5 Common Tile Cleaning Mistakes You’re Probably Making

When sparkling and tidy, tiled floors can be a real showpiece for your home. They’re a practical option that can last a lifetime if maintained well.

But are you cleaning them properly?

These are the biggest mistakes you can make while cleaning your tiles.

How To Clean Tile Floors

After many years as carpet cleaning experts, our teams now know how to get the best out of your tile floors.

You may think you know how to clean tile floors; you’ve probably been doing it for years. But with decades in the tile and grout cleaning industry, we know a thing or two about terrific tile care.

There could be some tweaks to be made to your tile cleaning routine that could make this task much easier.

These are the biggest mistakes our qualified technicians hear about from customers (and provide some friendly advice on rectifying them, of course). Which ones are you guilty of?

1. Poor Sweeping Technique

It’s surprising how many people skip this step and it’s a crucial one!

Before you mop, it’s important that you perform a thorough sweep beforehand. When you don’t sweep before you mop, the dirt left behind creates a sludgy mess when you put water on the floor or worse, the grit may scratch your tiles.

While sweeping, reach into the corners as well. A microfibre cloth works wonders on this task, easily absorbing dust and hair.

2. Dirty Mop and Filthy Water

You may not be intentionally doing this one, but the dirt on a mop can sneak up on you, particularly if you haven’t replaced your mop for a while and routinely wash your floors.

A dirty mop equals dirty water and swishing it across your floors is just making life harder for yourself. You may need to replace your mop, or you may need to replace your water more often while you’re mopping.

When you finish your clean, thoroughly rinse the mop before popping it back in the cleaning cupboard. This is a vital point to know when you’re eager to know how to clean tile floors effectively.

3. Using Vinegar on Natural Tiles

We actually see this tip regularly in articles about ‘how to clean tile floors’ and it frustrates us greatly!

Regularly cleaning tiled floors with vinegar is a big no-no. The acid in vinegar can, over time, strip protective sealant from stone tiles, such as marble, dulling them and making them prone to etching.

Instead of grabbing a generic tile cleaner, do your research and clean with a product best suited to your type of tile.

4. Excess Water

It makes sense that most people think they need to use a lot of water while cleaning your floors.

This can be making your tiles and grout even dirtier over time.

Here’s why. Grout between the tiles is highly porous, so when you wash with too much water, the grout soaks up the dirty water. This causes grout lines to look dark and grimy and become extremely difficult to clean.

5. Not Cleaning Regularly

We recommend a wet clean of kitchen and bathroom tiles every fortnight.

You should be sweeping every few days to get rid of the gritty debris that can dull the finish of the tiled floor.

Keep in mind that any spills need to be attended to immediately, paying special attention to anything that may have seeped into the grout lines.

What Is the Most Effective Way to Clean Tile Floors?

These rules can get a little confusing. Here’s how to clean tile floors expertly and efficiently.

• Sweep floors thoroughly.
• Combine the cleaning product that is neutral in pH (close to 7) with warm water. Strong alkaline cleaning products may damage grout over time.
• Use a chamois or rag mop (a sponge mop often holds too much dirt and water if not squeezed properly). Your mop should be damp, but not dripping. Mop the floor in an even and gentle motion, ensuring you follow a pattern to reach every area of your floors.
• We also recommend the use of spray mops, for efficient distribution of a cleaning product.

What Is the Easiest and Fastest Way to Clean Grout?

Grout is what does all of the hard work for your tiles because it protects them and provides a water-tight seal.

Your grout does an exceptional job of absorbing dirt, detergent residue and a lot of the grime and oils that regularly occur in rooms like your bathroom and kitchen.

This is how to clean tile floors, in particular the grout lines, but here is a general guide.

• Make a Baking Soda paste from a couple of teaspoons of powder with water.
• Put it on the grout, leave it for a few hours. Give it a scrub with an old toothbrush and rinse.

This method works well but can’t undo years of dirt build-up in your grout. Professional tile cleaning uses specialised de-greasing solutions and equipment to extract grime and guarantee clean and fresh grout.

How Do Professionals Clean Tile Floors?

Professionals utilise specialised cleaning products and industry-grade equipment to treat both your tiles and their grout lines.

They have been specifically trained to tailor their method and which products they use to suit what your type of tile needs for an effective, restorative clean.

Our company doesn’t just specialise in carpet cleaning.

Electrodry’s Tile and Grout Cleaning uses cleaning systems to deep clean and revitalise tile and grout of any age, type and soiling.

How is Electrodry different? Many tile cleaning companies depend on high water pressure to clean your floors, which can cause damage to your grout lines and possibly your walls.

Electrodry’s detailed training ensures that our technicians use far less water and pressure during your clean, focusing on proper techniques and specialised cleaning solutions instead.

Learn more about Electrodry Tile and Grout Cleaning here or give our friendly team a call on 13 27 13.