Handmade English Terracotta

[hmtiling]

Hi all. I've got a job with these fore-mentioned terracotta floor tiles and wondering which inpregnating/sealing method you finds easiest/least hassle. It's been 17 years since i worked with the stuff!
I'm considering the lithofin modern method.
All input appreciated. Many thanks.

 

[The Legend; Phil Hobson RIP]

Hi mate, Marc (3_fall) has just done one.
Gone are the days of double boiled linseed oil and thinners, Marc used Dry-treat, but it seems Lithofin stain stop
fills the tile up quicker Marc or Bob might be along soon to explain.

 

[Lithofin BOB]

Hi all. I've got a job with these fore-mentioned terracotta floor tiles and wondering which inpregnating/sealing method you finds easiest/least hassle. It's been 17 years since i worked with the stuff!
I'm considering the lithofin modern method.
All input appreciated. Many thanks.

Would not use the stain stop on terracotta, discussion with Marc , was for a external terrace.

Lithofin modern method is for internal, and a nice light finish ,rather than a darker oil and wax. The ease of water based products and mostly the ease in which the client will maintain and top up the floor after you have installed. Used tons of this stuff restoration wise as clients wanted an easy to look after floor.

Generally, lay the tiles , leave to dry until all moisture released( 7-10 days for me, or until fully dry, yes I'm obsessed with drying times)
Saturate 1-2 coats of the impregnator before leaving overnight to cure.
Point in the terracotta , ideal not slurry ,unless a very closed pore- check grout release on two unlaid tiles you can impregnate- for testing
Once this grouting/ pointing is fully dry , depending on depth and width
Re impregnate one coat of the terracotta impreg.
After this has dried, sponge on 2-4 neat coats (maybe more if a really ruff hand made) of the terracotta sealant with a jumbo car sponge, dries in 40 min -1 hour so you will get these on in one day.
No buffing , self sheening
Clients maintain with easy care , and top up when required.
They can use 1/4 bucket of clean water, add a mug of the sealant, mop through leaving a slight wet look, leave to dry - job done , nice and easy.

 

[hmtiling]

Would not use the stain stop on terracotta, discussion with Marc , was for a external terrace.

Lithofin modern method is for internal, and a nice light finish ,rather than a darker oil and wax. The ease of water based products and mostly the ease in which the client will maintain and top up the floor after you have installed. Used tons of this stuff restoration wise as clients wanted an easy to look after floor.

Generally, lay the tiles , leave to dry until all moisture released( 7-10 days for me, or until fully dry, yes I'm obsessed with drying times)
Saturate 1-2 coats of the impregnator before leaving overnight to cure.
Point in the terracotta , ideal not slurry ,unless a very closed pore- check grout release on two unlaid tiles you can impregnate- for testing
Once this grouting/ pointing is fully dry , depending on depth and width
Re impregnate one coat of the terracotta impreg.
After this has dried, sponge on 2-4 neat coats (maybe more if a really ruff hand made) of the terracotta sealant with a jumbo car sponge, dries in 40 min -1 hour so you will get these on in one day.
No buffing , self sheening
Clients maintain with easy care , and top up when required.
They can use 1/4 bucket of clean water, add a mug of the sealant, mop through leaving a slight wet look, leave to dry - job done , nice and easy.

Thanks for that Bob. Much appreciated!

 

[hmtiling]

Hi mate, Marc (3_fall) has just done one.
Gone are the days of double boiled linseed oil and thinners, Marc used Dry-treat, but it seems Lithofin stain stop
fills the tile up quicker Marc or Bob might be along soon to explain.

Thank you Phil

 

[hmtiling]

All finished today. The impregnator used as a grout aid made it a piece of cake and the sealant is also very user friendly. Many thanks. View attachment 79111 View attachment 79112

 

[Old Mod]

What happened to your other images Harry?
Try reloading the first two again mate.

 

[hmtiling]

 

[hmtiling]

So, it turns out the customer decided to wash the inside of the windows 2 hours after i left before the sealant has dried. I haven't seen it yet, but she says it doesn't look good.
Any ideas what can be done to rectify this @Lithofin BOB ?
I'll get a photo emailed over and post asap.
Thanks in advance

 

[Spud]

what a shame lets hope you can sort it

 

[hmtiling]

what a shame lets hope you can sort it

Cheers. Hopefully it's an easy fix! There has to be a lithofin product for this as there is for everything else

 

[Lithofin BOB]

We. Can try on one tile, one thin coat of the sealer,if just dulled. if it has whitened out , we may ned to cut back and reapply, await the photos and we can sort from there.

 

[hmtiling]

Thanks Bob. I should get the photos today.
I must admit, I've never had company support as good as this.

 

[andy8758]

Do all the other manufacturers provide a Sunday and Christmas helpline?? Litho fin Bob have a drink on me today!

 

[hmtiling]

Here are the pics.
Many thanks

 

[Spud]

needs stripping and resealing, water got under the first coat by the looks of it

 

[Lithofin BOB]

What a shame, the water may have whitened the sealer coat before fully cured, we could try one tile ,one coat of sealer and let dry this sometimes will fix this or strip back , dry several days or until fully dry then re impregnate and top coats.
This was definatly water drips from the lady cleaning windows ? Did she use a cleaner, some glass cleaners contain vinegar .

 

[hmtiling]

Yeah, doesn't look great. It was fine after first coat and I asked them not to use the room until the next day. I'm wondering what they've washed the windows with. I'll find that out asap.
Is it time consuming stripping the sealant off?

 

[hmtiling]

What a shame, the water may have whitened the sealer coat before fully cured, we could try one tile ,one coat of sealer and let dry this sometimes will fix this or strip back , dry several days or until fully dry then re impregnate and top coats.
This was definatly water drips from the lady cleaning windows ? Did she use a cleaner, some glass cleaners contain vinegar .

Yes, definitely from cleaning the windows. It's only on the parts of the floor she got wet. I've just text her to see what she used to clean the windows.

 

[Lithofin BOB]

No should be fairly straight forward we can try to just strip contaminated tiles, would try the top up coat first on one tile, sometimes they just blemish, most important bit is the drying time , I would leave 7 days for me, then re seal impregnator and then top coats, re pain for you after lovely job.
How many top coats went on ?

 

[hmtiling]

2 top coats with the sealant. There's ufh so is there any reason not to force dry it after stripping if it needs it?
Cheers

 

[Lithofin BOB]

I personally would not , force drying can produce salt trace or discolouration , let it dry naturally, we will not need to leave stripper on long and we will work in small section as not to over wet each section.

 

[hmtiling]

Thanks bob. I'll let you know how it goes with the test tile.
Which product do I need if it comes to stripping it?

 

[Lithofin BOB]

From us would be wax off, give me a call after/ before the test and we can run through If you want.

 

[hmtiling]

That would be great. Many thanks!

 

[hmtiling]

All sorted thanks! A thin coat of sealant on affected tiles then a mop with water and a cup full of sealant a couple of days later.
All's well that ends well! Cheers!

 

[Flintstone]

Would not use the stain stop on terracotta, discussion with Marc , was for a external terrace.

Lithofin modern method is for internal, and a nice light finish ,rather than a darker oil and wax. The ease of water based products and mostly the ease in which the client will maintain and top up the floor after you have installed. Used tons of this stuff restoration wise as clients wanted an easy to look after floor.

Generally, lay the tiles , leave to dry until all moisture released( 7-10 days for me, or until fully dry, yes I'm obsessed with drying times)
Saturate 1-2 coats of the impregnator before leaving overnight to cure.
Point in the terracotta , ideal not slurry ,unless a very closed pore- check grout release on two unlaid tiles you can impregnate- for testing
Once this grouting/ pointing is fully dry , depending on depth and width
Re impregnate one coat of the terracotta impreg.
After this has dried, sponge on 2-4 neat coats (maybe more if a really ruff hand made) of the terracotta sealant with a jumbo car sponge, dries in 40 min -1 hour so you will get these on in one day.
No buffing , self sheening
Clients maintain with easy care , and top up when required.
They can use 1/4 bucket of clean water, add a mug of the sealant, mop through leaving a slight wet look, leave to dry - job done , nice and easy.

What about in the real world?

 

[Lithofin BOB]

What about in the real world?

I know people are up against time restraints these days, i totally apreciate this.the above is how I approach these jobs as a contractor myself, also after 22 years of sorting problem floors out for lithofin , i get to see a picture of what can cause problems with different materials, drying times and moisture retention in stone and tiles are the main issue i get with installations. So extended dry times are required with some products, most will never cause you a problem , some can!
I would never state the above are set guide lines , they are purely my own rules for my jobs,

 

[Perry]

Must admit I have used Lithofin puducts on terracotta. But I wouldent use it unless i had too. Found it takes more labour and about 20 times the cost of what I would normanly use.

 

[Lithofin BOB]

Can appreciate this pjc , when I first started i only used oils and waxes and yes these are far cheaper, from my restoration clients they wanted ease of maintenance , didn't want to hand wax large areas every few months, so the modern products from us or others LTP etc can take this away. Emulsion waxes can be diluted and mopped through by client, self sheening, no buffing . Also the make up of these product far exceeds oil / staining ,so protection is greater against contamination. I suppose if the client is willing to pay from the start to have these products applied / and possible extended labour then this will benefit them long term . for your initial install, the price factor may be greater to you/ them and effect winning the job over others.