Reclaimed red quarry tiles - Tile Advice

[nogginthenog]

Hello. This is my first post, so thank you for letting me be here. I'm hoping someone with more experience than I have can help with the following query.

I have a quantity of Victorian red quarry tiles that came out of a kitchen in a terraced house in York. 6 inch by 6 inch by one inch.

If I lay these on concrete outside, is there any way they won't be spalled to hell after a winter or two freezing and thawing? I know some quarry tiles are frostproof, but I've also seen them laid outdoors and reduced to a latticework of raised cement mortar by the weather.

I'd like to use them if I can, but don't want to be looking at a scene of devastation in a couple of years time.

Does anyone have any experience of using reclaimed quarry tiles outdoors? Are there any steps I can take to preserve them, by the way I lay them? Or am I needlessly concerned?

Cheers
Richard

 

[Rich Midge]

A solid adhesive bed on a correctly prepared base, properly compacted grout and sealed to saturation point with a quality inpregnator such as DryTreat or Lithofin KF stainstop. You'd obviously want a gradual even fall so no pooling of potentially damaging water.

 

[nogginthenog]

Thank you, that's really helpful. You reckon I might be in with a chance then? ;-)

Cheers
Richard

 

[Rich Midge]

Deffo, reclaimed tiles can look superb. Lithofin Bob on here is your man for an extensive cleaning, sealing and maintenance plan. DryTreat Original if you can find a supplier is a brilliant sealer......just don't tell Bob.

 

[Ajax123]

I got my front garden path done in 6x6x1 inch reclaimed quarries. Cost me 40p each about 10 years or so ago. I bought some spares just in case the first damaged them. I still got all the spares.... I used a diamond pattern and three colours. I never got round to grouting them which I figure offers me a bit of slip resistance in the winter. Only thing I have to make sure of is that they don't get algae on them as they get slippery as wotsit.

 

[Ajax123]

Oh and I wouldn't seal them outside. I'd just clean them every so often.... That's what I do.

 

[Dave]

Spalling is a chance you take TBO , sealing will help with general cleaning but water penetration can even come from the substrate and the freeze/thaw factor is the bug bear of spalling .

Keeping removing snow off them from freezing etc will help.

And as above no pooling of water is a must in severe frost weather.

 

[nogginthenog]

Thank you, that's really helpful. You reckon I might be in with a chance then? ;-)

Cheers
Richard

I'll look forward to hearing from him ;-) How often would you be re-sealing them once laid?

Cheers
Richard

 

[Lithofin BOB]

Always a chance you take ,as David says, will depend alot on the make up of the tiles the desity amd porosity of them. impregnating possible with a suitable product. Again as David says the issue can be more underlying from moisture migrating up through the tiles from substrate, most impregnators will breath and can also aid with water dispersion from the surface .
If you impregnate, give a second application to the grout once fully dry to stop water entering through these areas.

Impregnated or not the tiles can always be cleaned, mild acidics for the salts that may form on the surface and algae removers for the green stuff-

 

[Unregistered]

Thank you everyone for your helpful replies. Much appreciated.

Do people think that moisture migration via the substrate could be mitigated if a DPM were included? Or would this just create a greater risk of trapping water?

Cheers
Richard

 

[nogginthenog]

Sorry, I made the last post. I've obviously not quite got the hang of logging in, yet.

Cheers
Richard