Every Spanish style home owner knows the joy of owning your own piece of paradise. There are a lot of misconceptions and commonly “assumed” thoughts about terra-cotta tile refinishing and restoration that we come across in our daily adventures in tile land.
I will share the 2 misconceptions that will give you a greater understanding going forward when choosing a tile guy for your remodel and renovations.
Just Being aware of these beliefs will stop the utter confusion you will have when researching among the vast sea of useless information and life damaging advice out there.
Misconceptions #1.
Terracotta Tile Floors can be stripped with a machine and a water based stripper like every other tile floor for $.99 per square foot.
Truth: These soft clay terracotta tiles such as tecate pavers, Saltillo tiles , slate, and many other porous tiles (but especially Terracotta tiles), must be approached more distinctly. Water is the enemy so the common approach to tile and grout cleaning and refinishing cannot be followed.
The sealer must be removed chemically by hand as to avoid damaging the surface of the tile and wearing into the soft inside. once this is worn the damage is irreversible and you can expect water to cause efflorescence and turn white and chalky, algae if outside, and overall deterioration. Also how is a machine going to get those stairs and corners, how will it detail along your edges and baseboards?
Misconception #2.
It is easy to match tile and grout for futuree repairs or renovations.
Truth: Grout comes in many shades that are quite close to one another and it can be easy to accidentally match your new grout to dirty grout thinking that your tile and grout were clean when they were not.
Dirt is subtle and can be hard to notice over time especially when you or your house cleaner are running a mop over it frequently. these mops drag city water into the grout that builds up over time and many people just seal over it because they see it ev veryday and think that it is clean.
Keep track of all brands and colors of tile and grout if you installed the floor because a lot of times companies go out of business or get bought out and change names, imported tiles can be the worse and hardest to find later when you want to remodel and renovate your Spanish style home.
This can be a chore for your tile guy and make it difficult to get things exactly the way you want and get your floors looking amazing. If you are looking to restore your terracotta tile floor the right way then you are in the right place right now. Get your floors looking exactly the way you want the right way the first time.
Plan your remodel with us today but hurry and get on the schedule now because we are a specialty small co. and the days are filling up fast!
Call or E-Mail
Fritz Wittmann
(707) 384-1172
fritz_wittmann@yahoo.com
