Patio Cleaning Archives - Merseyside Tile Doctor

Stained White Sandstone Patio Deep Cleaned in Liscard Wallasey

A client from Liscard in Wallasey asked me to look at their White Sandstone Patio which was stained with moss, blackspot, and lichen. I contacted her and arranged to a time to pop over and survey the patio which was installed in the rear garden and down the side of the house.

White Sandstone Patio Before Cleaning Liscard Wallasey

I could see the staining on the patio was the typical result of exposure to the UK weather and discussed the best way to tackle the problems. I recommend applying a powerful patio cleaner to break down the staining and then use a high-power pressure washer to force the dirt out of the stone.

With a plan agreed I worked out a quote which was accepted, and a date was put in the diary for our return and hoped the weather would be on our side.

Deep Cleaning a White Sandstone Tiled Patio

Fortunately, the weather was nice and dry so work began by decanting Tile Doctor Patio and Driveway Cleaner into a large spray bottle from which it was applied to the patio and then was left to soak in. The longer you leave this product the better the result and, in this case, we left it to dwell for two hours so it could really attack the different stains on the patio. In total five litres of cleaner were applied to cover the whole patio by the time we had finished.

The patio was then cleaned with a powerful pressure washer fitted with a spinner tool that gets into the pores of the stone but is gentle enough not to blow the grout between the large white sandstone tiles. The soiled cleaning solution was then rinsed off the patio and extracted using a wet vacuum.

Once done the patio was inspected and spot cleaned where required.

Sealing a White Sandstone Tiled Patio

I discussed sealing the patio with the client, however with the location being so close to the sea I felt that a sealer may struggle to cope in the harsh salty environment and so we decided to leave it unsealed. I did however recommend the Tile Doctor Annual Maintenance Plan; this is where we visit annually to keep the patio in its best condition. The client thought this was great idea.

White Sandstone Patio After Cleaning Liscard Wallasey

The grubby patio was transformed following the cleaning and now looks so much more inviting. They are now ready for summer entertaining assuming the weather stays warm.

Professional Restoration of a White Sandstone Tiled Patio in Merseyside

Granite Patio Renovated in Mawdesley Ormskirk

Removing Cement Residue from an Amazing Granite Patio in Mawdesley

We were contacted by a business owner in Mawdesley near Ormskirk who had recently had a large Granite Patio installed. Unfortunately, the installer had left the patio covered in cement grouting stains and residue and as you can imagine he was not happy about it.

Granite Patio Before Renovation Mawdesley Ormskirk

This is something we often get asked to resolve and you may here it referred to as Hazing or Smearing. The solution depends on the surface material and can normally be removed using an acidic cleaner such as Tile Doctor Grout Clean-up or Acid Gel. However, in this case the surface of the stone looked really dull and marked with lines and what appeared to be boot marks. I decided the best solution would be to use a set of diamond pads to grind off the top layer of stone to reveal a new surface and then to polish it.

Resurfacing a Large Granite Patio in Mawdesley

To resurface the Granite, I used a weighted buffing machine and a set of coarse stone resurfacing pads. The extra weight was needed to ensure a good contact with the stone and the process commenced with a very coarse 100 grit pad to remove the damage using only water for lubrication.

The pad was run each Granite slab around three times generating a lot of residues in the process. A wet vacuum was used to remove the residue and with it being such a large patio it took some time before that was completed and we could move onto the next pad.

Granite Patio During Renovation Mawdesley Ormskirk

Once done the process was repeated with a 200-grit to renovate the surface after using the coarse pad. Again, only water was used and the whole area was rinsed and extracted to remove the residue. This action removed all the damaged surface material and was followed by the application of a very fine 3000-grit burnishing pad to give the patio a nice sheen.

Sealing a Large Granite Patio in Mawdesley

Fortunately, I had picked a good window in which to do the work (thanks to the BBC and Carol Kirkwood) and the weather remained dry. This was important as I was able to return the next day and prepare the Granite for sealing.

First, I applied a product called Tile Doctor Stone Oil to the Granite, this seeps into the pores of the stone giving it a rich dark colour improving the overall appearance and integrity. This was then locked in with an application of sealer which for this patio I used Tile Doctor Colour Grow. There are a few reasons I chose this product including the fact that its breathable which is important when dealing with external stone and it contains a colour enhancer which brings out the natural colours in the Granite.

Granite Patio After Renovation Mawdesley Ormskirk

My client was very impressed with the transformation and relieved we had managed to put the life back in what was a very expensive patio. I’m please to say we subsequently asked to work on two more patios and different stone floors at the same property.

High Quality Transformation of a Large Granite Patio Near Ormskirk

Removing Cement Residue from an Amazing Granite Patio in Mawdesley Read More »