grinding terracotta tiles to even surface

[Lauri Marder]

hi- new member here-
We are dealing with a vast expanse of installed kiln-dried terracotta tiles, which are not laid evenly enough, and we wish to take off the high points and smooth the surface. Can someone recommend a method? Would a wet- polisher work? What type of disks could be used? Thanks!

 

[user123]

:hurray:HI! I have absolutely no idea, just want to welcome you anyhow, Lauri 🙂

:welcome:

 

[jay]

hi and welcome not sure on polishing i think it might become ugly due to different colouring or shades in tile make up also open up poures in tile grind a spare or off cut first to see you may have to seal after to see full effect

 

[Perry]

If you grind them you will take off the crust as such and will give the a different texture and make them more porous not something i would adv is this something you have inherited ? 😛ete

 

[Lauri Marder]

No, these are newly laid, in Venezuela. A huge expanse- they are not finished or sealed, and they will be eventually sealed and waxed (in the usual way, with oil and then a wax). The tiles have a very uniform somewhat pitted surface, completely flat, like bread slices. We use the floor for various activities, and the ones that stick up are a problem. There are also some which are laid higher than others, and it would be good to level them off. I know it's not the usual thing to do this, but wonder if it could be done, without for instance damaging them. A lack of uniformity in colour or texture might not be a problem since we are talking about various shadings anyway, and such a big expanse- thousands and thousands of tiles.

 

[Perry]

if they are not finished cant the bad ones be taken up laid correctly i have done them with a sander before but its never looks the same 😛ete

 

[Lauri Marder]

Hi, Pete

Thanks for your answers- no, there are too many of them to do that with.

 

[Perry]

Hi, Pete

Thanks for your answers- no, there are too many of them to do that with.

how big is the floor ? can you post some pics

 

[Lauri Marder]

I am not sure how to do that, but let me try

 

[Lauri Marder]

Sorry, I can't post a photo - don't really know how

 

[user123]

Sorry, I can't post a photo - don't really know how

Ok Lauri,

you can't post an image via the quick reply, but can you see the 'Post Reply' button on the bottom left of the page after the last post? If you click on that, you have more options for the message, one being the little paperclip symbol for attachments, click on that and a new small window opens where you can choose to add an url, which is unlikely you'll want, but underneath that you can browse in your PC pics and choose from there and then insert by double clicking. The text will turn into the picture once submitted.
Go and try?

 

[Lauri Marder]

thanks- I did what you said, and hope you find it attached. I have some more up-close images but have to locate them-

 

[Lauri Marder]

trying again

 

[user123]

Nope, nothing there...try again? Otherwise, you can email me and send me yor pics (via my website - see 'view my homepage') underneath my name/avatar) and I put them up for you, are they in jpg or gif?
But grinding down terracotta sounds really dodgy to me... I would do as pjc said and have them taken up and replaced...

 

[user123]

trying again

ah, well done..

 

[mikethetile]

you can sand them with a floor sander

start with a very coarse grit and work your way up to a very fine to remove scratches

do not wet as this will make a slurry which will clog the paper

its a very dusty job and floor sanders are not really a diy tool , i would find a local that can come and do it for you

 

[enduro]

Go onto Natural Stone Restoration Alliance | Home they specialise in floor grinding, its a forum similar to this, but they only deal in natural stone products, and i bet there is someone on there near to you.

 

[Lauri Marder]

Thank you for this link- that may help a lot!

 

[enduro]

Thank you for this link- that may help a lot!

No problem, we are here to help, but these guys are truly experts in stone restoration, and they are world wide so they could probably put you onto a guy in your area. Lets us know if you get it sorted.

 

[DHTiling]

Cheers Enduro....Another happy member sorted by a tilersforums trusted advisor....

 

[lucius]

You cant realy grind or sand terracotta as you will take of the fired skin which protects it, if you did you would have to seal them with something pretty tough but the colours would be different. Have you tried to take one up because if it has been laid that badly the may come up easy.
Lucius

 

[Lauri Marder]

Thank you Lucius-

They won't be easy or possible to take up, they are pretty firmly set and one would damage the surrounding tiles if one tried. Also too many are problematic. Thanks for the advice about the fired 'skin' of the tile_ i did not know that.

Lauri

 

[lucius]

If I read it right you say the job is in Venuzela, ime assuming that these tiles are not that expensive to buy if so how about smashing the dodgy tiles out, just hit them with a big hammer in the middle and they should break without disturbing the adjacent tiles and replace with new.
Just a thought.
Lucius.

 

[anthony123]

Thank you Lucius-
They won't be easy or possible to take up, they are pretty firmly set and one would damage the surrounding tiles if one tried. Also too many are problematic. Thanks for the advice about the fired 'skin' of the tile_ i did not know that.
Lauri

Hi, what was the solution to this? I have the same problem in an old condominium here in Thailand. Uneven surface, coated with years of pitted, wax and dirt that make the tiles really dark and ugly. We also thought of grinding them to even them out and perhaps give a more modern look and then seal them with some product.... even thought of polyurethane paint as a sealant!
Anyway am desperate for any good solutions if there are any!!
Cheers,
Tony

 

[Blarney stone]

Hi, what was the solution to this? I have the same problem in an old condominium here in Thailand. Uneven surface, coated with years of pitted, wax and dirt that make the tiles really dark and ugly. We also thought of grinding them to even them out and perhaps give a more modern look and then seal them with some product.... even thought of polyurethane paint as a sealant!
Anyway am desperate for any good solutions if there are any!!
Cheers,
Tony

🙂 don't use a poly sealant they need to breathe. they're designed to be porois so that they can keep the kitchen cool before we had refrigeration the floors would be slopped with water to create cool area for storage of meat etc. If its just wax you can remove the wax and they I'll clean up. There's expensive stiff called oxi gel but I have been using cheap oxi stain remover for laundry and it has done an amazing job even stripping off old tile paint. Where edges are raised you could grind them down or you can use terracotta coloured epoxy to fill a ridge so it slopes and fill the big chunks missing. This advice I got from floor specialist but the epozy does discolour horribly by dirt so I don't recomend it in areas where you will be walking regularly. Its really hard to just fix one tile but if its broken its not difficult and you can reset the odd one here or there. You can also use actual terracotta and a bit of lime to make a cement that is not going to spall them or create damp to fill gaps this doesn't discolour the way that the epoxy does but it is difficult to get the right mix and the right colour but if you can get terracotta clay without sand in your area to match the tiles ...I can't remember the ratio to be honest you might have to experiment with samples that's what I did. I think it was six parts clay to one part lime putty and then I used the clay powder to top it dry so the top was darker as the lime is pretty pale. Then seal them with a breathable sealer not polyurathane. Wax and linseed oil although recommended I find they attract the dirt badly. These floors in the old days would have been washed down every year around the 19th of may traditionally and scrubbed with a hard deck brush and sand which wore them away slightly to a soft finish. Its no harm to remove the top layer so long as you seal them with a breathable sealer or if you want to wax them fair enough. But wax builds up and about twice a year or so traditionally they would be cleaned with amonnia to remove the wax and rewaxed. Don't use any acidic cleaner on them as that will eat away at the brick and when you wash the floors use a dry mop to take any water off as if it sits on the indents it will make the indents deeper. When these floors were made it was expected that you would sweep them daily. Scrub them weekly and refinish them regularly when needed. They're not like a glazed tile that you can expect to stay like a dinner plate for years. they are more like hair they have to be daily taken care of. And even replaced and reset when needed. If you reset them use a sand lime base because that is much easier to redo and cement is too rigid..if these were ever reset in cement anywhere that temperatures change or moisture changes then the cement which cannot move can cause cracks and lifting. so always use lime and sand which is a soft base that allows for swelling and is also a joy to lift a wonky tile out so easy and replace in future.

 

[Blarney stone]

If you grind them you will take off the crust as such and will give the a different texture and make them more porous not something i would adv is this something you have inherited ? 😛ete

They're not really made with a crust. Not like a faced tile. they're like a brick all the way through. If they have a face like a quarry tile or a glaze then yeah don't grind but terracotta is generally all the same the whole way like a flat brick or a porous jug ... They're also designed to be porous so they you could use them to cool the kitchen in times when we didn't have a fridge.🙂 and most likely the finish has already worn off at this stage through wear and tear so grinding won't be worse. If they were perfect obviously don't grind them. But if they're already pitted grinding will make them better. They were also designed to be hand ground with sand ever year by a housewife. So they can take a grinding. And they look nice as they grind down over time by wear and scrubbing. They need to be sealed though with a breathable sealant and if you want to use beeswax you can but that needs to be removed and redone every now and then.