Restoring Marble tile is often a necessary procedure as marble is a softer stone tile and over time the marble tile surface will become scratched and etched due to normal wear.
Additionally since marble tiles are extremely sensitive to acidic products and cleaning supplies the marble surface may become etched and require a tile restoration procedure. Typically the marble surface needs to be ground down with diamond pads using a rotating buffer. After the marble tile surface is ground down removing all the scratches and etching marks the marble surface then has to be ground with finer and finer grit diamond pads to bring back the shine on the diamond tiles. The marble surface then has to be refinished with an oxide base refinishing powder to bring up the shine to a high gloss finish thus restoring the original finish of your marble tiles. Marble restoration and refinishing is a highly skilled task that requires specialized buffing machines along with oxide based buffing powders. This marble restoration procedure requires proper skills and training that is best left to highly skilled stone restoration professionals. We recommend you hire a tile stone restoration company to perform your marble restoration procedure. You can read more about hiring a stone restoration company here.
Restoring Travertine tile can be a difficult task.
Travertine tile surface is harder than marble but it will still scratch and over time it will loose its beautiful appearance. Naturally occurring Travertine has many holes and voids it its surface that are typically filled with a Travertine filling compound before it installed. These holes and voids present some additional challenges when refinishing travertine tile. Over time the some of the filler may come out of the Travertine and this may need to be filled with specialized travertine filler before refinishing the Travertine tile.
Refinishing Travertine tile requires specialized diamond pads and buffing machines to grind out all of the scratches and abrasions in the Travertine surface.
After the travertine is ground down then progressively higher grit diamond pads are used to bring up the shine on the travertine surface. Usually it is best to not try to bring the Travertine up to a high gloss shine since the shiny travertine surface will not match the gloss of the travertine filler material. Usually it is best to leave the travertine at a less then high gloss honed type finish. This honed finish is usually preferred with Travertine as it also brings out the natural beauty of the Travertine stone finish. It is best to hire a specialized stone restoration company to refinish your Travertine tile as this procedure requires highly trained professionals with specialized stone restoration equipment to do this procedure. You can read more about how to hire a stone restoration company here.
Restoring Slate tile can be a difficult and challenging task.
With Slate tiles there can be a topical sealer on the Slate tile surface that makes refinishing slate tiles extremely difficult. The topical sealer on the Slate tiles over tile will loose the shine and luster that it had when it was originally applied. This topical sealer will need to be totally removed from both the tile and the grout when restoring and refinishing Slate tiles. Removing the topical sealer from slate tiles will require specialized floor stripping chemical and it is best to also have a high pressure steam extraction cleaning system also. Working with floor stripper should only be done by highly trained stone restoration companies. There are many types of topical Slate sealers and a stone restoration professional will know what type of floor stripper is needed to remove the topical sealer off of the Slate surface.
After the topical sealer is removed from the slate surface a new glossy type floor finish can be applied to the Slate surface to bring back the beauty and luster of your Slate tiles and grout. Typically restoring Slate tiles is a highly specialized skill that requires the use of toxic stripping chemicals. If done properly restoring a Slate tile installation can bring back the beauty and luster of your Slate tile installation. It is best to hire a specialized stone restoration company to restore your Slate tiles and grout. You can read more about how to hire a stone restoration company here.
Restoring Ceramic and Porcelain tiles is not a recommended procedure for most tile installations.
The baked on finish of the Ceramic tiles will never be able to be recreated with any type of tile refinishing procedure. Typically Ceramic and Porcelain tile surfaces will be able to be effectively cleaned to their original appearance by the proper tile and grout cleaning procedures. If the surface of the Ceramic or Porcelain tiles has become dull or lifeless this is an indication that the tile installation may need to be replaced. If some of the tiles have become cracked or broken then it is best to just replace the broken tiles with new tiles. Additionally if you have broken or cracked tiles in your shower or bath then water could be getting into your shower walls causing mold and mildew to get into homes walls.
There are some companies that will spray or paint your Ceramic or Porcelain tiles and grout but this is a temporary fix for your aged tiles.
The beauty of Ceramic and Porcelain tiles is their hardness and baked on finish that makes cleaning and maintaining Ceramic and Porcelain tiles easy. If this baked on finish is dirty and can not be cleaned with conventional cleaning techniques it is best to call a specialized tile and grout cleaning service company to evaluate your tile and grout. They have specialized cleaning supplies and techniques for cleaning tile and grout that homeowners would not have. Additionally a professional tile and grout cleaning contractor will be able to tell you if your Ceramic or Porcelain tile surface is damaged beyond repair. You can read more about hiring a tile cleaning and restoration company here.