Coarse Burnishing Pads Help Restore Old Brick Flooring in Godstone Surrey

These photographs were taken at an old property in Godstone that was undergoing renovations including the conversion of a scullery with a Brick floor into a children’s playroom. As part of the renovation work the builder had prised off some of the Vinyl tiles and pulled up the cement screed that used to even out the floor underneath.

The builder had advised smashing up the brick floor and laying something else, fortunately the homeowner who wants to keep any original features in the property disagreed. Having searched on the internet for someone to restore the floor they found Tile Doctor and I was asked to take a look.

Whilst at the property examining the floor I took time to do a test clean and the floor responded well to the treatment. From that I was able to quote for the full restoration of the Brick flooring which was accepted, and a date set for the work.

Removing Cement from Brick Flooring

Work started with the removal of the Vinyl tiles which came off easily with a bit of pressure, not so easy was the adhesive and cement beneath. Using a power chisel, I carefully chipped away at the cement until all that was left was a thin film. Then using a coarse 200-grit burnishing pad fitted to a weighted buffer I managed to smooth out the bricks. The floor was then rinsed with water and the slurry removed with a wet vacuum.

With all the cement removed the next step was to deep clean the bricks. For this I left a strong dilution of Tile Doctor Pro-Clean to soak in for ten minutes. This time I scrubbed the floor with a less aggressive 400-grit burnishing pad. A few areas in the corners where the pads can struggle to reach were rubbed down with a handheld diamond block. Once done the floor was give another rinse and dried as much as possible with the wet vacuum.

The bricks had been exposed to a lot of water during the rinsing so and with bricks being very porous I left the property over the weekend so it would have time to dry out before sealing.

Sealing Brick Flooring

Returning the following Monday I took several moisture readings from the bricks in several areas using a damp meter. All was well so I processed to apply three coats of Tile Doctor Seal and Go Extra. This product boosts colour and adds an appealing sheen finish that will last for years. This product is also breathable and will allow moisture to rise through the floor which is an important feature when your dealing with old floors that don’t have a damp proof membrane.

Our client was very happy with the work we carried out and delighted with their newly restored floor. For cleaning I recommended they use Tile Doctor Neutral Clean which is a pH neutral tile cleaning product for sealed floors.

Source: Brick Cleaning, Restoration and Sealing Products and Services in Godstone Surrey