Molesworth

I was contacted by a building contractor with a request to resolve an issue for a client in Molesworth (near Huntingdon) who had discoloured travertine tile and grout in their Travertine tiled shower cubicle. I offer a bathroom tile refresh service which includes cleaning up the tile and grout and replacing grubby silicone sealant and the firm was keen to try it out.

On arrival I could see the tiles had become heavily soiled around the bottom of shower with the usual problems including discolouration from the dyes in shampoos, soap scum and mould build up. I gave the contractor a price for the work, and he was happy to go ahead. As this was a small job, I was able to get started straight away.

Deep Cleaning a Travertine Tiled Shower

I began by spraying the tile and grout with Tile Doctor Duo Clean which is an effective double action cleaning product which cleans up grout and can remove mould and blackspot from grout and silicone. Then the Travertine was burnished with a set of six-inch burnishing pads fitted to a hand buffer. The pads come in different grades and are applied in sequence to the tiles starting with coarse and finishing with very fine. Water is applied to help lubricate the burnishing process and I rinsed off the soiling in-between each pad. Normally I would use a wet vacuum at this point to remove the soiling but working in a contained shower cubicle makes this easier as you can simply rinse the soiling away.

Sealing a Travertine Tiled Shower

Once the area had dried, I was able to apply Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal to the Travertine to protect it and make further staining easy to remove in the future. Tile Doctor Ultra-Seal which is an almost invisible product that doesn’t change the natural appearance of the stone and works by penetrating the stone, occupying the pores in the stone, and thereby protecting it from within. Ultra-Seal is also excellent for sealing the grout too and will make the water run off the wall and straight into the shower tray.

After sealing the old silicone sealant around the edges of the shower was stripped out and then replaced with a new mould resistant product. Once done the shower looked like a new installation.

The client was thrilled with their refreshed bathroom and later I received the following message from them:

“Just to say thank you so much for your amazing results today on our shower room. We are totally thrilled”

I also got a 5 star review from the building contractor.

” “Our customer was very happy with the end result.”

For regular aftercare cleaning I recommended the use of Tile Doctor Aqua Pro which will help to keep the shower tile and grout in good condition. This is a pH neutral cleaner which is mild enough to use after every shower and won’t impact the sealer which can be the problem with stronger products you find in supermarkets.

 

Professional Restoration of a Travertine Tiled Shower in Huntingdon