After you have had your antique Victorian tiles restored or had new tiles installed on your pathway , hallway etc. You are going to want to keep them protected and looking great. I will describe a basic guide below on how to protect your new or original Victorian tiles. These principles described below can be used to protect and maintain any tile or stone, not just Victorian tiles.
Aftercare for newly installed Victorian tessellated tiles
The importance of sealing your Victorian pathway tiles
Its very important that your tiler seals these tiles after they have dried from the installation. Now that I clean tiles all the time , occasionally I go back Victorian tiled pathway jobs that I have previously sealed a few years back and they are always much easier to clean than ones that have not been sealed. You can get the tiles looking as new with proper cleaning if they have been sealed in the past. Its funny because years ago when I was newer to this trade there where manufacturers and suppliers saying different things about sealing these tiles. However now I have seen the positive effects of sealing with my own eyes and nothing beats actual experience so seal your Victorian tiles!
PH Neutral cleaning your Victorian tiles to preserve your tile sealers
Once your Victorian pathway tiles have been sealed you need to preserve these seals. Sealers need to be topped up every year or so and can only be cleaned with PH neutral detergents. These detergents do not harm the sealers but remove surface dirt. Ideally you want a nice warm dry day , apply and agitate your water / PH neutral detergent solution with a medium bristled broom or brush.Rinse properly with fresh water and allow to dry for a few hours. Then reapply your chosen tile sealer to your Victorian tiles. Do not use de-greasing detergents such as washing up liquid, CIF , bathroom de-greasing sprays etc. All of these will melt your tile sealers and make them patchy.
This product in the image above is a good PH neutral detergent that I know works and recommend to all my customers. This company FILA SOLUTIONS also does very good tile sealing products. Another company to recommend would be Lithofin as their tile sealing products are second to none in my opinion.
Protecting original restored Victorian hallway tiles
Origional Victorian tiles are far more porous and spongy than the new reproduction ones. These need to be sealed much more than the new ones and in hallways a wax coating over the sealer is much advised. Over the years with hundreds of restorations completed I find the best way to keep origional Victorian tiles protected and looking good is by doing the following..
- deep clean them. This needs a professional as the cleaning process is extensive
- allow to dry properly and then deep seal them with colour enhancing penetrating tile sealer
- after sealer cures for 24 hours usually, apply a breathable natural wax mixture. Allow this wax to cure for 24 hours and only walk on the floor with socks during this time. Avoid acrylic waxes in my opinion as they are nasty
- use PH neutral detergent for cleaning going forward.