In our new, but older home, our kitchen floors were always dirty. Even if I just swept and mopped, they still looked dirty. They are a terra cotta tile which is a very absorbent tile. The previous owners had not kept up with sealing the floor as needed so they became like a sponge, absorbing anything that spilled on them. In a kitchen, that's pretty gross.
This is the floor before we did anything. If you click on the picture it will enlarge and you can see stains in the tiles that look like splatter marks. That's where something was spilled on the tile and was absorbed.
This is the floor after we had it professionally cleaned. Much cleaner and brighter but still dull. No shine at all. They couldn't remove all the stains on the tile or lift every area of the grout to the original color (especially in the main part of the kitchen where the traffic is the highest) but it is definitely a huge improvement.
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The most stressful part of this whole job was sealing the tiles. I wanted a sealer that would protect the tiles but also give a nice finish. After researching and researching for a sealer that would be good for this type of tile, I finally found one! This picture below is part of the floor after applying the first coat.
And this is the floor after applying 3 coats. It's not quite this shiny now that we've been walking on it but it does have a bit of a shine too it. And the best part, it repels dirt and water! The old floor felt dry and dirty even after just being mopped. This floor feels clean and silky! And if I do feel dirt on my feet, I know it's really time to clean the floor!
6 comments:
That is a very tiny paint brush--HA! Did you have to use one that small because of the sealer and size of your tile? Or could you go larger but still chose the smaller brush?
One of the reviews we read recommended using a foam brush instead of a bristle brush. I guess the bristle brush can leave lines. It was the largest foam brush we could find! :)
Next time maybe use a fine foam sponge mop?
We had looked at those and some of the larger sponges. But felt with the small sponge brush I'd have better control of coverage and eliminate puddles etc. The first coat took the longest because the tiles were so dry. Probably about an hour or an hour and a half to do the whole floor, which is about 700 sqft. The second and third coats only took about 30 minutes each.
You did an awesome job! That floor looks great :-)
Looks good!
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