Many homes have tile flooring as soon as you walk in. Seeing this can leave a good or bad impression on the rest of the home. Lucky for us, tile floors can be pretty easy to clean. So, how can you clean tile floors?
Last week, I talked about how to clean your hardwood flooring. This week, I felt it would be appropriate to add tile flooring, since many homes have both hardwood and tile floors.
Basic cleaning
Just like with hardwood floors, deep cleaning does not need to be done everyday. A simple wipe of debris is perfect for an everyday chore. When doing a basic cleaning, use a broom, vacuum or clean cloth.
Deep Cleaning
Deep cleaning your floors can be done on a weekly basis. This will ensure that your tile floors look new, and makes deep cleaning easier.
- Before deep cleaning your tile floors, make sure you start off with a basic cleaning. Remove any debris on your floors.
- Find a good tile/ flooring cleaner. Some good cleaning products are Bona, Pine-Sol, Clorox, and more. Fill a bucket about 1/4 of the way with cleaner, and fill the rest of the bucket with water.
- Wipe down flooring while using a mop (not a sponge mop), or a clean cloth. Make sure you do not get yourself stuck in a corner. Mop in a way that you don’t have to walk over the tile you just cleaned.
- Depending on how dirty your floors are, empty the bucket and put new cleaner and water in. Do this multiple times if necessary. Avoid moping with dirty water. This can leave a residue on your tile and in the grout.
- After mopping the floors with cleaner, immediately rinse the floors with clean warm water. Make sure you don’t leave standing water anywhere. Dampen your mop before rinsing the floors.
- Dry with a clean towel.
Grout Cleaning
Cleaning the grout in the tile doesn’t need to be done with every cleaning, but it is important to do a couple times a month. Grease and debris can be absorbed into the grout of the tile. This can cause discoloration. The best way to clean tile grout is by making a baking soda and water paste. Apply the paste to the grout overnight. The next morning, scrub with nylon bristles. Apply multiple times until original color appears.