Best way of cleaning grout ?

What is the best way of cleaning grout on floor tiles? Is it possible to do?

Can you re-grout floor tiles ?

I think there are pens you can get in various colours to restore grout back to its original colour, I'd imagine a decent hardware store would sell/know where to get them.

Is there a way of cleaning grout of tiles that have been sloppily applied? I'd say its been there quite a while...does it make a difference?

The missus bought one of those hand held steam cleaners a while back - she thinks it's great for removing dirt and stains from tiles - haven't got around to trying it out meself yet!!

B and Q have the pens

Cleaning showers clean gives some advice on cleaning grout.

I've seen those pens for sale at the checkout at woodies.

In my experience the pens don't last long. If you are doing a large area the nib wears away. I found a product made by Evostik in B & Q that is much better and is similarly priced (give or take a €1). It is similar to the Scuffcoat product you use for polishing shoes. It is a squeezy bottle with a sponge applicator on top. The sponge can be taken off and washed afterwards so you can reuse it again and again. I have since seen it in Homebase too.

Interestly enough when I brought it home my sister remembered seeing a morning DIY programme where they recommended the white scuffcoat (or similar brand) shoe polish as a grout cleaner. It's only about €3 but I have never tried it.

Is there any sealant you can put on over grout to stop it getting dirty so easily?

Clear vinegar is great for cleaning
Let it soak and then clean off using a bit of elbow grease.

OhPinchy said:

Is there any sealant you can put on over grout to stop it getting dirty so easily?

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Yes there is, "Hagesan" do a grout sealer especially suitable for white or light coloured grouts. I've used it myself- it does help to seal the grout but some things will inevitiably stain, coffee, tea and anything with tomato is very hard to remove from grout. If you want to seal existing grout you'll obviously have to clean it thoroughly first and make sure the grout is bone dry before applying the sealer. It'll take about two coats to do a good job and the sealer costs about €15 for A 500ml bottle.

Hagesan is very good stuff. They do a grout cleaner and then you can use there grout clear sealer. I did it a few years ago in an old house and it worked really well.

What about a thin coat of Silicone over the grout.

This may not work too well on floor tiles but should work on bathroom tiles

dino said:

Hagesan is very good stuff. They do a grout cleaner and then you can use there grout clear sealer. I did it a few years ago in an old house and it worked really well.

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Yeah that's right, I think the cleaner is "Hagesan Blue".

great - will give that a go so, thanks.

Lemon juice and an old tootbrush.

I've looked up the sealer for you, it's called "HG Hagesan Super Protector for Grout" and is €15 for 250ml bottle.

Good man Carpenter - will get hold of that cos I see it as a stitch in time saving nine job.

Carpenter,

Any idea where its stocked. I'm fed up cleaning the grouting in our bathroom. On occasions (when the steam is very bad) it would need to be cleaned every two weeks.

I've just used [broken link removed] in a seriously DISGUSTING shower in a house I've just bought and it is nothing short of miraculous. The grouting was virtually solid black... I had to steel myself just to open the door! I sprayed this stuff on and I could literally see the gunk disappearing in front of my eyes as I worked round the cubicle. (I sound like an ad!)

I got it in Atlantic Homecare on the Clonshaugh Road - cost around €15-20 for a 500ml bottle but well worth it. (Was inspired by the Atlantic coupon that came with my ESB bill.)

They had a separate shower cleaner which I didn't try, because for bad mould (which this was), the box recommended the Mould Spray. Would definitely recommend for a first clean of something gross - something gentler would probably suffice for day to day maintenance. They had a whole row of Hagesan products, sue ellen, so though I didn't notice the grout sealer mentioned above I'll certainly be going back to look for it. If it's anywhere near as good as the mould spray it'd be well worth getting.

One thing... The link I used for the picture mentions using it for silicone, but as far as I remember, the bottle said it could stain silicone. (Don't have it in front of me at the moment.) But for grouting it was brilliant.