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Limestone Floor Restoration Burley in Wharfedale

Limestone Tiled Kitchen Floor Repair and Restoration in Burley in Wharfedale

The photos below are of a Limestone tiled kitchen floor with an inset of coloured stone at a 200-year-old cottage in Burley in Wharfedale near Ilkley. The stone floor was overdue a deep clean and seal and some of the inset flagstones were damaged and uneven. Looking for a solution, the owner had tried other companies before us so by the time I got to look at the floor some repairs had already been attempted although not that successful.

Limestone Floor Before Restoration Burley in Wharfedale

I popped over to survey the floor and recommended re-seating and repairing the cracked and uneven flagstones and then burnishing the floor with diamond burnishing pads to deep clean the stone and restore its appearance, then finally applying a fresh sealer to protect it going forward.

Happy with the quote I was asked to go ahead with the work and a date was scheduled.

Cleaning/Repairing a Limestone Tiled Kitchen

The first job was to repair the stone by carefully pulling out the uneven and damaged sections and then cleaning up the foundation. The existing stone was then cleaned up and fixed back in place, the cracks were then filled with epoxy mastic, colour matched to blend in with the original stone. It’s a lengthy process that requires a lot of attention to detail, but the alternative would have been to source matching replacement flagstones which given the age of the floor would have been tricky.

Limestone Floor During Repair Burley in Wharfedale

Once the repairs had set, work started on the burnishing by applying the first of a set of four diamond encrusted burnishing pads. The first pad is a coarse 400-grit which was worked into the floor using a medium dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean for extra cleaning power and lubrication. This combination increases the effectiveness of the pad and together removed ingrained dirt and remaining old sealer. The pad is applied using a rotary machine which had extra weight added to further increase traction with the stone.

Next up the grout was treated to a good scrub with more Pro-Clean which was worked into the grout by hand to ensure the best result. The tiles were a reasonably large format so it didn’t take too long to go round the whole floor cleaning the grout with this method.

The floor was then rinsed with water and the slurry extracted with a wet vacuum before repeating the process with finer 800 and 1500-grit pads that build up a nice subtle polish on the limestone and are applied using only with water. After rinsing the floor and extracting the soiling the last pad which is a super fine 3500-grit was applied dried to the tiles using only a little water sprayed onto the tile. This the final step in the cleaning and polishing process and added a lovely subtle sheen to the floor. These pads bring up the appearance of the stone as well as helping the repairs to blend in.

Sealing a Limestone Tiled Kitchen

Once the floor was dry as confirmed by a moisture meter the stone was sealed with a single coat of Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal. This is a premium almost invisible impregnating sealer which soaks into the stone, occupying the pores and thereby preventing dirt from becoming ingrained there. This ensures dirt remains on the surface where it can be easily cleaned away.

Limestone Floor After Repair Restoration Burley in Wharfedale

The result was a fully restored clean limestone floor with a subtle shine. My client was very pleased with the improvement and left the following testimonial:

“Very professional and pleasant. Willing to do what was needed to ensure the best job possible “

For the aftercare of polished and sealed stone floors I recommend Tile Doctor Stone Soap which is sealer friendly and contains a patina enhancer that will help the floor keep its polished appearance.

Professional Restoration of a Limestone Tiled Kitchen in Northwest Yorkshire

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Soot-Stained Limestone Fireplace Renovated in Guiseley

Detailed below is the cleaning of a Limestone Fireplace surround and hearth at a property in Guiseley near Yeadon on the outskirts of Leeds. Soot

The fireplace had been installed approximately five years prior and was now badly stained with soot and smoke from the wood burner and this readily stood out against the pale Limestone. Having decided to do something about it the owner tried cleaning it but was unhappy with the result and decided to call in some professional help.

Soot-Stained Limestone Fireplace Before Cleaning Guiseley Yeadon

Happy to oblige I was able to provide a quote based on photographs which was accepted and a date scheduled for the renovation which would only take a few hours.

Cleaning a Limestone Tiled Fireplace

Work started by adding protection to the surrounding carpets and the metal work of the log burner. Then to get the Limestone clean I decanted a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean into a spray bottle and sprayed it on to the stone. The spray mixes the solution with air making it lighter and more able to stick to the vertical surface. You can also use Tile Doctor Oxy-Gel for this which is a similar gel-based product. After leaving it to soak in for ten minutes the solution was worked in, using handheld diamond blocks of increasing grits.

Soot-Stained Limestone Fireplace During Cleaning Guiseley Leeds

Sealing a Limestone Tiled Fireplace

Once dry, the fire surround and hearth were sealed with Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal sealer to help protect from more soot. This is an invisible sealer that works by soaking into the pores of the Limestone protecting it from within. This keeps dirt and contaminants on the surface where they can be easily cleaned away with a product such as Tile Doctor Stone Soap. It’s important to use a pH neutral product for the regular maintenance cleaning
of sealed stone as stronger products will erode the sealer prematurely.

Soot-Stained Limestone Fireplace After Cleaning Guiseley Leeds

Once complete the Fireplace looked like new again much to the delight of the homeowner who left the following 5 Star feedback for me:

“Limestone Fireplace in the lounge is very badly stained with soot and smoke. Got in touch with Chris Allen and he did a splendid job bringing it back to its original state. Excellent craftsmanship and kept us informed of what was going on and how to care for the Fireplace in future. Very knowledgeable and lovely gent to have done the work.”

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