Help!: Are my tiles porcelain????????

[LONGJON]

Hi all,

I have just laid a new floor using 600 x 300 tiles from B&Q black slate effect (reduced from £20 to £10 sq mtr).

Despite following the instructions on the box I now have a grout haze that is really difficult to shift - (for full sorry story check out my posting in tile cleaning forum)

My question is how do you tell if the tiles are porcelain as opposed to say ceramic? Until I can work out exactly what I've got I can't find a solution.

Trips around the local shops have made me feel better as they also don't seem to know, I have had every suggestion from stone to porcelain, and thats with them looking at an offcut!

Any help greatfully received.

LongJon

[Dave]

Hi LJ..is the body ( biscuit) of the tile the same colour from the back through the body to the face of the tile...i.e black..?

[LONGJON]

Hi Dave,

Yep, pretty much the same colour all the way though, perhaps just a tadge darker on the tile surface.

LongJon .

[Dave]

Ok cheers LJ...they are porcelain with a riven finish....not the easiest to get clean and some of the riven ones need to be sealed, especially the chinese ones that B&Q have been selling..

2 products will get them clean..

1 : Lithofin Abra clean

2 : LTP Grimex...

Tile giant should be able to get the LTP Grimex for you and i get Lithofin from CTD..

Or you can simply buy online...

Once clean then you can seal them to prevent dirt collecting in the pores of the tile face..

Lithofin Fz impregnator or LTP mpg sealer will suffice.

[LONGJON]

Thanks Dave, you're a star.

I'll get on the case straight away and let you know how I get on.

Just out of curiosity which do you think is best for a novice to use, and forgive me if its obvious, but CTD?

Cheers,

Longjon.

[Dave]

CTD is just a distributors if you knew the name you would know about them...

Just google the Abra clean...it's a new product from lithofin...but the grimex will be suitable for what you need..

[LONGJON]

Hi Dave,

not wanting to waste any more time, or listen to anymore moaning from my better half, I have been to tile giant and they have advised against the sealer in favour of a LTP glaze protector. Something about the pourosity of the tile not letting the sealer not soak in properly and possibly sitting uneven on the surface! Make any sense?

In order to get started I took them at their word and will try a sample tile with grimex then glaze protector tonight. I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow.

Lonjon.

[Matt]

Hi Dave,

not wanting to waste any more time, or listen to anymore moaning from my better half, I have been to tile giant and they have advised against the sealer in favour of a LTP glaze protector. Something about the pourosity of the tile not letting the sealer not soak in properly and possibly sitting uneven on the surface! Make any sense?

In order to get started I took them at their word and will try a sample tile with grimex then glaze protector tonight. I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow.

Lonjon.

Glaze Protector is essentially a sealer. Although by memory it's not an impreganting sealer which means it puts a "coating" on the top of the porcelain. You may find that over time, the "coating" will wear off and you will need to re-seal.

Glaze Protector is designed for vitrified porcelain.

I personally, would of advised an impregnating sealer and that you "buff" it off to stop any of the sealer becoming tacky on the surface.

[Dave]

Never used the glaze protector...I prefer a penertrating sealer, as you don't want a shine or a topical coating on porcelain....

My choice would be the Fz impregnator or the MTP sealer......what do we tilers know eh?...shop guys rule again...

[Matt]

Never used the glaze protector...I prefer a penertrating sealer, as you don't want a shine or a topical coating on porcelain....

My choice would be the Fz impregnator or the MTP sealer......what do we tilers know eh?...shop guys rule again...

Thats what alot of "them" think. Hey, they read the back of the bottle right (I'm not saying that is the case in this instant, but it has be known to happen)

Me personally, talking to tradesman and asking them questions expands my knowledge ten-fold

[LONGJON]

Hi Guys,

So after a few trials on off cuts last night the glaze protector seems to be ok. I have left the tile with the wife today who will subject it to some vigorous daily use and then we will try to clean it tonight and see what happens.

Assuming this works then I will grout up another off cut tonight, let it dry and then try the process again.

Suffice to say I am now a bit more optimistic than I was yesterday and thats all thanks to you guys

Matt, when you say impregnator sealer and then buff, do you also mean the mpg sealer Dave recommended? And by buff I assume you mean industrial floor mop type thing?

LongJon.

[Matt]

Hi Guys,

So after a few trials on off cuts last night the glaze protector seems to be ok. I have left the tile with the wife today who will subject it to some vigorous daily use and then we will try to clean it tonight and see what happens.

Assuming this works then I will grout up another off cut tonight, let it dry and then try the process again.

Suffice to say I am now a bit more optimistic than I was yesterday and thats all thanks to you guys

Matt, when you say impregnator sealer and then buff, do you also mean the mpg sealer Dave recommended? And by buff I assume you mean industrial floor mop type thing?

LongJon.

Sorry, I should of explained. Yes I mean MPG sealer or you could use Mattstone. By 'buff' I mean make sure there is no excess sealer left on the surface of the tile. The staff you spoke to are correct that porcelain won't absorb the sealer, hence the need to 'buff' them. Glaze Protector is designed for vitrified porcelain but it's a topical sealer which means it coats the surface. After a little while you may need to re-seal.

[Linko]

porelain have the same material on the top and the bottom

[LONGJON]

Hi all,

just an update on the tile problem..........

Its all sorted

This is how:

Get up early - white vinegar and scrubbing brush, rinse with water, dry, Grimex and scrubbing brush, rinse with water, dry, Glaze protector, -bed.

Get up next morning and the floor looks great. Ok its not perfect and if I still look really hard I can just make out the smallest of grout marks but its a damn site better than it was

Thanks to all that offered suggestions, really appreciated.

Longjon.

[Linko]

Oh， That great！