cleaning kitchen grout

[Tom57]

I do not doubt that it was worth it to have the clean grout but I think I'd at least try the steam cleaner first. Just personal preference and BTD is becoming a sacrament in some circles here. Who woulda thunk it? From recycling dryer sheets to BTD in one generation of FIRE! YMMV

I do have a steam cleaner that I used for several years on the grout. The steam cleaner worked great cleaning the grout at the beginning but became less effective as the years passed. The grout in the tile floor was from 1999 and I had sealed the grout at least twice. 18 years after tile & grout installation, the Grout Pro cleaning, sealing and painting made the grout look new and was worth the money.

 

[Winemaker]

I have a steam cleaner from Harbor Freight to clean my wine barrels. Maybe $50.

 

[ncbill]

I do not doubt that it was worth it to have the clean grout but I think I'd at least try the steam cleaner first. Just personal preference and BTD is becoming a sacrament in some circles here. Who woulda thunk it? From recycling dryer sheets to BTD in one generation of FIRE! YMMV

$2,500+ just to clean the grout lines?

Another reason I'll never have a tile floor in my kitchen.

It was under $500 just a few years ago to have new sheet vinyl professionally installed on top of the old, yellowing original vinyl.

Now with two layers the floor is nice and cushy.

 

[brett]

Did it in our old kitchen.

I used grout cleaner.....AND an electic toothbrush. I save my electric toothbrush refills and use them from time to clean various items.

Worked very well.

 

[Out-to-Lunch]

I used epoxy grout so that it would be relatively easy to clean. But, in reality, I have just learned to think "Yeah, I probably should have went with black grout instead of beige, anyway!"

 

[Tom57]

$2,500+ just to clean the grout lines?

Another reason I'll never have a tile floor in my kitchen.

It was under $500 just a few years ago to have new sheet vinyl professionally installed on top of the old, yellowing original vinyl.

Now with two layers the floor is nice and cushy.

Apples and Oranges comparison, I did pay $2,650 for grout cleaning, brightening and grout painting on a 1,000 sq ft ceramic tile floor. By the way, the floor tile sizes are equal numbers of 12" x 12", 6" x 12" and 6" x 6" tiles, so lots of grout lines in a 1,000 sq ft floor. Your comparison to a $500 sheet vinyl kitchen floor is why I said apples and oranges comparison unless you have a 1,000 sq ft kitchen floor, of course.
My wife is very happy that there is no vinyl flooring in our house. Just like she is very happy that we replaced the kitchen and bath countertops which had 4" square ceramic tiles and lots of grout with solid surface Corian countertops with no grout and no caulk. Happy wife, happy life.

 

[Sunset]

I used epoxy grout so that it would be relatively easy to clean. But, in reality, I have just learned to think "Yeah, I probably should have went with black grout instead of beige, anyway!"

We have thick black grout lines on our kitchen floor. DW doesn't like it.

I don't care, I just walk on it.

 

[ncbill]

Apples and Oranges comparison, I did pay $2,650 for grout cleaning, brightening and grout painting on a 1,000 sq ft ceramic tile floor. By the way, the floor tile sizes are equal numbers of 12" x 12", 6" x 12" and 6" x 6" tiles, so lots of grout lines in a 1,000 sq ft floor. Your comparison to a $500 sheet vinyl kitchen floor is why I said apples and oranges comparison unless you have a 1,000 sq ft kitchen floor, of course.
My wife is very happy that there is no vinyl flooring in our house. Just like she is very happy that we replaced the kitchen and bath countertops which had 4" square ceramic tiles and lots of grout with solid surface Corian countertops with no grout and no caulk. Happy wife, happy life.

No argument there...would love to replace bathroom tiles with many of the same grout issues with solid surface.

 

[EastWest Gal]

Did it in our old kitchen.



I used grout cleaner.....AND an electic toothbrush. I save my electric toothbrush refills and use them from time to clean various items.



Worked very well.

Brilliant. Electric toothbrush with old stuff brushes make sense. You’ve given me the tool necessary to clean our kitchen grout. That and charged earbuds and an audiobook and I’m good to go.

 

[zinger1457]

I've repainted the grout in my kitchen/dining room area, looks good but it's not a permanent fix, down the road you'll end up with the same issues that made the original grout look bad. I tried using heavy duty oven cleaner to clean grout, works great at cleaning the grout but wouldn't recommend it, you have to wear thick gloves and the fumes can be toxic without good ventilation. Will have to try some of the other suggestions here.

 

[Piper20]

REWahoo So glad you mentioned the Dupray Neat. Arrived and tested today. Works great. I’ve tried everything and this is by far the best.

 

[kgtest]

Most of the houses built in the last 20 years have the ceramic tiles in the kitchen.

How do I "re-brighten" kitchen tile grout?

Also, how do I pull out the heavy gas stove and clean around and behind it?

I plan on doing this for my kitchen before I sell my house and also doing this for the kitchen in the house I will be buying.

I've used clorox bleach from the spray bottle with those magic eraser's. Works well, but I do it every now and then so its not a 20 year old stain etc.

 

[brett]

Brilliant. Electric toothbrush with old stuff brushes make sense. You’ve given me the tool necessary to clean our kitchen grout. That and charged earbuds and an audiobook and I’m good to go.

Forgot to mention....

After I cleaned them, and allowed the grout to dry thoroughly, I applied two coats of clear grout sealer with one of those little sponge paint brushes. Extremely easy and fast to apply.

 

[omni550]

Forgot to mention....

After I cleaned them, and allowed the grout to dry thoroughly, I applied two coats of clear grout sealer with one of those little sponge paint brushes. Extremely easy and fast to apply.

Floor grout has been the main topic on this thread.

I'm wondering if bathroom wall tiles in the tub surround can also be cleaned and then sealed with this clear grout sealer? Anyone know?


omni

 

[Gotadimple]

Floor grout has been the main topic on this thread.

I'm wondering if bathroom wall tiles in the tub surround can also be cleaned and then sealed with this clear grout sealer? Anyone know?


omni

When I re-did my bathrooms I had the contractor replace the tub surround, floors, stall shower floor and walls with travertine marble, and install granite counter tops. He sealed the granite and the grout as a last step.

With sealed grout that helps with controlling staining. But you still need to take care of soap scum build up. I have used Granite Gold to clean the walls and floors and it works well on all natural stone tile. There are similar products out there for cleaning. I'd check the details on the grout sealer to make sure it will work with your tile.

 

[Earlygirl]

Vinegar works great to remove hard water from fixtures. You can soak a rag or paper towel and place it where you need it. It takes a few hours to work. Then the hard water can be wiped off. Not sure if vinegar is safe for granite though. As far as the grout, my friend used bleach to whiten hers.

 

[meleana]

Try Oxi Clean. Make a paste and leave it on for a while. There are also companies specialize in this.

The stove- pull it out being careful not to disconnect it.

 

[wildsun]

Sodium percarbonate.

When sodium percarbonate, which looks like baking soda but with coarse granules, is dissolved in water, it releases hydrogen peroxide which is a safe and powerful cleaning agent. It also disinfects.

I bought some to use as a stain remover on laundry. It brightens up tough stains that bleach fails to remove. It does not cause yellowing of cotton like bleach does. Just wonderful stuff. Sodium percarbonate is an ingredient in Oxiclean.

See YouTube below for fast acting cleaning by sodium percarbonate. Search for the term on YouTube, and you will find more uses for it.

AND of course, you can buy 5# bags of Sodium percarbonate on Amazon. I use it to kills moss and mildew on roofs and on concrete or wood walkways on the Oregon coast. Its kind to foliage.

 

[indiajust]

I had 105 y o coal fireplaces with tile surrounds. previous owners had spray painted tile. I used paint stripper and laundry detergent to get all the crud off, but the grout remained unpleasant.

Ultimately i bought a carbide dusted handheld grout saw blade. It took a few slow nights with beer and the blade, but I removed the existing grout surface. Then I lightly over wiped with a tiny pint jar of fresh grout. Two light wipes and a bit of oxalic acid to brighten and the fireplaces were ready for another hundred years.

I did a similar touch up in the master shower stall where the mildew at floor level in the walls was too much for acid or base to kill off. I needed a new floor so I just put a layer of floor tile down to cover the slippery wall tiles that were foolishly put on the floor.

If you have uninterrupted grout lines it goes much faster. Hex is impossible. Subway verticals get tiresome. I had tiny antique 5 x 1 tile so the tiny verticals were the problem.

 

[outdoorgirl02]

You can also buy grout pens in various color shades. These are great for smaller rooms, showers, countertops. They have them on Amazon.

 

[Scuba]

We also paid a service to clean and seal our grout. We tried cleaning a small area of the kitchen grout ourselves and actually damaged the grout using diluted bleach and a scrubbing sponge. With around 3,300 sq ft of grout, we’d probably still be working on it if we’d done it ourselves.