what tiles do you seal and how

[lendini]

hi all wandering if you lot can tell me what types of tiles need sealing ie polished porcelain ,slate etc and the ways in which you guys go about it.are they sealed to stop staining.also do you use stain stop vfor the sealing and what do you use to clean tiles if you get marks on them when you have layed them before sealing and grouting i.e coffee,finger marks and adhesive.
can all these be cut with dry cutter and wet cutter.thank you so much in advance Lee

[wetdec]

Polished porcelain : as its actually a piece of clay fired and polished - can benefit from sealing as it has pores

Glazed porcelain : has a glaze applied to the surface to fix on the pattern : the glaze covers the pores so it can't absorb and shouldn't need sealing

Imitation stone porcelain : can be glazed or unglazed generally the rough stuff is unglazed : will benefit from sealing

Ceramic tiles : As we know them range from white to any colour and don't get polished as the biscuit is not hard enough : to fix the colour and or shine these tiles must be glazed : glazing closes the surface thus the tiles do not need sealing.

Quarry tiles : basically super baked clay like the old engineering bricks : generally don’t stain but mark and were given a coat of linseed to give them some protection and sheen : have seen cheap ones take grout colour and anyone selling sealer will try sell you a topical one : can or can't be



tiler

..

[lendini]

thanks a lot cheers.would you reccomend lifofin stainstop to seal and your methods of sealing would be appreciated

[woof]

Hello All,
New here and much informed by this board.
I do however have a problem!

Recently tiled our bathroom, floor to ceiling with white and black ceramic tiles. Black just around the bath and white everywhere else. White ones are shiny and perfect. The black ones are not shiny and have a matt appearance. Anyway, problem is I have used black grout, and in some areas it looks as if pigments from the grout or the grout itself has settled in the black tile. This wasn't the case for the white grout on white tiles. I did ask at Topps where I bought the tiles from and they assured me they did not need sealing.
What to do? I notice there from searching on here there are products you could use to remove bits of debris - should I go this way? And subsequently I imagine I will have to seal the black tiles - but with what?

Hope this is the right forum to put this in - could now go in restoration I suppose!
Thanks in advance, Mark

[pete f]

woof are the black tiles not just a matt finish?

[Dave]

Pics will help as well.

[woof]

The whole wall - pretty awful as you can see



CLoser image of area with uneven hue. A general patch of blacker region across 3 tiles indicated by arrow



Now a close up of one of these areas.. The black pigments has most likely come from the grout - but despite rubbing can't remove it.
It also hopefully shows that the matt finish isn't just a finish but the texture looks pretty uneven, like very fine pebbledash!



Sorry for the delay - took me ages to take pics and remember where I could post pics!

ANy help much appreciated.
Mark

[Dave]

It looks like moisture at the edges from grout....i have put the 100mm version of that tile on and the biscuit is porous...does it feel any different texture wise on the face of the tile in them spots..?

[woof]

Tiles feel pretty uniform with no obvious difference in the affected areas. Really not sure if its something to do with the tiles or me being a DIYer! I left the adhesive to dry for 48hrs (BAL turquoise one) before grouting. I just feel the tiles weren't quite finished right, but am also aware that its easy to put the blame anywhere but me!

[Dave]

Bal grip...?

DID you bed the tiles deeper than 3mm depth for the adhesive..?

[whitebeam]

Could it be grout haze, you say that the surface is like fine pebble dash and close to the edges

[tkm18]

What are the joints, 4mm?

[woof]

Morning All!
Dave Admin.
Adhesive was indeed Bal Grip, tiled on top of Homelux membrane which I placed on top of plaster wall which I had primed with BAL APD primer! So I don't think any shortcuts taken?
Depth - yes 3mm depth, but not deeper as I wanted to keep the tiles not too proud, and as a beginner find it almost impossible to keep tiles all level if I don't feel the trowel touching the wall.

Whitebeam.
I don't think it is grout haze. I have a box of unused tiles and they have the same surface feel to them, but obviously without the patches of darker areas and spots of pigment - which makes me think these patches have come from the grout?

By the way, I don't think it can be leaching from the grout lines as the se areas are not continous from the joints.

tkm
Joints are with using 2mm spacers

Trying to think what I did wrong. Maybe I tried to grout too large an area - I only planned to do 30min sections at a time (not that much for me!). So for example the wall in the picture I did in 3 sections.

Help!!!

[mags]

Imitation stone porcelain : can be glazed or unglazed generally the rough stuff is unglazed : will benefit from sealing


..

Now this I was not aware of , I was under the impression these rough stone porcelain do not require sealing?


Im about to install brezo Ocre and have it confirmed I do not need to seal before grouting, is there a rule you need to follow?

[Dave]

You used a dispersion adhesive on a tanking membrane....who advised you too do that..?

Did you use the same adhesive to stick the mat on.....the only way moisture can escape is through the joints and if you have used dispersion adhesive on the membrane then this could take a lot longer than 48hrs..

By the pics it looks like the tile is wetting from behind and your method of fixing donates that is a possiblity..

Are any of the tile joints darker than other sections..?...this would be a sign of moisture trying to come out.

[woof]

You used a dispersion adhesive on a tanking membrane....who advised you too do that..?

Did you use the same adhesive to stick the mat on.....the only way moisture can escape is through the joints and if you have used dispersion adhesive on the membrane then this could take a lot longer than 48hrs..

By the pics it looks like the tile is wetting from behind and your method of fixing donates that is a possiblity..

Are any of the tile joints darker than other sections..?...this would be a sign of moisture trying to come out.

1. Topps.

2. No they recommended and I used a trade adhesive. "Topps trade fast setting flexible wall and floor adhesive". Packet says it is cement based with built in polymer.

3. Not noticably, no.

I think I see what you mean - the porous tile is wicking the moisture from the drying adhesive through the tile? Do you not think it is a possibility that I didnt remove the grout from the tile surface properly and on time, and with the slightly rough matt texture it lodged in areas?
Is it worth getting some kind of remover on top and then to seal afterwards? I guess this depends as to whether it is a "wicking" issue or my poor workmanship. If it is wicking, what can be done other than leaving to dry for ....weeks?

[Dave]

You could try a residue remover and see if that works....check the suitabilty on coloured grouts...might bleach the colour....

Just to add for other readers...please do NOT use dispersion ( tubbed) adhesives on tanking membranes....

Topps you need to train your staff on these matters..

[woof]

Update : And New Problem!!!

So what happened? Talked to Topps and they were very helpful. It turns out they too have had problems with these tiles - in getting all the grout off the surface. So helpfully gave me grout residue remover, which I have used on ALL the tiles and the tiles are now excellent! TIle colour is now uniform, so the problem was indeed grout being trapped. Treated all tiles black and white. I intend to order this safe seal to finish off as they dont seem completely impervious to water, but before I do, can you guess what the new problem is?
A few hints. BAL grout, black. Wish I knew about this forum before I started this project. Although I worked very quickly and completely soaked off the remover using the shower, much of the grout has now turned whitish in patches.

So what to do next? Aqua mix grout colourant?