20 year old saltillo tile question

[Unregistered]

Hi,
I have read every post about saltillo tiles but I couldn't find my question anywhere so here goes.

I moved into a house that has 20 year old saltillo tiles
in the foyer and kitchen. I am not familiar with these tiles at all so please bear with me.

I think the tiles are worn, as many of them look dirty
and not the way I think they should look. Some of them look fairly new with a shine and some look very dull. I know they were not taken care of as they should. I don't know what was done to them in the past. I think, not much.
I have called so many tile people and noone professional will even look at them. I am in the Boston area where I guess they are not very popular. I would like to keep them but they really need some professional work.
If the tiles are worn, can they still be made to look good?
Is there a time when these tiles just have to be replaced?
Does anyone know a professional in the Boston area that
would work with these.
Thank you very much for your help.
Dayle

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[doitright]

Hi Dayle, Welcome! :)

Please take the time to register. ;) (We won't hurt you, or your equipment :D)

When you register, you can post a picture.

A lot of the saltillo tiles shipped to the east coast were epoxy coated.

Do you want to do this yourself or hire a pro?

[Unregistered]

Yes, I would like to hire a professional, but can't find one anywhere in the Boston area that does saltillos. I have looked for days on internet and yellow pages.
I am trying to register, but haven't gotten my emai yet.
Thank you again.
Dayle

[doitright]

Thanks Dayle :)

We're working on that (the email thing).

I understand the problem. Maybe you can find a restoration contractor at: www.ntc-stone.com

If not, how much you willing to pay? :D

Post a pic as soon as you're able.

[Daylelinda]

I'm finally registered.
I will contact some of the contractors on Monday that you recommended on that site.
I would be willing to pay whatever it takes to do the job right. I really don't want to have to remove all those tiles.
I will post pictures as soon as I can.
Thank you. Dayle

[John Bridge]

Hi Dayle, Welcome aboard. :)

You won't have to replace anything except the finish. It's hard to find people anywhwer anymore who specialize in Saltillo tiles, but any floor maintenance person can do the work. Basically, the tiles need to be stripped to remove the old finish, which will also remove the dirt and dirty look. Then a new finish is applied.

Keep looking. You'll find someone who can make the Saltillo tiles brand new. They never wear out. :)

[Daylelinda]

Thank you very much for your advise. I'll keep looking for a contractor now that I know that they never wear out.(thanks to you). I wasn't sure if they got to a point where replacing them was the only thing to do.
I will keep you updated on my progress.
Thank you again.
Dayle

[Daylelinda]

Hi John,
After reading your reply to my husband, he decided he would try to do the work himself, now that he has some idea of what to do.
We would like to ask you what product you would recommend for the stripping of the saltillo tile.
We have looked around on the internet and we have found a few products that look good. We have no idea which one to go with.
Could you please tell me which ones you would recommend from your experience?
Thank you very much. The forum is very helpful.
Dayle

[HoustonJake]

Dayle,
I sounds like you and I are suffering from the same problem. I have been researching the same issue so let me share what I've learned. I'm sure the pros will chime in with their opinions as well.

There's a product from AquaMix called Sautillo Coating & Sealer Stripper. I have not used it yet, but I have used other Aqua Mix products to seal my Sautillo floor and it is good stuff. They also have an EXCELLENT technical support line and are open until 4:30 PM PST (sometimes later) to answer questions from DIY'ers like myself. And get this...they are even open on SATURDAY until Noon.

My floors are also about 20 years old and they were stripped about 8 years ago when I moved in. I hired a few guys to strip the floor and I have been sorry ever since. At the time the only product available was M.E.K. which I think stands for Methyl-Ethyl-Ketone. No it's not the name of a blues band, but it is the name of the nastiest chemical you have ever smelled. It is as toxic as heck! Unless you want to get rid of your husband, don't let him near it without a HazMat suit and a respirator. Luckily, we were renovating the house so we could air it out for a few days. It stripped the Sautillo tile well enough, but it was so toxic, that the poor guys could not stand to be in there for very long. The contractor (who should go straight to hell) wanted to get the job done quickly and wanted them to hurry up. These poor guys were in there with flimsy rubber gloves and no respirators. I was in another part of the house pulling up carpet and when I came by the kitchen to see how they were doing, I nealr passed out from the fumes. As a result, I don't think they could not do a thorough job with the grout and we have been living with it ever since.

So here we are 8 years later and my dear wife still swears everytime she looks at the floor. Even though she knows it's clean, it LOOKS dirty. Know what I mean? Personally I don't understand it, but I digress. I have been DREADING this job for years because of what I had smelled with the M.E.K.
Luckily, I stumbled upon the AquaMix web site and found this new (fairly) product which is water based and is not supposed to be nearly as toxic. Check out their web site http://www.aquamix.com/tech.htm . The guys on the tech support line still recommend that you use rubber gloves but you don't need a respirator and you won't get knocked over from the fumes. It's supposed to get great result so I am looking forward to tryng it. They also say it should be available at Home Depot or Lowes. (I know, I know how you guys feel about HD & L)

I'm going to give it a try soon on my floors. Now if I could only figure out how to clean the grout! - But that's a topic for another post.

Sorry for the long story, but I've been waiting 8 years to share it. Now I feel so much better.

Good Luck,

John

[doitright]

Hi John :)

Thanks for sharing!

Now start your own thread! :D

Let us know how it turns out. :shades:

Hi Dayle :)

It depends on what the floor is finished with. You could try a high alkaline cleaner, let it dwell, agitate (maybe with a green pad), rinse, dry, and see what it looks like. Get back to us.

What products are you looking at?

[Daylelinda]

That was quite a story.
I have a question for you. Why does the tile still look dirty? That's what I'm trying to figure out. Can they ever look clean again? All the contractors in my area say they can't guarantee the end result. I don't know if that is the case or they are not familiar with saltillos.
Please let me know how you make out using the new product. I'll let you go first. Hope you don't mind.
Dayle

[kcstoneguy]

I have done alot of saltillo....one clue:Mop N Glo....thats probably why they look dirty...I run into that all the time. this type of wax turns really dirty looking...

the thing about saltillo is some are raw, and some have an epoxy seal on them....the mop n glo is fairly easy to strip the tile, but then it is a real bear to cleanthe grout line...also sometimes the home owners around here tried to get creative and stain/polyurethane the tiles...if that that is the case, you would have to use a paint stripper....that really sucks....

john jackson
integrity stone

[Daylelinda]

Have you ever used the aquamix products that strip and clean made especially for saltillos? Some of our tiles do not have a finish some do. I don't know if they were never finished or some of the finish wore off in parts. Since we just moved in to our home I don't have a history on them. How would you go about starting the project? We have tried to call professionals, but noone will even look at it.
On the unfinished tiles, one of our dogs threw up, and when I cleaned it off, that spot, the tile looked like new.
Not to be gross, but maybe that could give a hint as to cleaning them.
I appreciate all the advice you can give me. Thank you.
Dayle

[HoustonJake]

You know John Jackson, now that you mention it, there may have been some Mop & Glow or a similar product used along the way. That would explain why the grout got so "gummed up". I think we had a house keeper back there somewhere who liked to use anything that was on TV. The only thing she wouldn't use was "elbow grease", but I digress.

Dayle - Sorry for taking so long to respond, I have been travelling a lot recently. I have still not gotten aound to trying the AquaMix stripper so it looks like I maynot be the Guinea Pig after all!. Sorry. I'm still trying to finish another project before I get into the Saultillo. One of my neighbors, however, did try the AquaMix stripper on his Saultillo and he said it worked pretty well. While it does not have the harsh striping action of the M.E.K. stripper, he said it was not nearly as toxic either. He also said that you have to be patient and work it in a little on the tough spots.

What also surpised us both was the tremendous variation from one tile to another. After he stripped them down you could see how different they all were. One tile would come out really clean and shiny, while the one right next to it varied quite a bit in color from one side to the other and had a stain that almost looked like a salt stain. As it turns out, my neighbor is a geologist and he thinks there might have been some strange mineral impurity in the clay that eventually leached to the surface of the tile (works for me). I swear that one of his tiles has a bird's foot print in it. No kidding. Talk about rustic. What I am learning about Sautillo is that it "is" rustic and by nature is not very uniform. I wonder if that's what you are seeing as well.

Good luck with it.

John

[HoustonJake]

Hey, I just had another thought.
I'll bet dog vomit is very acidic. Probably why it cleaned the tile so well. You may be on to something.

John B.

[doitright]

Hi John B. :)

Highly acidic is being conservative. Had to restore a good size area of a limestone floor from a Great Dane who wasn't feeling well. :bang:

To top it off the homeowner used a acidic product to try to clean it and repair the floor. Mess, mess, double mess. :eek:

A couple thousand dollars later, we got a acceptable blend of surface. :nod:

Can that dog vomit idea! :D

[kcstoneguy]

I would not be surprised at the bird prints...many times they have straws or bird prints which is part of their rustic quality...they are bascially just baked in the sun...I think alot have the imperfections added in the factory these days...

One of the reasons I like saltillo so much you can pretty much treat it like wood...you can sand it, stain, polyurethane, paste wax, oil stain, impregnate with sealer, all sorts of things...

John Jackson
Integrity Stone