Topical Coatings on Travertine Can Be a Problem
After a homeowner in Del Mar, California noticed the appearance of his travertine floor had become diminished, he applied a topical sealer in an attempt to improve the finish of the floor. Shortly thereafter, the coating on the floor became dark and discolored. He was not aware that topical coatings tend to attract and trap dirt and they must be stripped and reapplied over and over again.
The homeowner knew he was in over his head, so he searched for an experienced stone restoration company. We provided a free consultation and estimate and assured him that we could not only resolve the situation and give his travertine the look he wanted, but also eliminate the need to continuously strip and re-coat the floor by implementing our time-tested natural stone restoration process.
Our Travertine Repair and Restoration Process
First, we masked and protected surfaces surrounding our work area. We used a stone-safe stripper to remove the old coating, and we thoroughly cleaned the grout lines. As we worked, we came across a few areas where the travertine filler had come loose. We used tinted epoxy to refill the holes. Our honing process removed surface damage and gave the floor an elegant satin finish. For our final step, we sealed the floor with a penetrating sealer to inhibit stains.
The homeowner said the quality of our work was second to none, and he booked services with us for other stone surfaces throughout his home.
For more information about travertine restoration, such as etch removal, lippage removal (leveling uneven tiles), crack and chip repair, stain removal, sealing, filling naturally-occurring travertine holes, as well as providing a honed, slightly polished, or high-gloss polished finish, watch one or more of these short videos: Floating Travertine, Travertine Strip, Hone, and Repolish, and Travertine Repair, Restoration, and Polishing or visit our Travertine Services page.