I have ceramic tile floors in my kitchen and bathroom. I am astounded at how difficult it is to keep the grout clean. I have fibromyalgia and anything that requires me on my hands and knees is out of the question. I simply will end up in the bed for at least 2 days and the pain is not worth it.
So does anyone have or know of a product or mix that will clean the grout with maybe a good spraying and letting it sit for a time or just mopping it? I keep thinking maybe a product like CLR, but it is harsh in the air and we have birds. I guess I can put them all outside on a good day and let the house air out from it if I have to. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.
By Rose from Statesville, NC
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I have the same problem with the tiles on my shower walls, I didn't want tile, and would have been perfectly happy with the fiberglass surround, but I didn't have a choice when my landlord remodled.
I am no help with this. I just want to say that I will NEVER get tile again because of those issues. I had white countertop tiles with white grout and they looked terrible most of the time. Try a brush and bleach but there are no guarantees with anything you use.
A fantastic product that cleans grout and ceramic tile exceptionally well is called Safety Acid and is made and sold by Home Hardware.It has a pink colour, and has a very pleasant smell, despite it being called acid. It does not burn your hands nor does it have fumes. It can be used diluted or full strength. I used it full strength, attached a spray nozzle to the bottle, and sprayed directly on my floors and grout. I used a scrub brush attached to a broom handle, so no bending. I scrubbed the tiles and grout and then left it on for about 30 minutes. I then used the brush again with water to start rinsing, and then a mop with water for a final rinse. The amount of dirt it picked up was amazing - and my 25 year old tiles looked brand new. I wished I had taken before and after pictures - it was that startling a difference. My floors were totally shiny after, the grout was a colour that I hadn't seen since I moved into the house 18 years ago. Hands down - the best product I have ever found for cleaning ceramic tiles and grout.
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I've put down my homemade cleaners because I can't get the grout clean on my ceramic kitchen floor tiles. Can anyone give me the name of a product I can buy that will really work? Thank you so much for any help!
Pattie from Bridgton, ME
I used my Scunci steamer on the bathroom floor tiles where I work. It took a long time because the steamer can only use 11 oz of water at a time, but it looked wonderful when it was done. The grout on these tiles was caked with dirt that the steamer just shot up out of there. Then I used an old towel to wipe up the dirt chunks. The best part about it was there were no chemicals involved, just very hot water. If you don't have a steamer I would try to pour heated water on them and then carefully use a nylon bristled brush to scrub the grout. I think you would be surprised how well just the hot water works. (12/13/2007)
My husband just did the back-breaking job of cleaning all the grout on my kitchen and eating area tile floor. First he used a hand-held steamer machine which was time-consuming because it only holds so much water and you have to wait a 1/2 before you can add more water (at least w/the machine I have). That worked pretty good, but in some areas the light colored grout still looked stained/dirty.
Our tile is only 2 yrs old and hubby did put a sealer on it, but what we didn't know is the sealer has to be periodically reapplied and it wears off quickly just when you clean your floor.
I'm not sure if he will go to the trouble of sealing it again and we just might now try to keep the grout cleaner and work on the high traffic areas when we see them getting stained. We especially had bad areas around the kitchen table.
I love my tile and the color of the grout; however if this becomes too much a problem, I'll hire someone to re-color the grout to a dark color and avoid going through this. (12/13/2007)
I used this method on ceramic bathroom tiles. It was hard work but worth it. Make a paste of toothpaste and bleach and scrub the dirty grouting with this applied on old toothbrushes. The result was excellent. There were some places that didn't respond so those I camouflaged with white latex paint, applied with a child's paintbrush. (12/13/2007)
I have also tried everything on my white bathroom grout. Finally I applied a paste of plain baking soda and household bleach applied to just the grout, allowed it to dry then scrubbed it off with an old toothbrush. It worked great, better than our Scunci steamer, some areas needed two treatments. (12/13/2007)
By Danielle
We have had your problem and finally after trying many different techniques and products, found one that works. It's called Finazzle Bathroom Grout Cleaner, but it works wonders on ceramic tile. You can get it at finazzle.comIt is a great product, easy, quick and it really works! (12/13/2007)
By LeAnn
