The bathroom in our house has Saltillo tile which was installed before we
bought the house. It wasn't sealed properly and had some stains but most
particularly calcium deposits from a leaking toilet when we bought the
house. Are there any solutions to "bringing the tile back to life" so it
can be properly sealed?

Thanks.

Dave

"Dave Combs" wrote in message
...
The bathroom in our house has Saltillo tile which was installed before we
bought the house. It wasn't sealed properly and had some stains but most
particularly calcium deposits from a leaking toilet when we bought the
house. Are there any solutions to "bringing the tile back to life" so it
can be properly sealed?

Thanks.

Dave


As far as I am concerned Saltillo is the bane of floor management. Homes
require at least year maintenance, businesses sometime monthly.

Find a tile store, NOT THE BOX STORES and take some pictures with you.
Purchase the products that they recommend. I bet they will tell you to
strip the whole floor, then reseal it.
At least a weekend project depending on the area.

Plan on doing this at least once a year depending on traffic.

I have a friend who's living room needs to be done every 6 months. Bedrooms
can go a year.
two adults and two dogs is all.

Dave Combs wrote:
The bathroom in our house has Saltillo tile which was installed
before we bought the house. It wasn't sealed properly and had some
stains but most particularly calcium deposits from a leaking toilet
when we bought the house. Are there any solutions to "bringing the
tile back to life" so it can be properly sealed?

Either they are on the surface or have soaked in. If they are on the
surface, they should wipe/scrub off. If interior, you might try a bit
of vinegar; if that doesn't work, you can sand them off/out...Saltillo
is quite soft and is easy to sand. Note that sanding will likely make
the sanded area red (if it is not already).

Regarding sealing, I use an water based acrylic (SealCrete) initially,
then 3-4 coats of oil based semi-gloss polyurethane. The acrylic is
just to seal and keep the poly from penetrating thereby making the floor
darker than I want.

Our tile has been down 10 years. The only place that has been redone is
part of the kitchen (needs it again). There are two tiles at the
entrance to the shower that need doing because they are almost
constantly wet. The rest of the floor (3000+) hasn't even had the shine
from the poly dulled...me, my wife, two dogs and two cats.


--
dadiOH
____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.06...
....a help file of info about MP3s, recording from
LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that.
Get it at http://mysite.verizon.net/xico

when the tiles are new, will they be stained by the dye in the grout mix?
If so, does the grout need to be closely matched to the tile color,
or is there another solution?
thanks
bill



"dadiOH" wrote in message
news:fCYSf.9921$bu.8600@trnddc04...
Dave Combs wrote:
The bathroom in our house has Saltillo tile which was installed
before we bought the house. It wasn't sealed properly and had some
stains but most particularly calcium deposits from a leaking toilet
when we bought the house. Are there any solutions to "bringing the
tile back to life" so it can be properly sealed?

Either they are on the surface or have soaked in. If they are on the
surface, they should wipe/scrub off. If interior, you might try a bit
of vinegar; if that doesn't work, you can sand them off/out...Saltillo
is quite soft and is easy to sand. Note that sanding will likely make
the sanded area red (if it is not already).

Regarding sealing, I use an water based acrylic (SealCrete) initially,
then 3-4 coats of oil based semi-gloss polyurethane. The acrylic is
just to seal and keep the poly from penetrating thereby making the floor
darker than I want.

Our tile has been down 10 years. The only place that has been redone is
part of the kitchen (needs it again). There are two tiles at the
entrance to the shower that need doing because they are almost
constantly wet. The rest of the floor (3000+) hasn't even had the shine
from the poly dulled...me, my wife, two dogs and two cats.


--
dadiOH
____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.06...
...a help file of info about MP3s, recording from
LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that.
Get it at http://mysite.verizon.net/xico

bill allemann wrote:
when the tiles are new, will they be stained by the dye in the grout
mix? If so, does the grout need to be closely matched to the tile
color,
or is there another solution?
thanks
bill

I didn't use grout per se, used masonry mortar, uncolored. But any
cementacious material - colored or not - could stain them. It
wipes/washes off if you don't wait too long but I sealed mine (with the
acrylic) before grouting to make things easier. The sand in the mortar
tears that up a bit as one pushes the mortar around so I do another coat
of acrylic after the tiles/mortar dry before topcoating both with poly.

--
dadiOH
____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.06...
....a help file of info about MP3s, recording from
LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that.
Get it at http://mysite.verizon.net/xico

On Sun, 19 Mar 2006 21:30:52 GMT, "bill allemann"
wrote:

when the tiles are new, will they be stained by the dye in the grout mix?
If so, does the grout need to be closely matched to the tile color,
or is there another solution?

Due to the high porosity of Saltillos, a pre-sealant or use of a grout
release is advisable before grouting. Usually... 'USUALLY'.... with
the proper use of a pre-sealant, there should be no problems with
color bleeding. Brazilian and Spanish tile "can be" (not saying are
always) a bear to work with as far as keeping "uncontaminated" during
construction/installation.

Regards,