Edwardian Tiles

Edwardian Hallway Floor Before After Renovation Finchley

Edwardian Tiled Hallway Floor Restored in Finchley

The owners of this Edwardian property in Finchley had purchased it a couple of years prior and since then had slowly been renovating it to restore its original character. The project was almost complete and now attention had turned to the tiled floor. The tiles were in quite a state and I was asked to work our Tile Doctor magic and bring it back to its original condition.

Edwardian Tiled Hallway Floor Before Renovation Finchley

When they moved in the hallway had been covered with carpet which gave the tiles underneath some protection. Unfortunately, however the carpet has been secured with carpet grippers that had been glued to the tiles around the edges. There were also paint splashes on the surface that would need dealing with. On top of that the floor had a few missing tiles that had been back filled by cement to provide a level base for the carpet, the client wanted like them replaced if possible.

Edwardian Tiled Hallway Floor Before Renovation Finchley

After surveying the floor, I explained what could be done and ever completed a small test clean to demonstrate how the tiles would look once deep cleaned. I was confident on being able to source very similar reclaimed tiles so replacing the missing should not be a problem. The client was very happy with the initial test result and my quotation so booked me in to restore the floor.

Cleaning and Repairing an Edwardian Tiled Hallway Floor

On my return I started by applying Tile Doctor Remove and Go to soften up the glue which allowed it to be carefully peeled off the tiles with scrappers. Once all the carpet adhesive was gone, I worked a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go into the tiles using a black pad to work the cleaning solution deeper into the tiles. A wet vacuum was used to remove the slurry created, and I followed this by giving the tiles an extra clean using a 200-grit diamond burnishing pad lubricated with water.

The last step in the cleaning process was to give the floor an acid rinse using Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up, I did this for several reasons, first it removes old grout smears from the surface of the tile and second it neutralised any efflorescent salts lying dormant in the floor. This can be quite a problem for old floors which don’t have the benefit of a protective damp proof membrane under the floor. The floor was given a final rinse with water which was again extracted with a wet vacuum.

I then set about lifting all the loose tiles (approximately ten) and carefully removing the concrete infills. I had previously managed to source replacements for these holes from original features. Unfortunately, they didn’t sell the correct sized octagon tiles, so I had bought 150mm square tiles and then needed to cut them on site to get the right size.

After cutting and fixing the tiles I fixed them in place and regrouted the rest of the floor.

Sealing an Edwardian Tiled Hallway Floor

I then left the floor to dry out overnight and returned in the morning. Before applying a sealer, I took several moisture readings with the damp meter to make sure the tiles were dry enough to take the sealer.

I was able to confirm the floor was dry, so went ahead and applied three coats of Tile Doctor Colour Grow sealant. Colour Grow is an impregnating sealer that is fully breathable sealer which is important when it comes to old floors like these that don’t have a damp proof membrane installed.

Edwardian Tiled Hallway Floor After Renovation Finchley

My client was very happy with the renovated floor and for aftercare I left them with a bottle of Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner and gave advice on how best to clean the floor going forward.

Edwardian Tiled Hallway Floor After Renovation Finchley

 

Professional Restoration of an Edwardian Tiled Hallway in North London

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Edwardian Tiled Hallway Before After Deep Restoration Finchley

Restoration of an Edwardian Tiled Hallway in Finchley

After having their hallway carpeted for several years the owner of this Edwardian property in Finchley, North London decided they would like to restore their original tiled hallway floor. They asked me to visit and help lift the carpet to see whether restoring would be feasible. They knew from before that a few areas of tiles were damaged and did not know if replacements could be sourced.

Edwardian Tiled Hallway Before Restoration Finchley

As requested, I went over to have a look at the newly revealed floor and make some recommendations. After carefully removing the hallway carpet we found the floor to be very dirty but importantly intact with only a few sections of loose or missing tiles. It would certainly be possible to restore it and given the length of the hallway I was confident it would look impressive when finished and be a great addition to the property.

We discussed the process and after confirming that sourcing matching reclaimed tiles as replacements was possible, we agreed a price and arranged a date to carry out the work.

Cleaning/Repairing a Edwardian Tiled Hallway Floor

The carpet had left quite a lot of residue on the tiles as well as adhesive from the carpet glue, so our first task was to get the Edwardian tiles clean. We carried out a detailed clean over the whole floor using Tile Doctor Remove & Go to treat the adhesive followed by a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro Clean to remove all the dirt and old sealers. The floor was rinsed off afterwards and the soils extracted using a wet vacuum.

The next job was to begin the repairs starting with a complete inspection of the floor to lift the loose, broken and fractured tiles. The good ones were individually cleaned ready for re use. This left about 150-200 broken missing tiles that needed to be replaced. We had a number of reclaimed tiles and a selection of new style Victorian tiles we could cut to fit.

Edwardian Tiled Hallway During Restoration Finchley Edwardian Tiled Hallway During Restoration Finchley

Prior to relaying we prepared the base with new cement and levelled the floor to give a good surface. The tiles were carefully laid to the quick set adhesive, once this was dry the floor was re grouted. Once all the tiles were re-grouted the floor was cleaned of any excess grout with Tile Doctor Grout Clean-Up which is great for removing grout smears.

Edwardian Tiled Hallway During Restoration Finchley

Sealing an Edwardian Tiled Hallway Floor

The floor was then sealed with a coat of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which is a colour enhancing sealer that impregnates the tile and protects it from within. The floor was left to dry overnight, and we returned the next day to apply five coats of Tile Doctor Seal & Go to give a natural satin finish, leaving each coat to dry prior to applying the next.

Edwardian Tiled Hallway After Restoration Finchley

The whole project took three and a half days to complete.

The client was very happy with the result, in fact it was even better than they had expected. For aftercare I recommended that they use Tile Doctor Neutral Tile Cleaner to keep the floor clean as it is pH balanced and will ensure the seal is not undermined which can happen with other household cleaners.

Edwardian Tiled Hallway After Restoration Finchley

 

Professional Restoration of an Edwardian Tiled Hallway in North London

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Edwardian Hallway Restoration Before and After Sealing Muswell Hill

Edwardian Tiled Hallway Floor Restored in Muswell Hill, London

It must seem to he reader of this site that the only we get in North London relates to Victorian and Edwardian tiled floors. They are certainly popular, and we do get our fair share, but I can assure we also work on all types of tile, stone and grout however at the moment there appears to be a huge demand for our services in restoring Victorian and Edwardian tiled floors.

This post which comes from a property in the London suburb of Muswell Hill which is well known for Victorian and Edwardian houses. The owners had decided to improve the look of their hallway and uncovered an original Edwardian tiled floor after pulling up the carpet. Realising it was an original feature of their period property they decided to get it cleaned, repaired and restored back to its rightful splendour.

Edwardian Hallway Before Restoration Muswell Hill Edwardian Hallway Before Restoration Muswell Hill

Deep Cleaning an Edwardian Tiled Floor

Our first task was to protect the area surrounding the tiles from splashing by applying a protective polythene tape to the thresholds and door fronts etc. We then started preparing the floor for cleaning by removing the glue that was used to hold the carpet gripper to the tiles. A sharp blade was used to carefully scrape the adhesive off the tile and then the area was spot treated using a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Remove & Go which was left to soak into the tile for ten minutes before being scrubbed by hand.

With the adhesive removed the whole floor was given a thorough clean using a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro Clean. The cleaning solution was left to soak in for ten minutes and then they were scrubbed with floor pads fitted to a rotary buffer machine and then by hand with stiff brushes. The floor was then rinsed, and steam cleaned with the soiled extracted off the floor using a wet vacuum.

We managed to take a photo as seen below showing the floor half way through the cleaning stages.

Edwardian Hallway During Cleaning Muswell Hill

Repairing a Victorian Tiled Hallway Floor

Whist carrying out the repairs to inside the front door we uncovered a distressed surface underneath the tiles, probably from all the foot traffic walking over it for so many years which required some much-needed attention. After carefully taking out the required number of tiles and setting those aside we had to lay a new covering of cement and insert stainless steel mesh plates to level the floor.

Edwardian Hallway Before Restoration Muswell Hill Edwardian Hallway After Cleaning and Repair Muswell Hill

After the installation of the tiles, the floor was re grouted and thoroughly cleaned and left to dry off overnight.

Sealing Edwardian Style Tiles

We returned the next day to seal the floor, first checking to ensure the tiles had dried out overnight. To start the sealing, we applied a single coat of Tile Doctor Colour Grow with leaves a matt finish and left it to dry. Colour Grow is an impregnating sealer that provides stain protection whilst enriching the colour of the tiles in the process.

Edwardian Hallway After Sealing Muswell Hill
Once the first coat was dry it was followed by the application of six coats of Tile Doctor Seal & Go which adds further layers of protection but leaves a satin finish that gives a rich, natural appearance and works really well on Victorian and Edwardian tiles.

Edwardian Hallway After Sealing Muswell Hill
 

Restoring Edwardian Hallway Tiles in North London

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Edwardian Hallway Floor Before and After Restoration Crouch End

Edwardian Tiled Hallway Floor Restored in Crouch End, London

Pictures below of an original Edwardian Tiled Hallway at a house in Crouch End, North London. Victorian and Edwardian properties are quite common in the area which actually dates to the 13th Century and is often used in the filming of East Enders.

We were called in to look at restoring the floor back to its former glory and when inspecting and surveying the floor we found large sections of tiles that were loose and three doorway thresholds that required rebuilding and re-tiling. If you have been following our website posts, you will know this is something we specialise in, so we were more than happy to help.

Edwardian Hallway Threshold Before Restoration Crouch End

Restoring an Edwardian Tiled Floor

Before cleaning the floor our first task was to remove the loose, damaged, cracked and broken tiles. These were set aside and those that could be re-used were cleaned prior to re-laying. The remaining tiles were then cleaned using Tile Doctor Remove & Go to remove the old waxes and seals.

Edwardian Hallway Floor Before Restoration Crouch End
Over the course of three days we worked in small areas of about a metre square at a time. After cleaning the tiles were then fully rinsed and steam cleaned and left to dry. In the meantime, we began the repairs to the thresholds and central part of the floor.

After the installation of the new and reclaimed tiles the floor was re grouted using Mapei grey grout and thoroughly cleaned and left to dry overnight.

Sealing Edwardian Style Tiles

We returned the next day to seal the floor, first checking to ensure the tiles had dried out overnight. To start the sealing we applied a single coat of Tile Doctor Colour Grow and left it to dry. Colour Grow is an impregnating sealer that provides stain protection whilst enriching the colour of the tiles in the process.

Edwardian Hallway Threshold During Sealing Crouch End
Once the first coat was dry it was followed by the application of six coats of Tile Doctor Seal & Go which is a protective Satin Seal that gives a rich, natural appearance and works really well on Victorian and Edwardian tiles.

Edwardian Hallway Threshold After Restoration Crouch End
In total the work took four days to complete and we relayed around 450 tiles in the process. Before leaving we advised our customer on how best to maintain the appearance and increase longevity of the sealer.

Edwardian Hallway Floor After Restoration Crouch End
 

Restoring Edwardian Hallway Tiles in North London

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Edwardian Hallway Floor Before and After Tile Cleaning Islington

Edwardian Style Hallway Floor Cleaned and Repaired in Islington, London

This customer from Islington in North London had an Edwardian Black and White tiled hallway in need of repair and restoring.

Edwardian Hallway Floor Before Tile Cleaning Islington
To restore the lustre of the Edwardian floor tiles the floor would need what was left of the old sealer stripped off, tiles deep cleaned, the replacing of missing and broken tiles and finally applying an impregnating colour restoring products and a protective sealer. You will full details of how this was done below.

Edwardian Hallway Floor Before Tile Cleaning Islington

Cleaning Edwardian Style Tiles

Before starting we covered the skirting, doors and threshold areas with protective tape. Then to remove what was left of the old sealer and clean the floor the area was left to soak in a strong solution of Tile Doctor Remove and Go for about ten minutes. It was then scrubbed into the tile using a slow speed orbital floor machine fitted with a black scrubbing pad and also hand held brushes to get into the corners and other tricky areas.

The now soiled cleaning solution did a good job removing the dirt and old sealer and was rinsed away using water and then extracted with a wet vacuum. The tile and grout was inspected and the process repeated where required before giving the floor a final rinse to remove any trace of cleaning product. It was getting late at this point so the floor was left to dry off thoroughly overnight.

Sealing Edwardian Style Tiles

On our return we first carried out a number of restorative tile repairs using matching Edwardian reclaimed tile replacements primarily to the door thresholds and skirting board edges. Before grouting we applied a single coat of Tile Doctor Colour Grow sealer to the whole floor as this would make any excess grout easier to remove. Colour Grow is also a breathable sealer that impregnates into the pores of the tile protecting it from within and also enhancing the colours in the tile.

We had to leave the floor for another day primarily to allow the grout to dry before returning the next day to complete the sealing process this time using six coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go which adds a lovely sheen and works really well on Edwardian floor tiles.

Edwardian Hallway Floor After Tile Cleaning Islington
As you can see from the picture, the floor has been restored to its original condition and with the correct maintenance; it should last for years to come.

Edwardian Hallway Floor After Tile Cleaning Islington
 

Restoring Edwardian Hallway Tiles in North London

Edwardian Style Hallway Floor Cleaned and Repaired in Islington, London Read More »

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