Stained Porcelain Tiles

[Unregistered]

Hello

Six months ago I had my shower room tiled with RAK 60x30 New Form tiles in black. On Staurday I used Viakal to clean the chrome taps, and the run-off bleached the tiles, I mean proper light grey streaks covering about 12 tiles. Tried scrubbing in the hope that the satin was residue, no luck. Looks like it's penetrated the tile. Given that Viakal is acid based and that porcelain is non acid sensetive, I assume the tiles have a non porcelain finish on a porcelain substrate, that was damaged. So, what do I do? Can the tiles be repaired, damaged tiles only replaced, or an entire retile? Insurance job?

Yours

Gutted.

 

[White Room]

I'd be replacing the bleached tiles

 

[Unregistered]

Problem solved. For anyone who gets this problem in the future, here’s the cause and solution.

Polished porcelain tiles (that’s polished, not glazed) have thousands of tiny holes on the surface (these holes were once bubbles that have had their tops removed from the polishing process). When the tiles are grouted, the grout fills these holes. On may dark gray tiles with black grout this was hardly noticeable, but on different colours it appears as a haze. It was the grout in these tiny holes that was stained by the Viakal, not the porcelain tile.

The solution? To remove the grout from the surface of the tile! I used Lithofin ASR with a scotch pad. I used it neat and got a perfect result, but I’d recommend that you get professional advice if you’re unsure as I’m told that this is harsh stuff. The general advice that I’ve seen on this site is to use the gentle treatment first and progress to the more aggressive treatments.

 

[Unregistered]

I too have a problem with stained tiles. Only mine are marble. After a lodger moved out this morning I had to clean excessive limescale off the shower area. I used Viakal to do it and now have bleaching around the edges of the tiles where I have scrubbed at the grouting with Viakal. Where the Viakal has dripped it seems to have taken the polish off the tiles and created white marks.
Will Lithofin ASR help this? Or does it only work on porcelain tiles.
Yours similarly gutted.

 

[enduro]

[h=2]I take it you did not read the instructions!!!

Do not mix with bleach or cleaning products.
Do not use on:
*Enamel baths.
*Inside plastic kettles.
*Gold Plated Taps.
*Marble or natural stones.
*Silver.
*Hot surfaces.
*Appliances.
If in doubt, test on an inconspicuous area first.
Always rinse hands after use! Avoid prolonged contact.
For tough encrustations, let it act for a few minutes. Always rinse well. And there's no need to wipe dry![/h]You could try using a bit of colour Enhancer and see if that works. If not you may need to re-polish the marble as it has been etched by the acid in the Viakal.