grout colouring Archives - Derbyshire Tile Doctor

Shower Cubicle Before After Renovation Chapel-en-le-Frith

Shower Cubicle Cleaning Chapel-en-le-Frith

This client lives in Chapel-en-le-Frith which is a small town dubbed the ‘Capital of the Peak’ with parts of the parish lying in the Peak District National Park. They were trying to sell the house, but the shower cubicle was looking very bad and all the potential purchasers were being put off. They wanted to restore a new and fresh look, without spending a fortune, so they could finally sell it and move to their new property. With this in mind they had given me a call to come and take a look and see what could be done.

As you can see from the photos the grout was very badly discoloured in places, so I agreed with the client that the best course of action would be to clean the grout as much as possible and then recolour it with a white Grout Colourant followed by stripping off the old silicone and replacing with new. We discussed the cost and a timescale and booked the job in.

Shower Cubicle Before Cleaning Chapel-en-le-Frith

Shower Cubicle Tile Cleaning

The Tile Doctor Grout Colourant Kit comes with everything you need to change the colour of your grout including a Pre-Treat cleaner which is a slightly acidic product that cleans and etches your grout at the same time. This means you can get a better bond with the colourant when it is applied afterwards and ensures the best finish.

I set about cleaning the grout with the pre-treat cleaner which is sprayed on to the tile and then scrubbed in with an abrasive pad. This was then rinsed off with water and re-applied where necessary, some areas were worse than others and needed more work, so I persevered until I was happy the grout was as clean as it could be.

Applying White Grout Colourant

The job could be completed in one day, so the next job was to remove the silicone sealant between the tiles and the shower tray, the sealant was black with mould and dirt and generally in very bad condition.

Once the grout had dried I was able to start the application of the grout colourant using a small brush, wiping any excess off the tiles as I went. A steady hand is required for this job along with a little patience! Two coats of colourant were required to achieve the right finish.

Finally, the last step to complete was to put back a new white silicone sealant using a high-quality mould resistant product. There are many on the market, but the cheaper brands are not usually mould resistant and tend to turn black very quickly. Applying the sealant ensures the shower is waterproof and no water can get behind the tiles.

Shower Cubicle After Cleaning Chapel-en-le-Frith

The shower cubicle had a new look and my client was really surprised about the end result. They now felt more confident that potential purchasers wouldn’t be put off by a grubby looking bathroom. Thankfully it had not cost them too much to make it look a whole lot more appealing.

Professional Clean and Re Grout of a Shower Cubicle in Derbyshire

Shower Cubicle Cleaning Chapel-en-le-Frith Read More »

White Grout Recoloured Natural Grey Glosso

Porcelain Tiled Floor Grout Colouring Glossop

1 Comment / Glossop Tile Cleaning, Grout Cleaning, Porcelain Tile Cleaning, Work History / Kevin Ward

The tiled floor shown in the photographs below are from a client who lives in Glossop which is a market town in the Derbyshire Peak District between Manchester and Sheffield. I was contacted me to see if it would be possible to recolour the grout, it turns out they had been a little disappointed with the white grout colour they had chosen and preferred the more defined look a darker grout would have given.

I went to survey the floor and could see the tiles were Porcelain which are a good choice for busy common areas as they are very tough, easily cleaned and usually don’t need to be sealed. Grout however is cementous and the top layer is porous which can allows it to be easily stained, a problem which is more evident on white grout which is therefore not the best choice for a kitchen.

Porcelain Tiled Floor Grout Before Colouring Glossop

The tiled floor area was approximately 25 square meters, but big tiles and thin grout lines would make this a reasonably quick job to complete. We agreed a cost and I arranged a date, the job would be done across two days to allow the grout time to dry after deep cleaning on day one.

Cleaning Porcelain Tiled Floor Grout

To get the best results and achieve a superior bond between with the colourant it was important to get the grout as clean as it could be. To this end I gave the grout a good scrub with a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean which is a stripper and degreaser that is safe to use on tile and grout and great for removing dirt from heavily soiled stone or grout.

Floor scrubbing machines can struggle to reach into the grout recess, so I find the best way to clean grout is by hand using a soft steel brush. This action cleaned up the grout well and the now soiled Pro-Clean was rinsed off the floor with clean water and then extracted with a wet vacuum. I then inspected the floor to make sure I was happy and re-treated a few areas that needed more work.

I wanted the grout to be bone dry before applying the grout colourant so after cleaning the grout I left and agreed to come back the next day to complete the job.

Grout Colouring a Porcelain Tiled Floor

When I arrived in the morning I could see the grout was fully dry and ready to be recoloured. Because I needed to recolour from white to natural grey I only needed one thick coat of Natural Grey grout colourant which was carefully applied with a small brush and any excess wiped off the tile as I went along. In fact, even after retouching I found that with such narrow grout lines and large format tiles I only used half a bottle of natural grey colourant to complete the job.

Porcelain Tiled Floor Grout After Colouring Glossop

The job was all complete and the floor looking completely different. The client was over the moon with the finish and we had achieved exactly what they were looking for. The grout colourant also forms a barrier over the grout sealing it in and so they will find this floor is very easy to keep cleaning going forward.

Recolouring White Grout to Natural Grey in Derbyshire

Porcelain Tiled Floor Grout Colouring Glossop Read More »

Deep Cleaning a Shower Cubicle In Ramsbottom Before and After

Grout Cleaning and Recolouring for a Stained Shower Cubicle in Ramsbottom

1 Comment / Ceramic Tile Cleaning, Glossop Tile Cleaning, Grout Cleaning, Work History / Kevin Ward

Many homeowners will be able to relate to this post about tiled shower cubicles which can become mouldy, grubby, and just plainly unappealing to look at. The reality is that dirt, mould, and stains can be quite easily removed with the right products if addressed on a regular basis. However, many busy homeowners simply don’t have the time, and subsequently the mould problems gradually worsen over time. This is what had happened at this property in Ramsbottom (a town known for its annual Chocolate Festival) – the customer’s Ceramic tiled shower cubicle had not been adequately cleaned in a long time, resulting in severe staining that would prove impossible to remove entirely.

Deep Cleaning a Shower Cubicle In Ramsbottom Before

When the customer contacted me after finding Tile Doctor over the internet, I suggested that I could provide the grout with the best clean possible before re-colouring the grout with a white Grout Colourant to hide the staining and it back to looking similar to its original condition. The customer agreed that this would be the best course of action, and booked me in to complete the work.

Cleaning Ceramic Tiled Shower Cubicle Grout

The first step in the restoration was to get the grout ready for the new Grout Colourant to be applied. This involved cleaning the grout with Tile Doctor Pre-Treat Cleaner, which successfully removed the various dirt, soil, soap scum and hard water deposits that had built up after plenty of exposure to acidic shampoos and soaps. Getting the grout joints clean allows the colourant to form a better bond with the grout.

The Pre-Treat Cleaner was sprayed onto the grout and left to dwell for roughly five minutes before being agitated with a grout brush. Next, I rinsed the grout with water and removed the old and mouldy silicone around the shower cubicle.

Colouring Grout and Siliconing for a Ceramic Tiled Shower Cubicle

After running tests I discovered a few damp issues, but these were quickly resolved with the help of my heat gun. With the grout now ready to be coloured, I applied two coats of Tile Doctor’s white Grout Colourant, allowing the first coat to dry before applying the second.

Deep Cleaning a Shower Cubicle In Ramsbottom After

The Grout Colourant is an epoxy-based product that seals and rejuvenates the grout, protecting it against future staining and making it easy to clean in the future. After completing the grout colouring I cleaned up the area – including removing any excess product – and then applied fresh silicone in a matching white around the base of the shower cubicle.

As you can see from the photographs, the appearance of the shower cubicle was transformed by the new Colourant. My customer even left the following comment on the Tile Doctor feedback system:

“Tony was polite punctual and efficient. We are very happy with his work!”

Dirty and Stained Ceramic Tiled Shower Cubicle Restoration in Derbyshire

Grout Cleaning and Recolouring for a Stained Shower Cubicle in Ramsbottom Read More »