Tile and Grout Cleaning & Sealing

Our company has employed the most advanced procedures cleaning and sealing hard surfaces. Specialty products and a high degree of knowledge and education is required to maintain these floor coverings properly. Each floor is carefully inspected, cleaned and sealed according to the type and condition of flooring material. Below is our guide to hard surface cleaning for various surfaces.

This guide is designed to provide you, with the basic introduction into the cleaning and restoration of floors. All Hard Surfaces Floor can be divided in two categories: SYNTHETIC FLOORS and NATURAL STONE. We will cover only the floors used commonly in today’s market.

Synthetic Floors

Ceramic Tile is clay fired man-made material. Surface in glazed ceramic (single-fired, double-fired, etc…) do not normally require any protective treatment. It is the glaze itself that gives the material its excellent protection against the absorption of dirt, along with its particular aesthetic effect. Many of the new ceramic tiles in today’s market are manufactured to look like real stone.

Quarry Tiles are an unglazed ceramic material that are particularly suitable for exterior paving, due to their low adsorption and resistance to freezing (the high baking temperatures and high quality of the clay, with other raw materials make this type of floor, one of the most durable in the market today). There is no particular waiting time before treating these materials as they are not generally affected by blooms, and their absorbency allows for rapid drying. In any case, protection treatment should only be carried out when the floor is completely dry. There are different products and process for these materials according to whether they are laid inside or outside. Two are the most common type: Rustic and Stoneware

Porcelain tile is a very hard material that is particularly resistant to chemical agents, scratches, freezing and to the absorption of water. It is ideal for paving floors in public places such as restaurants, airports, schools, hospitals and shopping centers. It has also recently begun to be used in residential applications. Porcelain Tile can be given a polished surface industrially. This produces the “polished” version with its mirror-like shine. However, unlike the “natural” or unpolished versions, it is subject to marking. Can be honed and polish, but is very difficult and time consuming.

Terracota tile (saltillo tile) is one of the oldest ceramic materials made by man, this type of floor is obtained by mixing clay and water, leaving this to dry naturally, then baking it in a kiln. Saltillo Tile has particular characteristics of a physical (absorption), mechanical (special finish), and compositional (for the different types of clay) nature that demand special treatment.

Natural Stone

Slate is classified as a “rough” material with a low absorption. Slate can be found both an interiors and exteriors, and rarely have a high polish unless a coating is placed on it. Slate can be a problem for it’s high content of clay, especially in wet areas, and can develop efflorescence easily. A good quality silicone impregnator sealer can protect the stone and generated more durability. A color enhanced can be applied also in this type of floor, to create a colorful look of the stone.

The appearance of the Terrazzo is more uniform than most natural stone, and is available in tile forms or by pouring application on the slab. Terrazzo is a mixture of Portland cement and Marble chips. These chips can range in size from a fraction of an inch to as large to several inches. The very good side about Terrazzo is it can be ground, honed and polish just like Marble and can be easily mistaken for Granite. Below is a before and after picture of our work.

Flagstone is the term given to almost all-stone material cut into thin, irregular shapes. Found extensively on sidewalks, foyer entrance, pool decks, etc…, flagstone can be almost any material but is commonly the SANDSTONE type. Flagstone should not be ground and should only be cleaned and sealed.