate N6

The last part of the cleaning process was to give the tiles an acid wash using Tile Doctor Acid Gel which further cleans the floor by removing old cement residue and grout haze. It also neutralises efflorescent salts in the tiles which are a common issue with floors of this age with no damp proof membrane. After another rinse and extraction, the floor was given a final rinse and then dried as much as possible using the wet vacuum.

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

I left the floor to dry out for a couple of days before returning to apply a protective sealer. Tile and Stone should be dry before sealing so I use a damp meter first to double check. All was well so to seal the tiles I proceeded to apply the first of what would be three coats of sealer. I used Tile Doctor Colour Grow for this, it works by impregnating the tile occupying the pores and thereby preventing dirt from becoming ingrained there. This product also enhances the black and white colour of the tiles and makes the floor much easier to clean.

Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor After Renovation Highgate N6

Once done the floor was transformed and needless to say my customer was very pleased with the result. For the aftercare of Victorian Tiled floors, I recommend the use of a ph neural tile cleaner such as Tile Doctor Neutral Cleaner; most supermarket tile cleaners are simply too strong for use on sealed floors and can strip off the sealer prematurely.

 

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Victorian Hallway Tiles Before After Renovation Mill Hill

Victorian Hallway Restoration Mill Hill, North London

This 1930’s North London property in Mill Hill had a classic tiled hallway floor laid with black and white tiles in a diamond pattern and reminiscent of the Victorian era some thirty years earlier but still popular at the time the house was built. Mill Hill was first recorded as Myllehill in 1547 and appears to be named after a “hill with a windmill”. Over the years it’s merged with the surrounding towns and is now a desirable suburb in the North London Borough of Barnet.

I first spoke to the owner of the property over the phone to get an idea of what was required and work out a convenient time to take a look at the floor; we often get customers looking for a quote over the phone but this is not always easy to do as you never know what problems you might find with an older floor until you get there.

On inspection I could see there were in fact a large number of loose tiles in the central part of the floor which would need to be reset and grouted, the floor would also need to be deep cleaned and re-sealed with a suitable sealer to get it back to its former glory. I was confident we could soon get the floor looking how it should and after discussing the process, agreed a price and a timescale for the project. The owner was keen to get the job completed as soon as possible.

Cleaning/Repairing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

Firstly, we prepared the area with protective polythene tapes to thresholds, carpets, and door fronts to ensure the surrounding areas were protected. To clean the floor a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean was applied, this is a concentrated, multi-purpose high-alkaline cleaner, stripper and degreaser and is highly recommended for use on natural stone, tile and grout. The tiles were scrubbed with both floor pads and brushes, it is easier to use brushes in the more intricate areas.

Victorian Tiled Hallway Restoration During Cleaning Mill Hill

After the scrubbing we rinsed, and steam cleaned the floor, removing the slurry generated during the cleaning process with a wet vacuum. It was now nicely prepared ready for carrying out the repairs and the cleaning process was useful in identifying those tiles which needed extra attention.

The repairs involved resetting 50 to 60 loose tiles, the process requires carefully removing the tile, scraping out the old adhesive and grout and then replacing with new. The area is cleaned and then when the adhesive has set the tiles are re grouted in a grout chosen to best match the original. Luckily there were no damaged tiles on this floor which made the job easier. Although, we can usually track down replacements when they are needed!

Sealing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

We then left the hallway to dry off overnight, returning the next day we used a moisture meter to check the floor was dry and suitable for sealing. Old floors like these have no damp proof membrane fitted under the floor so can take time to dry out, fortunately we completed this work during warm weather, so all the readings were good.

Victorian style tiles are quite porous, so we found we need to apply give coats of sealer before they were fully sealed. We selected Tile Doctor Seal & Go to seal the tiles, it’s a specially formulated water-based blend of acrylic polymers that adds a durable stain resistant surface and leaves an appealing low-sheen finish. Being water based it doesn’t leave a smell as it dries, and it also a breathable sealer that can cope with the lack of a damp proof membrane ensuring moisture doesn’t become trapped under the floor.

Victorian Tiled Hallway Restoration After Cleaning Mill Hill

The client was very happy with the completed job, the work took a day and half to complete. Considering how many tiles had been loose the job had turned out very well. The floor is now much more manageable for her and the hallway tiles life has now been prolonged.

Victorian Tiled Hallway Restoration After Cleaning Mill Hill

 

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