Tile and grout cleaning

Stone cleaning

2008-12-07T09:15:00.000-08:00

Natural stone surfaces need special attention. Travertine, marble, saltillo, soap stone, mexican tile, and other natural stone surfaces require training and understanding to obtain a beautiful clean without damaging the stone. Technicians need to be trained in the specific floor type in order to insure the stone is not damaged by high pressure or incorrect chemical selection. Hiring a carpet cleaner to clean these surfaces could be the equivalent of hiring a lawn mower technician to work on your mercedes. He has similar tools, but that does not mean he has the training and knowledge to properly approch the situation.

Always be certain that the person you chose to do the work understands the density of the stone and the acid reactivity. These are paramount in selecting the proper cleaning method and pressures as well as understaning if a certain sealer will help or hinder the surface. I recently did a job for a customer that has about 2000 sf of dense travertine (beautiful floor). A carpet cleaning company came in to clean the carpets and in their normal upsell furver, talked the customer into cleaning and sealing the travertine "while they were there." They applied a sealer of some sort to the surface. About 6 months later the floor was 10 times more dirty than before the cleaning. The customer had no idea what had happened. By applying a sealer to the surface that was too dense to absorb it and not removing the excess sealer (all of it) from the surface, a film was left behind that attracted and trapped the dirt to the tile like glue. Of course they offered to come back and clean and seal it again!!!!!! And at the same price as before! What a deal.

Our solution was to clean and strip the floor of all the topical sealer and return the tile to its natural state. We then instructed the customer of how to properly clean the surface. Thus vastly increasing the time the floor remained clean before the next maintenance cleaning.

If you want it done right, contact www.hssflorida.com

Grout Staining

2008-12-07T08:55:00.000-08:00

If your grout is clean, but it is splotchy in color and very inconsistent looking, it can be stained or "color sealed" to make it look new again. You can even go from a dark color like gray or black to a light color like white or the other way. If you like the color of your grout, you can match it to the original color and just renew it. It is an amazing process when done professionally it looks great. It really is not a homeowner project since it involves very precise steps prior to and after the staining as well as being a little tricky to apply without the proper training and experience. For example, after the sealing is done, a good floor buffer is required to remove all the remaining sealer on the tiles and also to release and remove it from the floor. If this is not done, a haze will be left on the tile and there will be no shine to the floor. If the grout is not properly prepared prior to sealing, the stain will not hold and will flake off in the coming months and years. A professionally sealed floor can hold its color and looks for up to 20 years. In the metro orlando area, just contact Hard Surface Solutions at 407-260-2114 or check out the website here.

Grout Cleaning

2008-12-07T08:46:00.000-08:00

Are you tired of scrubbing the tile and grout on your hands and knees? There is a better solution. I searched for a very long time to find a way to clean grout without having to replace the entire floor. Hard Surface Solutions ( http://www.hssflorida.com ) has the solution. It is a truck mounted system that uses emulsifiers, heat, vacuum and high pressure to remove the years of buildup on your tile and grout. The results are amazing. And after the tile and grout are clean, they can clear seal it so that the dirty water and spills do not penetrate into the grout lines anymore. If the grout is uneven in color, it can be stained to look new again. WOW, what a difference!