Old tile / New tile

[WeekendHousewife]

Hi! We have recently repaired a poorly patched hole in our bathroom tile. The tile is original to the house, a 1" white porcelain hexagon from 1926, and after a long search we were able to order (and finally receive) a similar porcelain hex. My problem is the horrible contrast of the fresh white tiles to the old stained ones. Unfortunately, this area seems to be the worst of the whole bathroom. I was wondering what I could do to get rid of some of the old stains. (I even thought of using a fine grit sandpaper?)

Also, I am glad that I was looking through your forum before we spread the grout, because it seems I need to apply some sort of sealant? I wonder why they didn't tell me this where I bought the tile?! I know that the patch will not match the floor perfectly, and the entire bathroom is less than perfect, but I would love to minimize the contrast as much as possible.

Any words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated!

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[John Bridge]

Hi Housewife, :)

No words of wisdom here, except to say nobody sealed porcelain tiles in 1925.

There will be others along.

[doitright]

Hi Housewife, Welcome! :)

I have repaired and restored several old porcelain floors, such as yours. We used professional restoration techniques which involved using diamond abrasives. You were on the right track, when you mentioned using sandpaper.

I would recommend using TYW cleaning products 1st to remove all surface staining. Check the results after dry. If that isn't satisfactory enough, you'll need to get more aggresive. This may require the aide of a professional.

[WeekendHousewife]

Thanks for the pointers! Since the original tile was probably not sealed, I guess I won't worry about sealing the patch.

[doitright]

Not until you're all finished! ;)

[jreidholman]

I'm also dealing with an unglazed 1890s bathroom hex tile on that floor that is seriously stained by this point. Can you give any ballpark and what it costs to have a professional do the diamond abrasion treatment on something like this? Is it worth it or more cost effective to tile over it?