Is there a polish that works for porcelain tile?

P

peterp

New member
The porcelain tile in our kitchen is supposed to be glossy black. It's in great condition and there are no scratches, but it always has a haze that doesn't go away after mopping (and I have tried several different cleaners including vinegar). I think it will require a polish to fix it.



Searching for porcelain tile polish on Amazon and google identifies Klasse AIO, so I thought I'd post here to see if anybody has tried Klasse AIO or any other polish on a tile floor. I'd like for the polish to remove the haze, which I think it will do, but I am concerned that the polish will make the floor too slippery. It would be great to get some real world feedback if anybody has experience with polishing tile.



Thanks,

Peter
 
I would NOT try KAIO on anywhere that you are walking on. I think you could try Megs M205 first or SwirlX (Meg's OTC consumer-version of M205, NOT to be confused with ScratchX) on a walking surface. I assume you have a Porter-Cable 7424 buffer (or equal) to do this and will be using a white or green pad, since procelain is quite hard. I doubt you could accomplish or duplicate the same results by hand, unless you have the arms and endurance of Hercules.

I am curious:

How big are the tiles? Are they big 8 X 8 inch squares or are they tiny 1/2 X 1/2 inch squares?

How big of area are we talking about; IE, what are the floor dimensions?

How old is the tile? (This can give an idea of the TYPE of procelain it is and it's hardness, because if it's old it MAY be fired-on and hard, but brittle)

If it's in a kitchen, how do you prevent cracking it from the inevitable items that will accidentally be dropped on it??



IF you do decide on using KAOI, I am not sure how you would remove the sealant part of it to prevent the floor from being slippery. You could try a strong solvent like PPG's Acrylo-Clean DX-330 or a full-strength All-Purpose Cleaners like Megs APC+ or Opimum's Opti-Clean, maybe even 90% isopropyl alcohol.
 
Are they polished porcelain?



In any case, do not put anything on them, buff out any streaks and haze with a towel or microfiber towel.



Just use a mild cleaner on tile, no harsh anything, vinegar will just ruin the grout over time, no need for it.
 
Thanks for the feedback. They are 12x12 tiles, the area is about 15 feet by 15 feet. The tiles are about 12 years old and installed by the previous owner so I'm not sure what brand/type they are. They are high quality and in excellent condition -- literally look like new but have a haze. It almost seems like a greasy haze - not really fixed to the tile but seems go back quickly to a hazy look shortly after I clean it.



Wanting to avoid the slipperiness of a polish, I tried Menzerna yesterday by hand as a quick test and it didn't seem to make a dramatic difference (maybe need to try with a PC). I also tried using some Dawn and it still seems to go back to being hazy hazy. I read something online about using high concentration of vinegar with COLD water. I had tried vinegar mixed with hot water and it didn't work well at all, but the article I just read emphasized that being cold was very important. Hoping one application won't cause harm to the grout.



I'm open to suggestions -- this is very much of a mystery to me and there doesn't seem to be a lot online or in terms of products to help with tile shine. The tile looks great when it's wet, but doesn't look good after it dries. The black color really emphasizes the haze -- it probably wouldn't be noticeable if it was a lighter color.
 
peterp said:
Thanks for the feedback. They are 12x12 tiles, the area is about 15 feet by 15 feet. The tiles are about 12 years old and installed by the previous owner so I'm not sure what brand/type they are. They are high quality and in excellent condition -- literally look like new but have a haze. It almost seems like a greasy haze - not really fixed to the tile but seems go back quickly to a hazy look shortly after I clean it.



Wanting to avoid the slipperiness of a polish, I tried Menzerna yesterday by hand as a quick test and it didn't seem to make a dramatic difference (maybe need to try with a PC). I also tried using some Dawn and it still seems to go back to being hazy hazy. I read something online about using high concentration of vinegar with COLD water. I had tried vinegar mixed with hot water and it didn't work well at all, but the article I just read emphasized that being cold was very important. Hoping one application won't cause harm to the grout.



I'm open to suggestions -- this is very much of a mystery to me and there doesn't seem to be a lot online or in terms of products to help with tile shine. The tile looks great when it's wet, but doesn't look good after it dries. The black color really emphasizes the haze -- it probably wouldn't be noticeable if it was a lighter color.
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Interesting. I'm willing to bet that what you are dealing with is epoxy haze from incomplete washing of the tile during the grouting phase.



If indeed it is epoxy haze and it has dried beyond 48 hours, it is unlikely to come off. You could try a epoxy stripper available at the local tile shop. Make sure you do it with all the windows open...stuff stinks to high heaven.
 
I work for a company that makes floor coatings. There is nothing out there that will have good adhesian to a glazed tile. Anything you put on will peel off quickly.
 
Interesting. I'm willing to bet that what you are dealing with is epoxy haze from incomplete washing of the tile during the grouting phase.
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Unless epoxy grout was used, I doubt it.



After 12 years, doubt it's cement based grout haze either, you can try Vinegar and water 50/50 and a nylon scrub brush, vinegar will only help if it's grout haze, otherwise sorry, live with it, what you see is what you get with glazed ceramic, nothing should be used on them.



Have a photo?
 
Tileman said:
you can try Vinegar and water 50/50 and a nylon scrub brush, vinegar will only help if it's grout haze, otherwise sorry, live with it, what you see is what you get with glazed ceramic, nothing should be used on them.
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Thanks very much for all the help -- the 50/50 solution of vinegar worked! I had tried a fairly high concentration of vinegar using hot water previously and it didn't seem to help, but this time I did the 50/50 vinegar/water using cold water, let it sit for a while, then mopped it with fresh water, and then wiped with microfiber cloth. It's the first time in years that the floor has really been clean without the haze. I don't know what the haze was, but it was impervious to everything up to this point. It will be interesting to see how long it will remains clean.



Now that it's clean, I'd like to put something on to improve the gloss, but it sounds like nothing works from the comments here and also the online reviews for Mop & Glo, for example, are pretty poor (looks good initially but then yellows and is difficult to remove). I probably won't try it because I'm about 90% happy now that the haze is gone, but I wonder if PC polishing with Menzerna 106ff would improve the gloss.
 
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