Spa pools, steam rooms and private pools.

Spa pools ask more of tiling

Spa pools usually run warmer than a main pool and see more bathers for their size. Tiled seats, steps and the tiles around jets tend to show it first, often as eroded or stained grout.

Steam rooms are harder still: constant heat and moisture, and surfaces that never really dry out. Adhesives, grouts and sealants have to be suitable for those conditions and installed to the manufacturers' instructions.

Spa pool water needs close management. PWTAG publishes guidance on pool water treatment, and HSE's HSG282 covers controlling legionella in spa pool systems. Our job is the tiling, but we ask about the water history because it can affect grout and tile surfaces.

• Tiled spa seating and benches
• Jet surrounds and steps
• Steam room walls, benches and ceilings
• Pool surrounds and showers
• Changing and treatment wet areas

Planning around a spa's diary

Spas run to bookings, so timing is the first conversation. Where it is practical, a steam room or spa pool can be done as its own phase so the whole spa does not close at once.

Products get the cure time they need before anything is refilled or used. If something unexpected turns up when tiles come off, you hear about it straight away.

Homes around Knutsford

We also work in private homes around Knutsford, out towards Mobberley and Plumley. In a house, the brief is usually a calm, tidy job with the rest of the home protected.

Knutsford is close to our Warrington base, as are Wilmslow, Alderley Edge and Northwich. We take on pools further afield too, across the UK.

We keep the work area contained, warn you which stages are noisy or dusty, and agree how materials and waste will come in and out before we start.

Small test areas, compatible products

Spa areas often mix materials: ceramic tiles, natural stone, glass mosaic, stainless fittings and sealants. A cleaner or grout that suits one of them can mark another.

So any cleaning starts on a small test area, and we choose products that are compatible with the tiles, grout and everything around them, used to the manufacturers' instructions. Where there is a real choice, such as epoxy or cement grout, we explain the trade-offs.

• Test cleaning on a small area first
• Products checked for compatibility
• Movement joints kept flexible
• Cure times followed before use