Expert Answers
QUESTION
Tile Damaged by Acid - Last year the contractor fixed for my house porcelain tiles. After fixing he diluted a little acid in water to do the cleaning. At first it was ok but now as time goes the floor looks faded and the shine has decreased. it looks like there is a layer of dirt on top of the tiles. is there any way to solve this problem?ANSWER
ANSWER - What you describe sounds like the installer tried to clean the porcelain ceramic tile with too corrosive of a acid cleaner. The acid likely etched the surface of the tile, which permanently damages the surface. Some glazed tile surfaces are more sensitive to acid than others, so it may work on some tiles, but not on others.Sometimes the acid etching is done intentionally to tiles that are too slippery and the treatment makes the tile more textured and slip resistant. The trade off is it makes the tile look different and it tends to get dirty and you have to clean it more frequently.
12 thoughts on “Can tile that has been damaged by acid be fixed?”
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would you use a non acid resistant tile as a backsplash behind a stove?
Normally glaze tiles that are acid sensitive are also more prone to scratching and other types of stains. Behind a stove you could get hot oil, acidic foods, cleaning products, and etc. The only way to to be sure how resistant it is to chemicals and stains is to test it in a laboratory. Otherwise you are gambling.
My tile shop floor was also damaged by acid, someone used toilet bowl cleaner on it and it looks terrible. It’s dingy and dirty. I really don’t want to remove everything in the shop to replace flooring, is there a way to make it look presentable now? I have to do something. It’s bad.
An acidic substance that has caused the tile surface to etch has chemically altered the surface. So it will give it a texture and can then collect dirt due to the textured surface. It is probably a glazed tile. You could sand it down to a smoother surface but it will further alter the appearance. You could put a clear wax over it, but then it will require some level of maintenance. If you have extra tile you can replace the affected tiles. There is no simple solution.
My kitchen tiles has tiny holes every where due to wrong cleaning products. is there any chance so I can fix the problem
Chances are you etched the surface of the tile by using too strong of an acid solution over it and maybe also due to abrading the surface during cleaning with too much force.
There really isn’t anything you can do to restore it to its original conditions, as the surface has been mechanically and/or chemically altered.
How can I make my floor tile uniform due to acid solution spot here and there.
Acid etching actually chemically alters the tile. If it is a natural stone you can grind and repolish it. If it is a glazed ceramic tile then there isn’t much you can do about it. Unglazed ceramic tiles shouldn’t be affected by chemicals.
Donald, most questions in this string pertain to ceramics. But we have slate tiles in the laundry that have on sizable splash, and a number of half-dollar size splotches across the space, as if a bleach dripped. Is there a way (a reference?) to return these areas to the look of the stone, or am I facing trying to match the tiles and replacing them?
I have seen where natural slate can have inclusions of different materials naturally embedded into the stone. If those are undesirable characteristics then they should be culled from the tile being used for the installation. I am assuming these conditions were present with the tile was installed.
Hi Donato,
I came across your comments on this https://ctasc.com/expert-answers/can-tile-damaged-by-acid-be-fixed/#:~:text=The%20acid%20likely%20etched%20the,tiles%2C%20but%20not%20on%20others. after aving tried to clean tiles in my shower with strong acid and to my surprise instead of comng out shining as new, it came out with a non shining surface having a whiting “shade” left over it and looks completely rubbish, as if soap liquid stuck on it with whitish colour and never cleaned !!!
My question to you is what can be done to restore the shine or at least reduce the ugly whittish shade.
Look forward to your exprert advice.
Thanking you in advance.
rgds
As I stated in the other messages, if you used a strong acid you probably etched the tile surface which permanently damages the surface. If that is the case then you need to replace the tiles.