Grouts can become an eyesore, especially if you have a problem with mold and dirt. Cleaning joints with these tips will make them radiant white again. Including tricks and the best home remedies to make the joints shine again.
Wherever there are tiles you will have grout. It does not matter whether it is on the walls (bathroom and kitchen) or on the floor. Unfortunately, joints all have one thing in common:because they are located between the tiles, and are slightly lower, they are true gathering places for dust and dirt. In rooms where ventilation is not always optimal, such as in a bathroom, for example, there can also be mold growth.
Cleaning the joints regularly prevents a lot of annoyances in the long run. It can even ensure that you don't have to replace the tiles over time. If you unexpectedly suffer from dirty grout, you can apply the tips and tricks below to get radiant white grout again.
Most people instinctively reach for the most obvious solution for grout cleaning:they run to the store and buy all kinds of chemicals to get started. This is especially true if there is mold growth. However, there are also plenty of home remedies that provide the same result. These are not only better for your health, but also nicer for the environment and your wallet.
You should also pay attention to what material your tiles are made of. Marble and, for example, natural stone cannot be cleaned with chemical agents at all. If you do use this for your joints and this product comes into contact with your tiles, it could just happen that you damage your tiles.
In all cases, it is better to get started with home remedies to clean your grout and tiles. Below you will find a number of home remedies for cleaning the grout, including instructions on how to use them.
Baking soda is now known to many as a good and above all natural cleaning agent. To clean the joints, use a ratio of 3 parts baking soda to 1 part water. Mix until you have a firm paste. You can apply this paste to the joints with a toothbrush, for example. Let the paste sit on the joints for at least 10 minutes and rinse with hot water.
Baking soda not only removes dirt, but is also antibacterial and removes unpleasant odors. In addition, you can remove mold and prevent new molds from forming. Baking soda is mold-resistant.
N.B:never use baking soda on marble and natural stone! Your tiles will become matte from baking soda.
Don't have baking soda at home? Then you could also use baking powder as a substitute. Baking powder is actually a mixture of baking soda with acids. Note that most joints are filled with calcareous cement. Lime cement does not mix well with acids. You should therefore not leave this mixture in for a long time. Keep it on for a maximum of eight minutes and then make sure to rinse the joints thoroughly and remove all baking soda.
At first glance, baking soda and soda appear the same, but chemically there are some differences. These differences are big enough to make baking soda just that little bit more powerful when it comes to cleaning grout. Do you suffer from heavily soiled joints? Then you can preferably use soda. Because this product is a lot stronger, you have to be careful with your eyes, nose and hands. It is not a superfluous luxury to wear gloves and ventilate well when you use soda.
For soda the same applies as for baking soda:take 3 parts soda and mix it with 1 part water. Make a paste of this and apply to the joints with a toothbrush. Soda is anti-fungal, antibacterial and cleansing.
You often see that the combination of vinegar with (baking) soda is touted as the ultimate cleaning combination. However, this is not recommended for cleaning joints. Vinegar is acidic and that creates problems in combination with calcareous cement. The acid ensures that the joints become porous and dirty even faster. Incidentally, this does not only apply to vinegar. Some people also mix (baking) soda with lemon, which is also acidic. Therefore avoid acidic products for cleaning the joints.
Do you have poor ventilation in the bathroom? Then there is a good chance that you will suffer from mold in the winter. This fungus will mainly settle in the joints. This is not only annoying, but also bad for your health. With the above home remedies you will in most cases be able to remove the fungus. If this is not sufficient, you could consider using a steam cleaner. The heat from a steam cleaner is even able to dissolve dirt for a long time.
Are you tired of intensively cleaning your joints after a while? Then make sure that this is no longer necessary by wiping your tiles, including joints, with a clean and dry cloth immediately after showering. As a result, less moisture will remain in the bathroom and the risk of mold formation decreases. Moisture does evaporate, but dirt and limescale remain behind and they cause dirty joints and a haze over the tiles.
Not all joints are made of calcareous cement. There are also joints made with silicone (kit). These are especially prone to dirt and mold in the shower. Unfortunately, most home remedies do not help with this. Time to use some more 'chemical' products.
I have written before that you can use vinegar for a wide variety of things in and around the house. Vinegar is also suitable for cleaning joints. Vinegar is very suitable for cleaning silicone and can even protect against mold growth. Please note:do not use with natural stone and marble tiles.
Mix the vinegar in a ratio of 1:1 with water. Apply this mixture to the joints using a sponge. Let this mixture soak in for a while and then rinse with hot water.
Hydrogen peroxide should be available in every household. It is a handy tool that you can use for countless things at home. If your joints are completely discolored (for example due to mold), you can get hydrogen peroxide (3%). With this you can tackle the discolored joints. Hydrogen peroxide has a bleaching effect, so you have to be careful when you start with this. Apply the product to the joints using a cotton swab or brush. Be careful not to come into contact with the tiles. Wear protective gloves while working. In addition, ensure optimal ventilation.
Note:Do not brush your hair after cleaning. Hydrogen peroxide will bleach your hair immediately! And no, this is absolutely not an encouragement to bleach your hair immediately. The hairdresser also uses this, but they know what they are doing. Moreover, this is combined with a toner or a color.
If you really suffer from bad mold, you can consider cleaning with bleach. Please note:this is very aggressive and chemical. When cleaning, do not only use gloves, but also open a window or ensure sufficient ventilation. Also make sure your clothes don't come into contact with bleach, or your clothes will be over. You can never remove these stains again.
Also, NEVER mix bleach or chlorine with other products. In the worst case, this can trigger a chemical reaction and create chlorine gas. This is a deadly gas.
It may sound crazy, but if you use methylated spirits, you are probably using the most environmentally friendly way to clean silicone joints. The ethanol contained in methylated spirits ensures that the fungus is killed. Unfortunately, there is a disadvantage:the fungus does not come back, but since alcohol does not bleach, you will continue to see the stains. The following also applies here:wear gloves and ventilate the room well.
Ammonia is also suitable for cleaning the joints. It also fights mold and ensures that it comes off, making the joints easier and faster to clean from now on. Simply apply undiluted with a brush. You can then clean the joint with a little baking soda. Do not forget to wear gloves and ventilate the room.
Silicone remains fairly flexible even after application. This is very convenient for construction, but it also has major drawbacks. Unfortunately, mold can seep through the silicone and go deeper than meets the eye. Do you have a lot of problems with mold on the joints? Doesn't any medicine work anymore? Then it is advisable to simply renew the joints. Fortunately, this is fairly quick and easy to do. And a bus silicone sealant doesn't cost much (at the Action around 3.00 euros).
Once the grout is finally clean, you probably won't want to do that job again anytime soon. You could impregnate lime-containing cement joints for this. This prevents the joints from becoming dirty again and mold from adhering to the joints. Special resources are available for this. However, you can also just put candle wax over the joints. With this you seal it and dirt and mold don't stand a chance.
There are various ways to get joints free of mold and dirt. When using heavier substances, it is especially important to pay attention to your own health and safety. Please note the following:
If nothing helps, there is no other option than to renew the joints. Prevent this and clean not only the tiles, but also the joints well after showering. Provide good ventilation, so that the risk of mold is limited.
What do you do to clean the joints?
