How to Darken Slate Floor Tiles [ In 7 Steps Effectively ]

Slate has versatile characteristics which make it exceptional and very demandable. People see slate tiles as a great part of decoration for both interior and exterior. One of the major reasons that people are adopting slate tiles for flooring, wall decoration, or bathroom flooring is this tile comes in varieties and different colors. The range of colors that they provide is worth mentioning.

Besides, slate tiles come with this much flexibility that you can modify them in several ways to meet your satisfaction. If you learn how to darken slate tiles, you will know that these slate tiles do not limit themselves to different colors only. You will know that slate tiles, with its every piece carrying different sorts of designs and patterns, can stand sealing on them as well. Darkening the color of slate tiles brings more of a beautiful and gorgeous appearance.

That’s why most people want to take it as their DIY project and learn every detail about the whole process. As these slate tiles are durable and come with possible flexibility to endure any kind of possible modification, we are also interested to enlighten you with the full process of darkening slate tiles. So, without further ado, let’s get into the primal segment with lots of bonus topics.

Reasons You Need to Darken Slate Tiles:

Slate tiles are popular because of their promising service. You can always get the best out of it if install them properly. Naturally, slate tiles come in gray color but there can be an exception too. As these tiles are super hard and can stand every hard situation, it is always best to adopt these tiles as your flooring.

But with all its advantages, you also have to recognize its disadvantages as well. Though slate tiles are superior to other types of tiles like granite or ceramic, they also tend to carry some characteristics of fading away and all. That’s why giving them annual or regular maintenance is a very important part of your activities. Now there can be several reasons that you would want to darken your slate floor tiles and those are given below.

a) The Color is Not Desired:

Most of the time it occurs that you order slate tiles seeing pictures and later on it does not meet your expected color. As we have already mentioned that most of the slate tiles are grey in color, variations have taken place in this range as well. You will see a pinkish or bluish or brownish vibe in these slate tiles with the prominent color gray. If the color of the slate tiles does not match your expectation then you can choose to make them darken. Then there is a chance that the color can reach your expectation level.

b) Lack of Maintenance:

Slate tiles are known for their amazing strength and their versatility. But they require proper maintenance too. The color of slate tiles tends to fade away with time. That’s why regular maintenance is required. Every day dirt and debris sit on the slate tiles and ruin the natural glaze of your slate tiles. Sometimes the dust and debris behave so clingy that they don’t mind penetrating the hard tile and leaving permanent remarkable marks on the floor. In this situation, darkening the slate tiles will hide the faded condition and remarkable scars from the tiles.

c) For Extra Decoration:

A darker shade of any color provides a very enchanting look. And slate tiles are no exception than that. From their gray appearance to a little bit darker appearance brings a completely different look to your floor. That’s why darkening slate tile has become an immense part of decoration and beautifying interiors and exteriors. It enhances the beauty of the floor and also, makes the floor suitable for walking properly.

d) To Endure Foot Traffic:

Floor with tiles provides exceptional swiftness to the foot traffic. With their stunning look, slate tiles are also renowned for enduring extreme foot traffic. You will notice people passing by swiftly on the floor that is covered with foot traffic. It is also slippery or over non-slippery, rather it is in between. However, slate tiles when you darken them endure the foot traffic more professionally along with their gorgeous appearance.

e) To Avoid Regular Cleaning:

As you know very well that slate tiles are normally not white in color, they can trick by not showing up much dirt on the floor. White or brownish tiles come with significant whiteness and this happens to expose even the slightest dirt on the floor. But cleaning a busy floor might not be a possible task for everyone every day. Therefore, adopting slate tiles is a very brilliant idea. Besides, when you decide to darken slate tiles the possibility of hiding dirt increases to the greatest extent.

Process of Darkening Slate Tiles or Change the Color – In 7 Steps:

It has become a great knowledge that people legit want to acquire is how to darken slate floor tiles. “Can you darken slate tiles or how do you make slate tiles darker” has become a burning question for some people and the answer is also satisfying. Yes, it is possible to darken slate tiles using a color-enhancing sealer and following certain procedures. Changing the color of slate tiles is not a hard task that requires professional or skilled hands and minds. You can surely adopt the ideas and apply them to your slate tiled floor once you know them from an authentic source. Don’t worry because we are here with the authentic process of darkening slate tiles.

However, if your slate tiles are too gray in color, then darkening them would brighten up your room as well. Besides that, you will see the aftereffect of the darkening process is also worth mentioning. Just using an enhancer can meet half of your expectation level. But that does not end the whole job. There are certain rules that you need to follow so you can get the best out of the job. Now, follow the next steps to have a piece of complete knowledge of the process of darkening slate tiles.

1: Gather the Materials:

It is important to prepare materials before you jump into the main job because preparation is the major part that makes you confident enough and sure about the whole job. Besides, searching for materials in the middle of the work brings unnecessary trouble and you might not get a satisfactory result eventually. So, let’s check out the materials at once,

1. Quality stone color enhancing sealer
2. Lint-free cloth
3. Mop
4. Freshwater
5. Broom
6. Commercial cleaning product
7. Hand gloves
8. Soapy water
9. Mask
10. Scraper
11. A smooth dirt-free sponge
12. Natural fiber brush
13. A tray for paint or any similar kind of container

2: Remove Materials from the Floor:

After you gather the important materials, you need to remove furniture from the floor. Remove as many materials as you can from the floor. You can carry the light ones but for the heavy ones, call for helping hands or professionals. If any material is attached permanently, then leave it there and don’t try to detach it from the floor.

It’s because detaching the material can affect the already slate tiled floor overall and you definitely don’t want that. And if you badly want to darken the slate tile by removing the attached material then extra labor, professional hands, and more stuff are required. Besides, we are suggesting a process for a DIY project that every keen man can adopt in a short time.

3: Clean the Mess:

Now after removing bigger or smaller pieces of furniture, you will see a lot of dirt and debris on the floor. Besides, heavy metal materials can leave rusty scales on the floor. Or you might find a layer of grease on any corner of your floor. In this situation, you need to bring a broom and clean off as much dirt as possible on the floor.

However, using a broom is not enough as the stain of rusty scale and the greasy situation will not go away too soon using too little of materials. To remove the greasy condition, use a scraper. Scrape the particular place where you see grease. It might affect the sealant of the slate tile but don’t worry as we can fix it later on.

4: Use a Cleaning Product:

To give a very deep cleaning, sometimes soapy water is not enough. But if you see the condition is less bad, then soapy water would do just fine. However, a commercial cleaning product can clean away the remainder of the greasy condition and rusty scale from the floor. Just bring some freshwater, add some floor cleaning product to it and mix it very well. Then use a mop and sweep away the dirt straight.

If needed, give a vigorous cleaning to the stubborn marks of grease and rust and the marks will come off eventually. You can also try to apply warm water to the stubborn greasy places to let them come off the tiles properly and then clean it with fresh water. To make the slate tile dry, use a rag and wipe the extra water or you can use a dryer to have it dried properly within no time. Also, if you want then let the floor dry naturally.

5: Wear Your Safeties:

Now it’s time to prepare your own self. As sealing floor tiles require a lot of time and with time it gets messier, you are going to need to prepare yourself for this long time too. Using sealer on your slate tiles is a very mature job and you should wear all your safeties altogether. Wear your masks and put on your hand gloves too for your own very safety.

Sealers tend to carry chemicals that might not be suitable for your skin and cause irritation instantly. To save yourself from severe skin disease and fatigue, better adopt precautions beforehand. Many professionals and experts have suggested doing that too.

6: Apply the Stone Enhancer:

By this time, your floor should get dried completely and along with this, the slate tiles are prepared fully to adapt to the first appliance of the enhancer. Choose a stone color-enhancing sealer. Now you might ask “what sealer to use to darken slate tiles”. You will find penetrating sealers and enhancing sealers in the market.

For this job, we recommend enhancing sealers. This sealer helps in darkening slate tiles. If you want your slate tiles to look dark for a longer period of time, bring a solvent-based one. Enhancer Pro is one of those kinds. For the light gray color of your slate tiles, this kind of enhancer works excellently. You will find both solvent-based and water-based enhancers. Both are fine but if you want a long-lasting formula then we would recommend the solvent-based one.

However, pour the sealer on the tray that you have managed earlier and dip the sponge into it. Then apply the sealer with the sponge to the slate tiles. The fiber brush will help you in the narrow and rough spaces. Apply the first coat of the enhancer evenly on the slate tiles and wait for it to dry naturally or you can use a dryer. It might take 50 minutes to an hour. If there is moisture in the weather then it will take more time.

7: Apply Several Coats and Get Your Job Done with:

The first coat will show you that the enhancer has the potential to provide much dark color. Besides, the first coat alone cannot create a barrier effect. A second or third coat can together make the bond and barrier to providing a cross-linked matrix. Also, several coatings of the enhancer will eventually meet your expected dark color and they will protect your slate tiles to the greatest extent too.

So, when the first coat dries, apply the second coat exactly in the same manner we have described earlier for the first coat. If you see that the second coat is showing enough dark shade after it is dried, then apply the third coat in the same way. Just don’t over-apply the enhancer otherwise you will see bubbles coming up and the finishing will be uneven too. So, know your limitation and choose the right enhancer for your slate tiles.

Thus you can get your slate tiles as darkened as your expectation level. Give the last coat at least a day or two to dry completely and then you are allowed to return those pieces of furniture to the slate tiled floor.

FAQs:

Question: Can you change the color of the slate tiles?

Answer: You can definitely change color of slate floor or tiles to some extent. As slate tiles are porous, they can absorb paint. After applying several coats of paint to the slate floor, you can expect the tiles to change their color. Later on, you need to use an enhancer or sealer. Enhancer happens to darken the color of slate tiles and several coats of enhancer can bring about a gorgeous dark color. You can also make your slate tiles look wet, glossy, or semi-glossy using different types of enhancer.

Question: Can you stain slate floor tiles?

Answer: Slate floor tiles cannot hold the pigmentation of stain if the floor is sealed properly with a proper enhancer. If you try to stain slate floor tiles, you have to do it before applying any sealer to them. Besides, staining slate floor tiles is also hard unless you are adopting a good primer.

Question: How do you revamp slate tiles?

Answer: To revamp your slate tiles you need to take deep care of them by cleaning off the dust and debris properly. Also, use an enhancer following the right method to restore the genuine color of your slate tiles and make them last longer.

Last Updated on July 7, 2022 by Rogers Weber

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