How To Clean, Seal & Maintain Limestone Floor Tiles

Facing with dirty, stained and darkened limestone floor tiles? Tried every method of cleaning but nothing seems to work? Failed trying to clean them with chemical products from bunnings, steam cleaners, scouring pads and most suggest home remedies. We can safely tell you that you are not alone. Thousands of homes in Melbourne have limestone floor tiles and most owners have no clue on how to care and manage them.

With this article, Stone Doctor Australia is going to assist you mainly on understanding the various stages involved in managing limestone floor tiles and keeping them looking great at all times.

Definition Of Limestone

As it is mainly composed of calcium carbonate, it almost immediately tells us one thing and that it is acid sensitive. This is so important to note in keeping to the well being of your limestone tiled surfaces. Keep away all acidity, harsh chemicals and use only approved care products and have them sealed periodically.

Deep cleaning limestone tiles require the correct product, tools and equipment. Below are the products that you require.

~ USING A MACHINE TO CLEAN ~	~ FOR MANUAL CLEANING ~
CP400 Floor Cleaning, Grinding, Polishing & Crystallization Machine	Doodlebug With Swiver Head C/W Handle. Use White Pads With This
Nylon Brush For CP400	Approved Grout Brush
General Items: Lithofin MN Power-Clean , Wet Vacuum, Floor Mop

Dilute Lithofin MN Power-Clean at a dilution of 1 part to 3 parts water. Apply this solution with a low pressure spray over the tiles and grout and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Then begin scrubbing the surface and grout working area by area while not allowing the solution to dry out. Choose which method serves you best. With floor machines, you can certainly cover very large areas as compared to doing it manually. Once satisfied with the outcome, use the wet vacuum to extract the soiled solution carefully removing as much as possible. Then mop the floors with clear water minimally twice. Leave the floor to dry.

(Note: If you cannot achieve a good clean up, you will need to re-hone or re-polish the floors accordingly. What this really means is that the profile of the floor has been altered from physical wear and tear or etched by acids including that of cleaning products and will need to be mechanically resurfaced using suitable diamond abrasives | polishing powders.. Kindly call our team at 03-9429 1223 if you need to professionally restore these surfaces to their former glory.

Once a surface has been cleaned to the best possible outcome, it is most advisable to seal them using a reputable stone penetrating sealer. It is best to go with an invisible penetrating sealer to maintain the natural look of limestone floor tiles. Penetrating sealers are not film forming but acts as a water and oil barrier repelling liquids that could potentially penetrate and stain them. They are also a huge aid in maintenance as it takes less effort to keep the surfaces clean and pristine at all times. I will now share the proper way on how to seal limestone floor tiles and grout but firstly, you will need the following products:

~ FOR SEALING WITH A MACHINE ~	~ FOR THE MANUAL SEALING ~
CP400 Floor Cleaning, Grinding, Polishing & Crystallization Machine	Plenty Of Cotton Towels
43cm White Non Abrasive Buffing Pads	Microfibre Cloths
General Items: Lithofin MN Stain-Stop, Paint Tray, Sheepskin Applicator, Sheepskin Refills, Window | Floor Squeegee

Give approximately 24-48 hours after all wet cleaning activities are concluded before sealing. To the cleaned and dry surface, apply one liberal coat of Lithofin MN Stain-Stop and re-spread the sealer every 5-10 minutes. It is best to use a sheepskin applicator. Typically unsealed limestone surfaces are porous and will absorb almost all the sealer applied on the 1st coat, apply another liberal coat and keep re-spreading every 5-10 minutes. This process should go on for just 30 minutes. So having a timer set in place is highly advisable. When it reaches 30 minutes, use a window or a floor squeegee to pick up the excess sealer. This is then followed by buffing the entire floor surface with a white non abrasive buffing pad placed under a floor machine. If manual work is being done, after the squeegeeing process, vigorously buffing the surface starting with cotton towels followed by using dry and clean 3M microfibre cloths until there are no traces of the sealer on the surface. The surface is then left to cure undisturbed for 24 hours.

Once you have sealed the surface and grout well with a reputable product like LIthofin MN Stain-Stop, you can give yourself a pat in the back. You have basically given your sensitive limestone floor tiles the best possible treatment and this will last you for a minimum of 2 years in wet areas and a minimum of 5 years in dry ones. All you can do now is to care for these surfaces under a maintenance plan that will require you to use only 1 product on a regular basis. This product is the only approved care and cleaning product which we recognize while using the correct type of mop. This almost ensures you of getting this task completed faster. No more introducing dirty water as seen with conventional wet mops that often has dirty water in pails. You would be amazed to see how clean your floors are kept while using Lithofin MN Easy-Care.

It is healthy practice to mop floors regularly as this will not allow dirt, grime and soil to get ingrained making them difficult to emulsify with simple care products like Lithofin MN Easy-Care. If neglected, you will then require a stronger product to clean and as a result may compromise the properties of a surface sealed with a stone penetrating sealer.