How Do I Get My Grout White Again?
Updated 2019
The discolored and dirt-stained grout in the tile floor of our foyer looked super quondam and gross, just later trying nigh a dozen cleaners and cleaning tricks we about gave up. And so we finally find THE SOLUTION to making the grout expect white and clean once more!
At present that we're done, you lot tin run across how the view merely got a heckova lot better effectually here. The crisp white grout lines play off the white trim and brand the whole space feel newer and cleaner.
The funny matter is, it wasn't actually cleaning that did the trick. And then if you've got a similar upshot with discolored or stain grout, here's our official intervention: stop scrubbing! Well, possibly give scrubbing a off-white shot, but don't be discouraged if it gets you nowhere. There's some other mode!
Cleaning Tricks That DIDN'T Piece of work
As y'all might call up, for the past six months that nosotros've lived here, it has looked like this.
I gave nearly every method nether the sun a shot to brand that grout look clean. Afterwards repeatedly scrubbing the heck out of it, I knew that it was actually very (very, very) clean… it just was so discolored and stained in certain areas, that no corporeality of blood, sweat, tears, or elbow grease could brand it look that way.
Some of my attempts to clean grout included (but weren't limited to):
- various blistering soda paste mixtures
- diverse white vinegar solutions
- copious magic erasers
- specialty grout cleaning floor sprays/potions/scrubs
- bleach pens
- oxygenating cleaners like Oxiclean
- Mrs. Meyers powdered cleanser + a wire castor
- Barkeeper's Friend + a wire brush
- a borrowed steam mop
- scrubbing with a strong bristle brush
- lots and lots of muttered cursing
The Solution To Getting White Grout Again
By this point I did what most people would practice. I gave upward and ignored information technology for another few days (what'southward a few days after 6 months of no-die results?). And and then I finally faced facts. The grout either needed to be scraped out and regrouted entirely (which makes for a pretty messy job, peculiarly in the master hallway of our house which connects the unabridged upstairs to each room downstairs) or information technology needed to be refinished.
Thankfully a few of you tipped me off to a product y'all've used with success called Polyblend Grout Renew. Let me just skip to the punchline: information technology worked, and I wish I had tried it earlier spending half dozen months scrubbing my heed out.
The cost? A cool $12 from Habitation Depot. (Update: it's closer to $xv now, merely you likewise go it more places – even Amazon!) Can I get a what what? Notation: this might sound like an advertizement for the stuff, but Grout Renew doesn't know us from Adam – I'm but beyond grateful that information technology worked.
Cull Your Grout Pigment Colour
GroutRenew comes in several colors at present – over 3 dozen, in fact, including several shades of white and off-white. And so you lot may be tempted to become for the brightest white to get the cleanest, freshest look (that's "Artic White" pictured below). Still, just similar paint colors, the brightest, whitest version may not be all-time for you.
Be sure to take some fourth dimension to look at your room, your tile, and your lighting to make sure yous're choosing something that blends well with your space. You can e'er test out a few colors also earlier committing to one. John and I really considered ii colors – Natural Gray and Oyster Gray, which both wait pretty nighttime compared to the brighter whites. Nosotros had seen a neighbor with darker grout in her slate floor, then nosotros thought information technology was worth considering.
In the end we chose Oyster Gray (shown below) which is still a mid-tone Ivory colour – definitely non a bright white. But it looked the most natural and still seemed very brilliant in contrast to the nighttime slate tile, without looking artificiall white. Any brighter and we worried it would expect like someone in a Crest Whitstrips ad! You know, almost too blinding.
Oh and the Grout Renew was depression odor and depression-VOC, and so this pregnant lady could get down with information technology. I did wear a respirator, forth with opening windows, but because I'm into added ventilation and bad Blight impersonations.
GroutRenew Alternatives
This is the only production we've used, but there are some others on the market if this particular ane is not bachelor. Lowe's sells a similar product by MAPEI that comes in a squeeze bottle. Amazon also has a well-reviewed Grout Pen product that comes in a white or biscuit selection. Again, we haven't personally tried those, but they may exist some alternatives to consider if the PolyBlend is not available to you.
How To Apply Grout Paint
The downside to this solution is that information technology can be time intensive (and patience testing) depending on the size of your surface. For this floor, it took almost eight hours to utilize. But since I had easily spent 25 hours trying various stain lifting methods before resorting to this, well, eight hours with a canteen of Grout Renew was a small price to pay for VICTORY.
Step 1: Clean Your Tile & Grout
I know I said scrubbing wasn't the solution, but information technology part of the process. I'll pause while you laugh since I had already washed that TEN Meg TIMES. But similar any surface you'll be painting, you want to make sure it's clean of grit and droppings. So at least nosotros're non talking a heavy-duty scrubbing, merely your regular washing to remove surface clay should practice.
Step two: Choice Your Brush Or Awarding Tool
The instructions suggested using an old toothbrush to apply the GroutRenew it into the grout lines and then allow it dry for 24 hours. I went with a sparse arts and crafts brush instead considering I had way more control (read: way less mess on the tile surface). The sparse paint brush was too piece of cake to dip directly into the bottle when I needed to load up with paint.
Step 3: Plan Your Starting Point & Get out Route
If you lot're painting a floor, similar we were, y'all'll want to sure you lot don't paint yourself into a corner (or at to the lowest degree if you exercise, yous can carefully tiptoe beyond your tile without stepping on the cracks). I started in the half-bathroom considering I figured I could work my way out of the room and close the door behind me so it could dry out.
It was the contrary of fast. Only it worked. Slowly I eked my mode out from around the toilet and right out the door, which took almost an hour and twoscore 5 minutes.
Step 4: Be Fix For Mistakes
Even with a small craft brush in that location were still times when it got on the surface of the tile, and there was a very brusk window for wiping it off earlier information technology set (and then had to be scrubbed with a fingernail, which was a huge pain) so I literally would do one or two cracks at a time and then chop-chop follow up to smoothen both sides of the seam out with a small piece of toilet paper (this would remove whatever from the surface of the tile besides equally brand the sides of each seam nice and direct looking). A paper towel or clean material would work as well. That is, if toilet paper isn't fancy plenty for yo?u.
Step v: Be Patient & Pace Yourself
Being pregnant, the bathroom was all I had energy for on Twenty-four hours one. 24-hour interval 2 involved iii more hours of line painting and wiping, and I opted to do fifty% of the lobby in a strategic way and so nosotros could all notwithstanding walk on the other one-half of information technology. Here's a shot to prove you how hilarious John is. I said: ok, go creative with this picture so my giant respirator doesn't expect weird. I like his version of getting creative – just lop off the whole head expanse.
The second twenty-four hour period was the hardest day by far, just because I was all the same kind of sore from contorting my pregnant body around in the pocket-sized half bathroom the solar day earlier, and the little knobby parts of each of my ankles were dragging on the tile as I scooted around like a dog with fleas, but information technology was all worth it. Worth it so some!
Day 3 was another three hour process, but information technology was the nearly exciting twenty-four hours because I could see the light at the terminate of the tunnel. The end of the longest-running house battle that I had ever waged was about. I simply worked my way around the antechamber doing the other half of those pathways that I had done the day before, and I ducked into that last cupboard while pausing occasionally to fist pump and work on my clean grout acceptance voice communication ("I'd similar to give thanks the academy, and the grout gods who invented this cheap bottle of miracles and unicorns").
Footstep 6: Let Information technology Dry
Subsequently each application process, nosotros gave that section a total 24 hour drying period and made sure nix got wet for 72 hours (since that was another warning on the bottle). It's a good bargain lighter than the old grout was, which nonetheless makes us say "whoa now" when we walk through the hallway, simply nosotros think information technology's just our eyes adjusting. Maybe after half-dozen months our brains but can't go over the fact that it finally looks clean!
Nosotros as well had about 1/4 of a canteen left all of this, which was cracking in case we need some touch-ups down the line. I'll definitely update yous guys if anything funky happens, only so far it has been neat.
Update: Later on almost two years of use, fifty-fifty with semi-frequent moppings, muddy shoes/paws, and a whole lot of foot traffic, our grout still looks identical to when I practical this stuff (you can see an updated picture that we shared after six months of utilizehere). For the folks who can't find it in stores, here's an affiliate link to it on Home Depot.com and on Amazon , and s ince a few people have also asked for a "way back" before shot, here y'all go. Information technology's crazy how much bluer the tile looked with the brown stained grout and all that blue trim!
Is anyone else waging war on something stubborn that's taking more than a few attempts? Like some grout that refuses to go clean? Please feel complimentary to pin and share this mail service to spread the discussion. I'd LOVE to assist anyone else dealing with this supremely abrasive issue so we can all do the make clean grout end zone trip the light fantastic toe together. Because believe me, after this was done there were mic drops. There was shoulder dusting. There was a full on meaning-lady end zone trip the light fantastic toe.
Originally Published in 2014
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Source: https://www.younghouselove.com/how-you-like-me-now-grout/
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