As far as weekend cleaning goes, there are a few chores I don’t particularly mind (cleaning the mirrors, changing the sheets, folding the laundry) and a few I put off as long as I can, like dusting the baseboards, or worse—cleaning grout. Luckily, getting your kitchen or bathroom tiles as good as new doesn’t have to be a full weekend project: Instead, you just need a bit of patience, a touch of elbow grease, and a few products you already own. This is how you clean grout so well that it almost—almost—sparkles.
While there are a ton of commercial grout cleaners on the market, many of them have harsh chemicals and require a ton of ventilation. Instead, it’s always best to start with the mildest cleaning solution and build from there if you need to. First, start by combining two parts water and one part Floor Cleaner Concentrate, for detailed spot cleaning or to clean large surface areas. Put half of the mixture aside, and use the other half to start scrubbing your dirty grout. Use a stiff-bristled brush, like this one, in a circular motion. You’ll want to give it a little gumption to get any first-layer residue off.
Then, cover dirty grout lines with a paste of baking soda and water. Fill a spray bottle with the rest of the water-and-Floor-Cleaner solution and give all your grout a good spritz, letting it sit for five to ten minutes. Then, scrub it again with your stiff brush. Most of the gunk should loosen up now, but for any tougher stains, you’ll want to bring in the big guns: hydrogen peroxide. You can apply it straight to the grout, or make a paste made from baking soda and hydrogen peroxide and layer that on.
One last tip: If you’re not sure about a grout cleaner, test it in a hidden spot like behind the toilet or under a kitchen appliance. Then remember to keep a spray bottle with the water-and-Floor Cleaner Concentrate solution on hand for weekly spritzes!
xx L
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