Grout is a pain to keep clean but it makes such a difference in how your home looks when you learn How to Clean Grout.
You can clean the shower and mop the floors but the dingy dark grout left behind leaves you feeling like the room will never truly be clean. Grout’s porous nature leaves it a bit harder to get truly clean as dirt embeds itself into the textured material. With a little effort and good plan, you can get your grout clean.
How to Clean Grout
There are a variety of ways to clean grout, the method you choose will depend on the type of dirt you are dealing with.
For light stains:
The fastest way to get the lightly stained grout clean and maintain cleaned grout is with a little-diluted bleach. Before you use this method, test a small patch to make sure the bleach doesn’t alter the color of your grout.
Make a mix of 1 part bleach to 4 parts water. Spray the mix or use a sponge to apply it to the grout. Then use a soft-bristled toothbrush and scrub. Be careful not to scrub too hard. This will remove light stains from your grout quickly and easily. Use this mix and a slightly larger scrub brush regularly to maintain your grout.
For very dirty grout:
My favorite way to get grout that needs a lot of work is to make a mix of peroxide and baking soda. Start with 2 tablespoons of baking soda and stir in just enough peroxide that the mixture turns into a thick paste. The baking soda works its way into the pores of the grout to remove the dirt as the peroxide bubbles get out germs and soap scum. Start with 2 tablespoons of baking soda and stir in just enough peroxide that the mixture turns into a thick paste. Use it immediately on the grout and gently scrub with a soft bristled brush. Make more of the paste as needed.
Do you need to regrout your tiles?
If the grout is too deeply stained to get clean with the tricks above your best bet is to pull it out and replace. Grab a grout removal tool and gently run it between the tiles being careful not to scratch the tiles. Clean between tiles well to remove any dirt and mold that worked its way down in between the tiles before installing fresh grout. You will often find classes on installing grout at your local home improvement store.
To prevent future stains:
Use a grout sealer to prevent grout from getting dirty. Once the grout has had about 2 weeks to cure you can help keep it looking great by using a grout sealant. You can also reseal freshly cleaned grout to keep it clean with less work. Prevention goes a long way when dealing with grout.