Hall restoration, Clapham. Changing damaged tiles, reinstalling loose tile, regrouting and restoration cleaning. Extensive cement base repairs.
Page published June 2007- Victorian hallway restoration details

What sort of finish should I give a tiled floor? The traditional treatment for a Victorian tiled floor after cleaning was to apply warmed linseed oil followed by a coat of wax polish. This gave a stunning, lustrous finish to the floor, but is so labour-intensive to apply and maintain that it is inappropriate in most modern situations. Modern cold wax polishes, for example HG Golvpolish are perfectly adequate. On no account should tiled floors be sealed or varnished with any kind of resin-based or polyurethane finish. Besides their unpleasant plasticky appearance, these may cause long-term problems by sealing in damp under the floor. When you should you apply the sealer? For a new tile surface or re-grout, nearly all grout manufacturers advise that you wait at least 48 hours after grouting before aaplying sealers so the grout has time to finish setting. For maintanence of existing tilling, you should re-apply every year or two.

Victorian Tile Care: Sweep or vacum your Victorian tile floors often. Dirt collecting carpet mats should be placed in frequently used entrances and shaked out weekly. Floors will only need an occasional mop over every 2 weeks or so use HG Superfloor maintenance cleaner in your washing water, or just plain water. We do not recommend the use of floor waxes as they can be difficult to remove from ceramic tile floors. As long as your floor is properly sealed and maintained, you should find no need for these products.