I received this enquiry from a client in High Wycombe who needed the Slate tiled shower floor cleaning. I visited site to view the problem and it turns out this was a bit of an understatement; the whole floor was completely covered in limescale, and this had turned the Slate tiles white over time.
Limescale is a big problem for High Wycombe which is classed as a hard water area which basically means the water contains high levels of calcium carbonate. These deposits are carried in the water and left on the tiles after each shower. You can install a water softener to alleviate the problem but that won’t solve this client’s current issue. There are numerous limescale removal products that you can buy in supermarkets however these are acidic and can etch natural stone if you are not careful. Always read the label!
Cleaning a Slate Tiled Shower Floor
The limescale build up on this floor was really bad so I felt the best approach would be to use a light acidic cleaning product to help remove the worst of it and then to refinish the appearance and removing any etching of the tiles using a series of diamond encrusted stone burnishing pads. I provided the client with a quote based on this solution and it was accepted.
To start removing the limescale I applied neat Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up which is an acid cleaner that can remove grout smears and other mineral deposits such as in this case calcium carbonate deposits. I then used my handheld polishing machine with a very coarse 80-grit diamond brush attached and scrubbed it to remove the crust of the limescale.
I then applied more Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up and watched the remaining scale fizz away; the floor was then rinsed to remove the soil using water and our wet vacuum. The next step was to apply a 400-grit six-inch diamond pad, again fitted to the hand polisher to buff the floor and prepare it for the new seal.
Sealing a Slate Tiled Shower Floor
After waiting for the stone to dry I was able to finish the floor with a fresh sealer. For this I applied one coat of Tile Doctor Colour Grow which was left to soak in and then buffed with a clean cloth to remove the excess. I then applied one coat of Tile Doctor Stone Oil to restore the natural oil in the stone and buffed this in, I then finished with one more coat of Tile Doctor Colour Grow and buffed the floor with a 3000-grit diamond pad to bring up the polished appearance of the stone even further.
The client was delighted with the restoration and surprised at how we had managed to shift the limescale. the shower looked a lot more inviting! For aftercare I recommended cleaning with Tile Doctor Stone Soap which will help build patina and maintain the polished appearance of the stone.
Source: Slate Tile Cleaning Service in High-Wycombe, Buckinghamshire
Covering South Buckinghamshire, Jack Day is your local Stone, Grout and Tile renovation expert. Russell is also an agent of Tile Doctor, the largest professional Tile, Stone and Grout restorative cleaning network in the UK. Tile Doctor has developed products and techniques to handle a multitude of issues surrounding tile, stone and grout, interior, exterior, domestic or commercial.