Tile and Grout Cleaning
So we get this question a lot…”How do I know if my tile needs cleaning?” and the answer believe it or not is quite simple: Find an area of your tile that is not exposed to normal soiling and traffic and compare the grout line color in that area with the grout color in the rest of the floor. Places you can look can be as simple as the corner of the room, under the refrigerator (after you vacuum up the dog hair, dust bunnies, pennies and plastic fork that live there of course!). Other places are under a piece of furniture, in a closet or other inconspicuous spot in the room you are checking.
Generally your grout and tile is a lot lighter than what you look at every day, as you can see in this before after picture.
If your tile surface is rough, dirt and grime will deposit in the crevices and cavities of the tile. Grout is a porous concrete based material and no matter how hard you scrub and how often you mop, the dirt mixed in with the soapy cleaning water is just going to transfer from the ceramic tile surface right into the porous grout lines. Not to say you are not being effective with your mopping job, but over time, a little here and a little there leaves your beautiful grout lines dark dirty and dingy. The other issue with dirty grout lines is that it will give your floor a “checkerboard” effect that makes the floor look busy and the room a little darker.
Our specialized cleaning equipment coupled with floor type specific, PH balanced emulsifiers makes light work out of what would seemingly be a daunting tasks of cleaning grout and tile. We do this by letting the emulsifier dwell on the floor for an appropriate period of time to breakdown dirt, oils and other contaminates. We then use a specialized machine that safely applies up to 1000 psi of hot water coupled with a high powered vacuum system that pressure washes your tile and grout and then sucks up the dirty water not allowing it to settle back down on the flooring.
Once your tile and grout has been thoroughly cleaned we offer a professional grade sealer by DuPont designed to last 3-5 years.
Sealing the grout does have its advantages, remember I said grout is porous…so that means red wine, dirty mop water and other staining liquids can soak into the grout lines if left unprotected. Grout sealing prohibits stains from being absorbed thereby protecting the look of the grout.
We will leave you with this one last thought…if at all possible: PLEASE refrain from using wax, vinegar and water or Mop & Glo on your tile and grout! This may make for a nice looking floor short term, but in the long run when it becomes dingy and dull and you decide to have it cleaned you are going to pay dearly to have it stripped and cleaned! Years of wax build up makes for a very difficult and time consuming job and one that some tile cleaning companies (as we have found out from our customers) won’t even touch! On the other hand, vinegar is acidic and will strip your newly purchased sealer from the grout leaving it porous again.
Bottom line. If it’s been a while or if you have never cleaned your tile floors, you are probably ready! Hopefully we have given you some guidance on what to do (and not to do) if your tile and grout is dirty so you can make an informed decision when your IICRC cleaning professional shows up to give you a hand!
Tru Clean is a Certified Partner with the prestigious Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) and the international Carpet & Rug Institute (CRI). In addition we are A+ rated with the Better Business Bureau and Angie’s List and our technicians are certified by the world’s most respected certification body for textile professionals.
For more information on Tru Clean tile and grout cleaning services please visit us online at www.trucleansurfacecare.com or call us any time at 239-541-4888.
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