Vintage Tile Cleaning and Restoration - DIY Guide

Vintage tile deep cleaning

Anyone lifting an old hallway carpet in a Victorian house for the first time does so with anticipation, and possibly a pleasantly increased heart rate. The hope is that the original article lies hidden beneath a once-popular choice of floor covering.

Expectations are raised if the edge reveals the Holy Grail, the original vintage floor tiles. Excitement may wane slightly, as most of the original tiles will have suffered some wear and tear.

The challenge of restoring them to their former glory was possibly too much for a previous occupier.

However, present residents see the challenge as a fantastic opportunity to love a house that has served generations. The challenge ahead becomes a labour of love, and taking it on will undoubtedly require a lot of labour and plenty of love.

Over the years, the original practice of scrubbing tiles on one’s hands and knees has lost its allure. Soiling would have penetrated the tile's porous surface, and old coverings like wax or sealants would have degraded and broken down, allowing the surface to become impregnated with dirt.

As shown in the photo below, a deep tile clean is required when the surface appears dull and soiled. Often, building works add to the ingrained mess, and materials like cement residue and old carpet adhesive become embedded in the surface.

A deep clean should address the majority of the issues; however, some of these aggregates may not be completely removable. Light resurfacing on some types of tiling is possible, but should be undertaken with great caution to avoid eradicating colouring and detail.

Begin by protecting surrounding surfaces, wearing appropriate PPE, and always performing a small test patch in an unobtrusive area to ensure the tiles are not damaged.

Stage one:         

A mild acid wash allows the solution to activate and work on the floor. It should begin to dissolve old waxes/polishes and build aggregates.

Working in small, manageable sections is best to avoid the solution drying up.

Stage Two:         

The next method to employ is agitation. Simply Floor Cleaning uses a rotary scrubbing machine with adjustable weights. The weights allow pressure adjustments so that the diamond scrubbing pad can be utilised to its full capacity. A softer approach can be taken if the pattern or colours are delicate.

If you hire a machine for cleaning, a variety of diamond pads or a black pad should be sufficient for the heavier work. If you decide to clean by hand, we recommend a Doodlebug cleaning tool. You can apply more pressure with the tool than you would by hand, and it saves your knees some.

Scrubbing the floor by hand or machine should remove surface contaminants. However, as the tiles are porous, a wet vacuum cleaner to extract the resultant slurry will be a great help. If you remove the slurry without one, ensure you change the mop water regularly. This part of the process aims to lift the soiling off the vintage floor tiles.

Black and White Vintage Tiles

Stage Three:

Once thoroughly cleaned, the floor should be rinsed several times with fresh water to neutralise any chemical residue.

At this point, you will need to apply some of that love I mentioned earlier. The floor now requires focus on the tiny details. This is always done by hand and may require more chemicals in small applications, a Stanley blade, and an unused black hand pad.

This stage is critical because it significantly affects the finished article. Skip it, and you will forever wish you had taken more time when you were in the thick of it.

I haven't mentioned repairs, but if you intend to fill holes, re-grout, or replace missing tiles, it should now be clear what is required. Make the repairs, clean up the mess once the grout cures, and proceed to the next phase.

Need professional help? 

Stage Four:

Sealing the tiles is of the utmost importance to protect them against staining. There are many types of products, sealers, and polishes, but I'll simplify the choice to modern impregnating and surface sealers.

Impregnating sealers absorb into the tile and leave a more natural appearance. You can buy an enhancing sealer that also enhances and intensifies the colour. It's often helpful to add lustre to faded tiles.

Topical sealers sit on the tile's surface and cure to a hard finish. This does protect more against dirt ingress, but the trade-off is that they often appear less natural. When applied in moderate applications, they can leave the floor with a slight satin finish that isn't unpleasant.

Whichever sealer option you prefer, read the product packaging and follow the application instructions.

Vintage Hallway Tiles

Good luck with your labours of love. For Professional Floor Cleaning advice, call 0800 1013105.

If you need help, upload some photos and the floor measurements into our form, and we will send you an estimate.